Common Says He Turned Down These Classic Kanye West Beats

DeMicia Inman
·2 min read
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Common reveals which Ye beats he rejected during a new interview. Speaking with the podcast 7PM In Brooklyn, hosted by Carmelo Anthony and The Kid Mero, the rapper detailed stories from back when the YEEZY founder still went by his birth name, Kanye West.

“It’s at least, 10 Ye beats out there that I passed on,” explained the Chicago native. “Even on one of those albums, he like, ‘Common passed on the beat, I turned it into a jam,'” referencing the chorus on “Everything I Am” from Ye’s Graduation album.

Kanye West and Common performing
Hip hop artists Common (L) and Kanye West (R) perform on stage at BET’s Up Front 2005 April 12, 2005 in New York City.

The list also includes iconic tracks like “I Wonder” and “I Heard Em Say.”

“It’s crazy because I didn’t take any Ye beats, like in that ’96-’97, when I met him era. I got more memories of joints I passed on, beats that he made for me, that ended up being like…a lot of his Late Registration album,” he continued.

“The song ‘Heard ‘Em Say,’ he made that beat for me,” the 52-year-old detailed. “I was like, ‘This beat dope.’ He was like, ‘You want it?’ and I was like, ‘Man I gotta…’ because it didn’t feel like it was fitting in my album. The album beat, it wouldn’t fit. So I was like, ‘Nah, you good.’ He said, ‘Are you sure?’ I was like, ‘Nah I’m good.'”

He continued to elaborate, “I promise you, he wrote that song, he wrote ‘Heard ‘Em Say’ in 10 minutes. I sat there and watched this man write the song. He has just made the beat, and he wrote the song, the whole song. I said, ‘Whew!’ I said, ‘Yo, this was meant for you.’ I can’t front, I wasn’t gon’ do what he did to that beat.”

Still, the working relationship was beneficial to both musicians as some of the Ye beats Common chose to rap on became some of his top records. In his catalog, the “Jesus Walks” performer delivered the beats for songs including “Go!,” and “Testify.”

The full conversation on 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony and Kid Mero also features commentary exploring additional moments in Common’s career including times with Michael Jordan and Denzel Washington, beefing with Ice Cube, and his thoughts on the Drake and Kendrick Lamar rift.

Watch the podcast below, and find more details on its Apple Podcasts landing page.

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