All Falls Down


"All Falls Down" is a song by American hip hop artist Kanye West. It was released as the third single from his debut album, The College Dropout. The song was produced by West and features singer Syleena Johnson. It was released in February 2004 and entered the UK Singles Chart at number ten and peaked at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 on May 11, 2004, his first Top 10 in the USA. The song was nominated for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 47th Grammy Awards, Viewer's Choice at the 2004 BET Awards and received nominations for a total of four awards at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards.

Background

The song contains an interpolation of "Mystery of Iniquity" by Lauryn Hill from her live album MTV Unplugged No. 2.0. Kanye originally attempted to acquire legal clearance to sample the recording but due to various complications, the permission was withheld. West then called upon Syleena Johnson to re-sing the relevant vocal portions of "Mystery of Iniquity" which ended up in the final track. The version of the song with the original sample can be heard on West's Freshman Adjustment mixtape. However, the earliest version of the song can be found on West's 2001 mixtape The Prerequisite, on which it called "Dream Come True". Lyrically, "All Falls Down" examines the self-consciousness and insecurity within society, particularly the black community, and how these characteristics pertain to economic materialism.
In a 2013 interview with The New York Times, West revealed Dead Prez's impact on the song;
"It wasn’t until I hung out with Dead Prez and understood how to make, you know, raps with a message sound cool that I was able to just write “All Falls Down” in 15 minutes.”

Live performances

West performed the song live on Def Poetry Jam in 2004 as a poem titled "Self Conscious". A performance of "All Falls Down" was included on West's 2006 live album Late Orchestration, which was recorded in 2005 at Abbey Road Studios in London. It was performed live by West in 2015 as the closer to his headlining set at Glastonbury.
The song was performed by West as part of a medley at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards, as well on numerous television shows, including; Late Show with David Letterman, Total Request Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and Later... with Jools Holland.

Music video

The music video for "All Falls Down" was directed by Chris Milk and shot at Ontario International Airport in Ontario, California. It follows West as he accompanies his girlfriend, played by Stacey Dash, to the airport to catch her flight. The video is shot in first-person perspective, displaying the journey from their car to the airport terminal through West's eyes. The music video also features cameos by GLC, Consequence, Common, Kel Mitchell, and Syleena Johnson, who features on the song, as the lady who checks Dash in at the airport reception. Complex named it the 18th best music video of the 2000s decade.

Accolades

Spin named "All Falls Down" the third best song of 2004.
YearOrganizationAwardResultRef.
2004BET AwardsViewer's Choice
2004MOBO AwardsBest Single
2004MOBO AwardsBest Video
2004MTV Video Music AwardsBest New Artist in a Video
2004MTV Video Music AwardsBreakthrough Video
2004MTV Video Music AwardsBest Hip-Hop Video
2004MTV Video Music AwardsBest Male Video
2004MuchMusic Video AwardsBest International Video - Artist
2004Teen Choice AwardsChoice Music: Hip-Hop/Rap Track
2004Vibe AwardsReelest Video
2005ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music AwardsAward Winning Rap Songs
2005ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music AwardsAward Winning R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
2005Grammy AwardsBest Rap/Sung Collaboration
2005Groovevolt Music and Fashion AwardsBest Hip-Hop Song Performance - Solo

Track listings

12" vinyl #1

A-Side
  1. "All Falls Down"
  2. "All Falls Down"
  3. "All Falls Down"
B-Side
  1. "Get 'Em High"
  2. "Get 'Em High"
  3. "Get 'Em High"

    12" vinyl #2

A-Side
  1. "All Falls Down"
  2. "All Falls Down"
B-Side
  1. "Heavy Hitters"
  2. "Heavy Hitters"

    CD single #1

  3. "All Falls Down"
  4. "Heavy Hitters"

    CD single #2

  5. "All Falls Down"
  6. "Get 'Em High"
  7. "Heavy Hitters"
  8. "Through the Wire"

    CD single #3

  9. "All Falls Down - Explicit"
  10. "All Falls Down" - Edited"
  11. "Heavy Hitters "
  12. "Get 'Em High "
  13. "All Falls Down - Video"

    Personnel

Information taken from The College Dropout liner notes.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications