Diamonds from Sierra Leone

"Diamonds from Sierra Leone"
Single by Kanye West
from the album Late Registration
Released	May 31, 2005
Format	Digital download 12" maxi single
Recorded	2004 The Record Plant Grandmaster Recording Studios (Hollywood, California)
Genre	Hip hop
Length	3:58
Label	Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam
Writer(s)	Kanye West, Devon Harris, John Barry, Don Black
Producer	Kanye West, Jon Brion, Devo Springsteen
Certification	Gold (RIAA)
Kanye West singles chronology
"The Corner" (2005) "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (2005) "Go!" (2005)

"Diamonds from Sierra Leone" is a Grammy-winning song by American rap artist Kanye West. It was released on July 4, 2005 as the lead single of his second studio album, Late Registration.^[1] The song contains a sample of the theme song for the 1971 James Bond film, Diamonds Are Forever as performed by Shirley Bassey. Bassey was reported to be very impressed with Kanye's performance and stated that she wished to work with him in the future.^[2] The song peaked at number forty-three on the Billboard Hot 100, was moderately successful on the iTunes music service, and peaked in the eight spot on the UK Top 40. It won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Song at the 48th Grammy Awards.

Background

After gathering research on the plight of children in West African nations who since 1991 having been forced to mine conflict diamonds and die in civil wars financed by them, West recorded a remix to "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" which featured an additional closing verse by Jay-Z and new verses that detail the situation in Sierra Leone. He initiates the remix by proclaiming, "Good Morning! This ain't Vietnam Still, people lose hands, legs, arms for real/Little was known of Sierra Leone, and how it connect to the diamonds we own..."^[3] The remix was included as the eleventh track within the album, whereas the original version was included as a bonus track. It was originally entitled, "Diamonds Are Forever" but because Jay had a song on The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse called "Diamond Is Forever," Kanye had it changed.^{[citation needed]} An unofficial remix entitled "Conflict Diamonds," which went into even further detail regarding the situation in Sierra Leone, was recorded by Kanye's friend and fellow Chicagoan rapper Lupe Fiasco. "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" remains a crowd favorite and is one of West's most performed songs. It boasts a chorus that calls for listeners to "Throw ya diamonds in the sky," referring to the Roc-A-Fella hand sign, which is in the shape of a diamond.

Music video

The music video for "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" was directed by Hype Williams and shot entirely in black-and-white. It was filmed on location in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic. West was fascinated by the architecture found in the capital and felt its sculptures, cathedrals, and stone pavements emitted the timeless feel of "Diamonds." ^[4] The video illustrates the topics West would later touch on within the remix of the song, as it features visuals of young African children toiling away in mines under the careful watch of their wardens. The images are juxtaposed with scenes of wealthy Westerners shopping in boutiques and trying on jewelry. The music video ends with text that reads, "Please purchase conflict-free diamonds."

Track listings

Digital download "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" – 4:00 US Promo Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Clean) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Explicit) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Instrumental) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (A cappella) – 3:18 UK Promo Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Clean) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Explicit) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Instrumental) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (A cappella) – 3:18

UK Maxi Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone – 4:01 "Jesus Walks" – 4:58 "The New Workout Plan" (Remix) 4:03 UK CD Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Album Version) – 4:00 "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Instrumental) – 4:00 German CD Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Album Version) "Jesus Walks" (Remix Explicit) European Maxi-Single "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" (Album Version) – 4:00 "Jesus Walks" (Remix) – 4:58

Personnel

Information taken from Late Registration liner.^[1]

• Songwriters: Kanye West, Devon Harris, John Barry, Don Black
• Producers: Kanye West, Jon Brion, Devon Harris
• Recorders: Anthony Kilhoffer & Tom Biller
• Mix engineer: Manny Marroquin
• Assistant engineers: Richard Reitz & Jarred Robbins
• Keyboards: Tom Craskey
• Guitars: Dave Tozer
• Drums: Michel Gondry

Chart positions

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart[5]	52
Canadian Singles Chart	18[6]
Danish Singles Chart	9[6]
Dutch Singles Chart	9[6]
European Hot 100	32[7]
Finnish Singles Chart	17[6]
German Singles Chart	67[6]
Irish Singles Chart	19[6]
Norwegian Singles Chart	16[6]
Swedish Singles Chart	30[6]
Swiss Singles Chart	52[6]
UK Singles Chart	8[6]
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	43[8]
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs	21[9]
U.S. Billboard Hot Rap Tracks	11[10]
U.S. Billboard Pop 100	40[11]
U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40	24[12]

Release history

Region	Format	Date
North America	Digital download, 12"	May 31, 2005 (2005-05-31)
United Kingdom	Digital download, CD, 12"	July 4, 2005 (2005-07-04)
Germany	CD	July 25, 2005 (2005-07-25)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} (2005) Album notes for Late Registration by Kanye West. Roc-A-Fella Records.
2. ^ World Entertainment News Network (2007-10-29). "Shirley Bassey Wants To Work With Kanye West". Starpulsec.com. Starpulse. http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2007/10/29/shirley_bassey_wants_to_work_with_kanye_. Retrieved 2007-10-29. 
3. ^ Crosley, Hillary; Aswad, Jem (2005-06-14). "'Diamonds' Remix: Kanye Raps About Rocks, Jay Raps About Roc". MTV. MTV Networks. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1504091/20050614/index.jhtml?headlines=true. Retrieved 2005-06-14. 
4. ^ Reid, Shaheem (2005-05-17). "Kanye West Shooting 'Diamonds' Video In 'Pray-Goo'". MTV. MTV Networks. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1502507/20050517/west_kanye.jhtml. Retrieved 2005-05-17. 
5. ^ http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/23790/20051020-0000/issue815.pdf
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j} "Kanye West – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". aCharts.us. http://acharts.us/song/801. Retrieved 2009-05-09. 
7. ^ "European Hot 100 Singles – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-07-23. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=349&cfgn=Singles&cfn=European+Hot+100+Singles&ci=3059787&cdi=8375008&cid=07%2F23%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-07-23. ^{[dead link]}
8. ^ "The Billboard Hot 100 – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-09-24. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=379&cfgn=Singles&cfn=The+Billboard+Hot+100&ci=3060866&cdi=8417362&cid=09%2F24%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-09-24. ^{[dead link]}
9. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-09-17. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=367&cfgn=Singles&cfn=Hot+R%26amp%3BB%2FHip-Hop+Songs&ci=3060696&cdi=8410683&cid=09%2F17%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-09-17. ^{[dead link]}
10. ^ "Hot Rap Tracks – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-07-30. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=370&cfgn=Singles&cfn=Hot+Rap+Tracks&ci=3059865&cdi=8378124&cid=07%2F30%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-07-30. ^{[dead link]}
11. ^ "Pop 100 – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-10-22. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=396&cfgn=Singles&cfn=Pop+100&ci=3061832&cdi=8455657&cid=10%2F22%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-10-22. ^{[dead link]}
12. ^ "Rhythmic Top 40 – Diamonds From Sierra Leone". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2005-07-02. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=378&cfgn=Singles&cfn=Rhythmic+Top+40&ci=3059445&cdi=8361621&cid=07%2F02%2F2005. Retrieved 2005-07-02. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• Photos from diamond mines in Sierra Leone
• Music video for "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" on YouTube