Produced by Kanye West

As strange as it seems, Hip-hops biggest ego first cut his teeth in the industry working behind the scenes.

His big break came when his talents where discovered by Jay-Z and Damon Dash and he began to produce for the artists on their Roc-A-Fella Records label. This was a move that would lead Kanye to produce for the likes of Memphis Bleek, Beenie Sigel, The Diplomats and most notably Jay-Z himself. Kanye produced several tracks including the hit Izzo (H.O.V.A.) on Jay’s seminal 2001 album The Blueprint and eventually would also release his first solo record on Roc-A Fella in 2004.

Kanye’s solo career may have gone from strength to strength since then but his first home has always been the studio and he’s gone on to produce for pretty much everyone in the business from Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, Common, Diddy, Game, and Nas to young bucks like Kid Cudi, Lupe Fiasco and Drake. Here is a selection of his best: