Recorded 2007 Length 3:26 | Genre Hip hop | |
B-side "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (Remix) Released October 2, 2007 (2007-10-02) Format CD single, digital download | ||
"Good Life" is a song by American hip-hop artist Kanye West. It was released on October 2, 2007 as the third single for his third studio album Graduation. The song was produced by West and DJ Toomp and contains a sample of the keyboard outro to "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" as performed by Michael Jackson. "Good Life" also has additional drum programming and additional production by Timbaland and Mike Dean, respectively. The track features singer/rapper T-Pain as well as background vocals provided by John Legend and Ne-Yo. "Good Life" managed to enter charts prior to actually being released as a single and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Song at the 50th Grammy Awards. The single has since sold over two million copies in the United States and has been certified double platinum.
Contents
Chart performance
"Good Life" debuted at number sixty-three on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs during the chart week of September 22, 2007, where it eventually peaked at number three, becoming West's second top ten single from Graduation on the chart. For the chart week of September 29, 2007, "Good Life" was the "Hot Shot Debut" of the week on the Billboard Hot 100, as it entered at number fourteen due to strong digital downloads. The song climbed to the seventh position, becoming West's second consecutive top ten Hot 100 single from Graduation as well as T-Pain's sixth top ten single. "Good Life" debuted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number thirty-nine and has peaked at number twenty-three. The single generated a strong reaction from the MuchMusic Countdown, where it reached number-one. "Good Life" was able to enter at number thirty-three on the UK Singles Chart before it was officially released in the UK until November 5, 2007. Upon its release, the single was able to rise and peak at the twenty-third position on the chart.
Music video
The music video for "Good Life" was directed by Jonas & François with animation by So-Me. The video premiered on September 11, 2007 as MTV Jams' "Jam of the Week". It features West and T-Pain performing with animated backdrops and often mouthing the words of the song lyrics, which appear in large letters. The version of the song used in the video contains an additional twenty-three second intro that the album version does not have. The video also features rapper/model LoLa Monroe. The video has reached #4 so far on VH1's VSpot Top 20 Countdown. It ranked #40 on VH1's "Top 40 Videos of 2007." The video was the recipient of several awards nominations, winning "Best Hip-Hop Video" at the BET Hip Hop Awards and "Best Special Effects in a Video" at the MTV Video Music Awards.
Media usage
The song was featured on the HBO television series Entourage during season 4, episode 11, titled "No Cannes Do." In the final moments of the episode, Kanye West makes an appearance and lets Vincent Chase and his crew use his plane to fly to Cannes as the song "Good Life" faded into the credits.
Track listings
US CD single
- "Good Life" (Explicit Album Version) – 3:30
- "Good Life" (Instrumental) – 3:24
- "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (Remix) [featuring Young Jeezy] – 4:09
- "Good Life" (Video) – 3:56
UK CD single
- "Good Life" – 3:27
- "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (Remix) [featuring Young Jeezy] – 4:07
Personnel
Information taken from Graduation liner notes.