Jay Z & Kanye West
Sep 12, 2011
Rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West had first worked together on the former's 2000 song "This Can't Be Life", which was produced by West, and on Jay-Z's 2001 album The Blueprint, which showcased West's style of hip hop production at the time. West's early production work on Jay-Z's music helped raise his profile in the music industry. Subsequent collaborative work by the two included further production work by West for Jay-Z and collaborations on singles such as "Swagga Like Us", "Run This Town", and "Monster". Originally intended to be a five-track EP by Jay-Z and West, Watch the Throne was revealed by West to be a full-length album in an October 2010 interview for MTV.
Watch the Throne was released on August 8, 2011, by Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, and Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions for the album took place at various recording locations and began in November 2010. It was produced by West, 88 Keys, RZA, Swizz Beatz, Jeff Bhasker, and Mike Dean, among others.
Upon its release, Watch the Throne received generally positive reviews from music critics, who commended its production and the rappers' performances, although some criticized their subject matter and the album's cohesivenessThe album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 charts, selling 436,000 copies in its first week. It has produced two singles, "H•A•M" and most recently the radio friendly track "Otis" which heavily samples Otis Redding, both of which attained Billboard chart success. Jay-Z and West will promote the album with a concert tour during October to December 2011.
Watch The Throne Tour Dates:
- 9/22/11 Detroit, MI Palace of Auburn Hills
- 9/24/11 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
- 9/25/11 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
- 9/27/11 East Rutherford, NJ Izod Center
- 9/28/11 East Rutherford, NJ Izod Center
- 9/29/11 Washington DC Verizon Center
- 10/4/11 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
- 10/6/11 Chicago, IL United Center
- 10/7/11 Chicago, IL United Center
- 10/8/11 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
- 10/10/11 Denver, CO Pepsi Center
- 10/13/11 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome
- 10/14/11 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena
- 10/16/11 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion
- 10/17/11 Sacramento, CA Power Balance Pavilion
- 10/19/11 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
- 10/20/11 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
- 10/21/11 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena
- 10/25/11 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
- 10/26/11 Houston, TX Toyota Center
- 10/29/11 Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
- 10/30/11 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
- 11/1/11 Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner Arena
- 11/3/11 Boston, MA TD Garden
