Kanye West Released His ‘College Dropout’ Debut LP 18 Years Ago

On this date in 2004, Def Jam Records through the Roc-A-Fella imprint dropped the debut album of the uber-talented producer/emcee Kanye West properly entitled College Dropout.

The LP debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 441,000 copies during its first week. The five singles that achieved chart success and got him a Grammy award at the 47th Grammy Awards include “Through the Wire” and “Jesus Walks”. The singles “All Falls Down” and “Slow Jamz” charted within the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the Jamie Foxx and Twista feature also charted number one.

It is West’s best-selling album in the United States, with domestic sales of 3.4 million and worldwide over 4 million copies. It’s been listed among the greatest debut albums of all time and by Time and Rolling Stone as one of the greatest albums of all time.