Late Registration

Touch the Sky

Kanye West

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

170

Internal

Multi

193

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

[Post-Chorus: Kanye West]

Now let's take 'em high (Top of the world, baby,^✦ top, top of the world)

La-la-la-la,^✦ la-la-la,^✦ uh (Top of the world, baby,^✦ top, top of the world)

Now let's take 'em high (Top of the world, baby,^✦ top, top of the world)

La-la-la-la,^✦ la-la-la,^✦ uh (Top of the world, baby,^✦ top, top of the world)

[Verse 2: Kanye West]

Back when Gucci was the shit to rock

Back when Slick Rick got the shit to pop

I'd do anything to say, "I got it"

Damn, them new loafers hurt my pocket^✦

Before^✦ anybody wanted^✦ K. West beats

Me and my girl split the buffet^✦ at KFC

Dog, I was havin'^✦ nervous breakdowns

Like "Man, these niggas that much better^✦ than me?"

Baby,^✦ I'm goin' on an aeroplane

And I don't know if I'll be back again^✦

Sure enough, I sent the plane tickets

But when she came to kick it, things became^✦ different

Any^✦ girl I cheated on, sheets I skeeted on

Couldn't keep it at home, thought I needed^✦ a Nia Long

I'm tryin' to right my wrongs

But it's funny,^✦ them same wrongs helped^✦ me write this song, now

[Chorus: Kanye West]

I gotta^✦ testify,^✦ come up in the spot lookin'^✦ extra^✦ fly

'Fore the day you die, you gon' touch the sky

You gon' touch the sky, baby^✦ girl

Testify,^✦ come up in the spot lookin'^✦ extra^✦ fly

'Fore the day you die, you gon' touch the sky

[Verse 3: Lupe Fiasco]

Yes, yes, yes, guess who's on third?

Lupe steal like Lupin^✦ the 3rd

Here like ear 'til I'm beer on the curb

Peach fuzz buzz, but beard on the verge

Let's slow it down like we're on the syrup

Bottle-shaped body^✦ like Mrs. Butterworth

But before^✦ you say another word

I'm back on the block like I'm layin' on the street

I'm tryna^✦ stop lyin' like I'm Mumm-Ra^✦

But I'm not lyin' when I'm layin' on the beat, en garde

Or touché, Lupe, cool as the unthawed

But I still feel possessed as a gun charge

They come as correct as a porn star

In a fresh pair of steps in my best foreign car

So, I represent the first

Now let me end my verse right where the horns are, like, uh

[Chorus: Kanye West]

I gotta^✦ testify,^✦ come up in the spot lookin'^✦ extra^✦ fly

'Fore the day you die, you gon' touch the sky

You gon' touch the sky, baby^✦ girl

Testify,^✦ come up in the spot lookin'^✦ extra^✦ fly

'Fore the day you die (Yeah), you gon' touch the sky

[Outro: Kanye West]

We back at home, baby^✦

Uh, sky high (Yeah), I'm, I'm sky high

I'm, I'm sky high

Sky, uh, sky high, I'm, I'm sky high

Yeah, keep it rollin',^✦ yeah

Uh, feels good to be home, baby^✦

Feels good to be home

[Produced by Just Blaze]

Technical Breakdown

8.1

Multisyllabic Rhymes7.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres6.5

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm9.0

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity6.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control8.0

Performance and control

Computed Score8.08

Production

— Just Blaze

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Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Kanye utilizes nostalgic narrative grounding paired with a conversational, high-energy delivery that bridges the gap between aspirational triumph and human vulnerability.

7.5

Multisyllabic

9.5

Internal Rhymes

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

6.5

Wordplay

Delivery

Nostalgic narrative arcInternal rhyme clustersVocal layeringConfessional juxtaposition

Rhyme Architecture: A mix of AABB and AAAA couplet-based structures, heavily reliant on internal assonance and multisyllabic clusters (e.g., 'cheated on/skeeted on/needed a Nia Long').

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"thought I needed a Nia Long"

① A desire for a partner possessing the specific physical beauty and cultural icon status of actress Nia Long.② A literal 'long' period of longing for a relationship that feels like a standard of domestic stability.

"them same wrongs helped me write this song"

① The literal life mistakes provided the necessary lyrical subject matter.② The moral 'wrongs' as a catalyst for the artistic 'rights' (the creation of the music).

Relatable storytelling

Pacing variation between the struggle-era nostalgia and the current success

Dynamic vocal projection that emphasizes the 'Touch the Sky' theme

Vocabulary remains relatively straightforward, lacking dense metaphorical abstraction

Some punchlines rely on dated cultural references that may diminish impact over time

Touch the Sky

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

Technical Breakdown

Production

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