Home > Music  $12.99   MPN: 000954102 UPC: 602517412200 Graduation Features : Explicit Lyrics Artists : Kanye West Tracks : Good Morning Champion Stronger I Wonder Good Life feat. T-Pain Can't Tell Me Nothing Barry Bonds feat. Lil Wayne Drunk and Hot Girls feat. Mos Def Flashing Lights feat. Dwele Everything I Am feat. Scratches by DJ Premier The Glory Homecoming Big Brother Release Date:  11 September, 2007 Manufacturer:  Roc-A-Fella Records Availability:  Usually ships in 24 hours List Price:  $13.98   Accessories: (none) Similar Products: Curtis Finding Forever Eardrum T.I. vs T.I.P. Timbaland Presents Shock Value   Kanye West's third in a whimsical trilogy of "scholarly" albums, Graduation wears its predecessors' badges of success on its sleeve. Matriculation has its rewards, apparently, and it's time to take stock. Lyrically, there's plenty of self-congratulation to attend to, but the real fun comes in the collabs, and West chooses co-conspirators like a kid in a candy store--John Legend ("Good Life"), Coldplay's Chris Martin ("Homecoming"), Mos Def and the Section Quartet (both adorable choices for the foreboding "Drunk and Hot Girls")--and plucks samples with A-list braggadocio: Elton John, Steely Dan, Daft Punk, Can, Michael Jackson, Public Enemy. Nothing here quite captures the superlative symbiosis of West's past best beats (think "Gold Digger"), but the central motif remains: No one ever accused Kanye West of being too cool for school, and Graduation still knows how to party. True, Kanye West will happily whine about the pitfalls at the top of the heap, clear his throat and try to rhyme it with Barry Bonds, or diss fish in a barrel all day, but that can't stop a shameless good time, and Graduation maintains an unshakeable knack for producing it. --Jason Kirk   Customer Reviews   Another classic album from Kanye. Rating: 5 I don't really need to write a long paragraph to sum up this album from Kanye. It is truly what hip-hop needs in a time where most lyrics center around violence and sex. This album is filled with inspirational music and music that can pump you up for anything in your life. I must say that of the 13 tracks, I love 12 of them, with just one track being "ok" for me. That's forgiveable considering Kanye released an album with no fillers. A lot of people love the track I'm not a fan of, so it's simply a matter of taste. If you are looking at this album and considering a purchase, do yourself a favor, and buy yourself a piece of real hip-hop. Filled with high production values, good lyrics, and some of the most creative beats in the past few years, Graduation has something for everyone. Kanye may have style, but he can't rap. Rating: 3 I love how mindless people can be with hype. Its amazing to watch it snowball, to hear "Kanye beat 50 cent" and "his album is pretty amazing" and "oh my god its awesome." Then you get the album and listen to it.... Great production. Good samples. Fun jams. But Kanye isn't breaking ground here. He's not a rapper. He's a stylist. Listening to Kanye rap is kinda like listening to P.Diddy (or whatever his name is at the moment) rap. Occasionally you hear a nice thought or two, but there's no seamless flow, no raw energy, no lyrical substance. Kanye's probably a pretty cool guy. He can dress well, and I really like that he chose that Kid Robot Japanime style for his album art. Very un machismo hip hop. Seeing a cartoon bear is a refreshing change from guns, naked chicks, or bling. Anyway, its another example of how hip hop is about selling albums. Too bad 50 couldn't keep up the measured anger from Get Rich or Die Tryin. He woulda won this one hands down. Mo money less talent, apparently. This album is kinda fun and that's about it. Jump on the bandwagon. Give this album a year and it'll be covered in dust.