When Kanye West dropped The Life of Pablo in 2016, it was a mess. A beautiful, chaotic, constantly shifting mess. He was literally changing the tracklist and the mixes while the album was already on Tidal. People were confused. But right at the end of that sprawling project sat Kanye West Fade, a track that felt less like a rap song and more like a fever dream in a Chicago basement club.
It didn’t follow the rules. It still doesn’t.
Most rappers use house music as a gimmick or a cheap way to get a radio hit. Ye didn't do that. He went deep into the crates, pulling from the actual DNA of Chicago house. If you listen closely, the song is basically a Frankenstein’s monster of legendary samples. You’ve got the iconic bassline from Mr. Fingers’ "Mystery of Love" thumping through the floorboards. Then there's that "Deep Inside" vocal from Hardrive that just loops until it burns into your brain.
Honestly, the first time I heard it, I thought the file was looping by mistake. But that’s the point. It’s hypnotic.
The Five-Minute Miracle
You’d think a track this layered took months to perfect. Nope. Ty Dolla $ign, who provides those silky, gritty vocals alongside Post Malone, famously told W Magazine that they basically came up with the whole thing in five minutes.
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Five minutes.
Ye did the beat on the spot. Ty and Posty jumped on. It was pure instinct. That’s probably why it feels so raw. It hasn't been polished until the soul was rubbed off. It’s got that "rough around the edges" energy that defined the whole Pablo era. It’s rare to see a superstar at that level just let a song breathe without overthinking the lyrics. Speaking of lyrics, there aren't many. Kanye’s verse is mostly vibes—rolling up, pouring up, and "rocking the boat." It’s a club record in its truest form.
Those Samples You Keep Hearing
If you’re a crate digger, Kanye West Fade is a goldmine. It’s not just one or two loops. It’s a conversation between eras.
- Rare Earth: The "I know I'm losing you" hook comes from a 1970 cover of a Temptations classic. It gives the song its desperate, soulful edge.
- Barbara Tucker: That "I get lifted" vocal? That's 90s house royalty right there.
- Mr. Fingers: Larry Heard’s "Mystery of Love" is the skeleton of the entire track. Without that bassline, the song doesn't exist.
The VMA Moment That Changed Everything
We have to talk about the video. Before the 2016 MTV VMAs, Kanye West Fade was just a cool album closer. After that night, it was a cultural phenomenon.
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Kanye stood on stage for four minutes, talked about Steve Jobs and Walt Disney, and then just said, "I'm gonna play y'all a piece of my art." Then the screen stayed dark and Teyana Taylor appeared.
Directed by Eli Russell Linnetz, the video was a blatant, sweaty homage to Flashdance. Teyana was transfixing. She wasn't just dancing; she was performing a high-intensity athletic feat in a deserted gym. It was one of those rare "where were you when" moments on the internet.
Then it got weird.
The ending features Teyana, her husband Iman Shumpert, and their daughter Junie surrounded by sheep. Oh, and Teyana has the face of a lioness. People spent weeks trying to decode it. Was it about motherhood? Was it a "lion vs. sheep" metaphor? Linnetz later hinted it was foreshadowing bigger things, but honestly, it might have just been Kanye being Kanye. It was striking, bizarre, and impossible to look away from.
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Why It Still Matters Today
A lot of 2016-era music feels dated now. The "SoundCloud rap" wave has mostly come and gone. But Kanye West Fade feels weirdly timeless because it’s rooted in house music, which is cyclical by nature. It’s a bridge between the South Side of Chicago in 1985 and a futuristic pop landscape.
It showed that Kanye didn't need to write a 16-bar masterpiece to control the room. He just needed a groove.
If you want to really appreciate what’s happening in the track, stop listening to it on your phone speakers. This is "car audio" or "club system" music. You need to feel that Mr. Fingers bassline in your chest to understand why it’s one of the most effective things he’s ever put together.
Next Steps for the Obsessed:
- Listen to the "Mystery of Love" original: If you like the bass in Fade, go back to the source. Larry Heard is a genius.
- Watch the VMA Speech: Kanye’s intro to the video is peak "Ye" and gives a lot of context to his headspace during the Life of Pablo rollout.
- Check the "New" Mix: Remember, Kanye updated the album multiple times. Find the version with the "curt, echoing outro"—it bangs way harder than the original leak.