The Kanye West song that was supposed to appear on Jay-Z’s ‘The Blueprint 3’
Of course music is subjective. There’s no scientific formula to determine what is actually a good song or a bad song. But by most accepted metrics of making a judgement on what renders a song a bop, ‘Heartless’ by Kanye West has all the right accolades: positive reviews from critics, a number two ranking on the Billboard Hot 100, and even a legacy tied to Barack Obama’s first term in office.
So the 2008 single ‘Heartless’ is, for all intents and purposes, a really good song. It was even performed by Kanye at Obama’s 2009 inauguration ceremony, shifting the lyrics to celebrate the first Black President.
And yet the catchy ballad, which fuses genres hip-hop, pop, and R&B together, was almost not meant to be. Well, it was written up by legendary Chicago producer No. I.D. already, but it was actually meant to be for Jay Z’s Blueprint 3 album.
In an interview with Complex magazine, No. I.D., or the “Godfather of Chicago hip hop”, as he is cited to be, discusses just how Kanye obtained the 2008 single, which is one of the highest certified digital singles in American history. “’Heartless’ was actually for Blueprint 3,” No. I.D. explained. “I remember when we got to that record, Kanye heard it and said ‘Nope, I’m keeping this one for myself.’ And I was like, ‘Come on man, you’re not even working on an album.’ And he said ‘Now I am.’”
Laughing at the memory, the producer continued. “Jay was sitting there waiting on beats for the album, and here we go, embarking on a whole other album. Then you’ve gotta do a tour and everything. Kanye heard it and said, ‘Nope I’m keeping this one for myself.’ And I was like, ‘Come on man, you’re not even working on an album.’ And he said ‘Now I am.’”
“That’s why Timbaland did so many things on Blueprint 3 because we kept a lot of those beats for 808s. But I knew “Heartless” was going to be a big record. It was actually between this and “Love Lockdown” for what he was going to play on the VMAs—those were the only two songs he had done at the time. And that’s when he premiered that whole 808s look. That’s probably the biggest song of my career or any song I’ve been a part of.”
But if you’re wondering if Jay-Z would be annoyed – wouldn’t you? – at missing out on this iconic track, think again. ““Jay wasn’t mad that Ye got it, because that’s par for the course,” No. I.D. concluded. “You know, he just kinda looked at me like ‘Yo, where are some more of them beats?’”
The song has since taken on a life of its own, garnering numerous covers and references across pop culture. It was parodied in South Park, in which the rapper commented that despite the episode “murdered [him] last night” it was “pretty funny”; it has been interpolated by David Guetta; and it has been covered across the industry, from Jason Derulo, Post Malone, and even Australian The X Factor contestant Samantha Jade. Her performance received a standing ovation from the judges and audience. Well living in Australia, it probably was the coldest story ever told.