THROUGH THE FIRE / THROUGH THE WIRE
Nothing better exemplifies the popularity, creativity and success of the usage of samples in music than the song "Through The Wire."

Written in by David Foster, Tom Keane and Cynthia Weil, the song "Through The Fire" was released as a single by R&B star Chaka Khan, as the second single off her multi-platinum 1984 solo album I Feel For You (featuring the Grammy Award winning single of the same name.) Produced by David Foster, "Through The Fire" reached the R&B Top Ten charts and set a record (at the time) for most consecutive weeks on the Billboard R&B chart. The song then crossed over to the Pop chart, where it remained for 19 weeks, charting as high as #60; it crossed over again, this time making it onto the Adult Contemporary charts. A massive hit love song in the mid-eighties, the tune remains a popular favorite due much in part to Khan's soaring multi-octave vocals. Almost ten years later, the song would experience a second moment in the spotlight.

In October 2002, up & coming hip-hop artist Kanye West was in Los Angeles working in a recording studio, producing music for other artists. Leaving the studio one night at 3 a.m., West's car was involved in a near-fatal car. After two weeks in the hospital (and having his reconstructive surgery to fix his jaw,) West recorded the song "Through The Wire" at the Record Plant studios with his jaw still wired shut. The song was inspired by his experience and rehabilitation process. The chorus and the instrumentals sampled a "pitched up" version of Chaka Khan's 1985 smash single "Through The Fire." The track initially circulated on West's unofficial mixtapes before being released officially in late 2003.

Critically acclaimed, the song was touted for it's heartbreaking and comical lyrics, noting that the words were loud and clear despite the rapper's slight slur and spoke to West's determination to recover from his accident. "Through The Wire" debuted at #94 on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number fifteen for five weeks. It stayed on the charts for twenty-one weeks. It's success on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop singles charts was better: it reached #8. And it hit #4 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. In the U.K., the single debuted at #9 on the U.K. Singles Charts where it peaked for two weeks. "Through The Wire" charted throughout Europe. Given the critic's positive response and the solid chart performances, the success of "Through The Wire" enabled West to convince reluctant Roc-A-Fella Records executives to let their prize producer release his own rap album. Kanye West's album The College Dropout was released in February 2004 and received multiple Grammy nominations, including Album of The Year and "Best Solo Rap Performance" for "Through The Wire." West won neither of those categories but did take home Grammy Awards that year for Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song (for "Jesus Walks.") The College Dropout went on to sell in excess of three million copies in the United States.

RELATED LINKS
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www.chakakhan.com
www.kanyeuniversecity.com