Famous

About Famous

"Famous" (originally "Nina Chop") is a song by American rapper Kanye West. It serves as the lead single from his seventh studio album The Life of Pablo (2016). The song features vocals from Barbadian singer Rihanna and ad-libs from American hip hop artist Swizz Beatz, and enlists samples of Jamaican singer Sister Nancy's song "Bam" and "Do What You Gotta Do" by American singer Nina Simone. The single was serviced to US Urban and Rhythmic contemporary radio stations on March 28, 2016, and was confirmed for release three days before. It was sent to Italian Contemporary hit radio stations on April 15 by Universal. Upon its release, "Famous" was met with both critical acclaim and scrutiny for a controversial lyrical reference to American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, partially in relation to West's interruption of her 2009 VMA acceptance speech. After West claimed to have obtained Swift's approval over the criticized lyric, Swift denied the claim, criticizing West and denouncing the lyric as "misogynistic" in a statement. Several months later, West's wife Kim Kardashian released a video capturing a conversation between Swift and West in which Swift appears to approve the lyric. In June 2016, West released a music video for "Famous" depicting wax figures of West, Swift, Kardashian, George W. Bush, Donald Trump, Anna Wintour, Rihanna, Chris Brown, Ray J, Amber Rose, Caitlyn Jenner, and Bill Cosby all sleeping nude in a shared bed. It was released to a polarized response. The wax figures used in the video were later exhibited as a sculpture. The song was nominated for Best Rap/Sung Performance and Best Rap Song at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards. more »