Get ready to feel old man Ebro: Kanye West‘s certified classic sophomore effort, Late Registration, is celebrating its thirteenth birthday. The album arrived during an era that feels like another world. To set the scene on August 30, 2005 — “Feel Good Inc” by Gorillaz was sitting pretty at #16 on the Billboard Top 20. Beyonce had just released music as a member of Destiny’s Child. New Orleans was in the midst of Hurricane Katrina and ‘Ye was just days away from his infamous “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” outburst on live TV.

Late Registration dropped like a hip-hop nuke on mainstream pop music. In its first week, the album debuted at #1 on Billboard, and sold 860,000 copies in the US alone. Kanye got the numbers, the respect, the critical acclaim – and the bragging rights that come from giving two middle fingers to the dreaded sophomore slump. The music itself? Peak soul-sampling Yeezy from front to back, with all-time anthems like “Gold Digger” flanking deep cut classics like “Drive Slow.” The LP is lauded as one of the finest contemporary hip-hop albums of the modern era. In truth there’s too many rewindable ad libs and genius beats to list, so when it comes to Late Registration, it’s a good idea to say less and turn it up.

H/T: Billboard

Tags: 13th, Billboard Hot 100, birthday, kanye west, Late Registration

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