Through the Wire

"Through the Wire" is the debut solo single by American rapper and producer Kanye West, who wrote and recorded the song with his jaw wired shut after a car crash on October 23, 2002. The song samples (and its title is a play on) Chaka Khan's 1985 single "Through the Fire" and was released on September 30, 2003 as the lead single (backed with "Two Words") and nineteenth track from his debut studio album The College Dropout (2004).

The song was originally released as "Through the Wire (Still Standing)" on West’s debut mixtape Get Well Soon…, released before the single, on the 14th of December, 2002. The mixtape version also features an outro sampled from Elton John's "I'm Still Standing", representing his hope after the accident and partially giving the song its title. As such, when the sample was removed, so was the sample's mention in the title of the track.

When released, "Through the Wire" received near-universal acclaim from music critics and peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the charts for a total of twenty-one weeks. It also charted in the top 10 on three other charts in the United States and one in the United Kingdom, the latter being its highest position being number 3 on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles and Albums Charts, and the song was also certified Platinum and Gold in the United States and United Kingdom respectively. The song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance in 2005, but lost to Jay-Z's "99 Problems". The music video was financed by West, who was inspired by an Adidas advertisement. It would end up winning Video of the Year at the 2004 Source Hip Hop Awards.