'Through the Wire' gave Kanye West fame but no money?

Kanye West, though, has many hit tracks, such as Runaway, Stronger, Heartless, Gold Digger, and I Wonder, among others.

But Through the Fire, which Ye released in 2002, has a special place in the Chicago rapper’s discography.

The reason lies in a near-death experience the rap artist had in a car crash in 2002. He rapped in the track with his jaws wired shut, showing resilience in his verses and the strength of his willpower.

It was an instant hit and helped build hype for his debut album, The College Dropout, which was released in 2004. 

On charts, it was a hit, too. For example, on Billboard Hot 100, Through the Wire reached No. 15 and No. 8 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs.

Given the track's legacy, David Foster, a Grammy-winning songwriter, states that the 46-year-old did not receive any publishing money from it.

In a chat with the And The Writer Is podcast, he claims that Through the Wire heavily sampled Chaka Khan's Through the Fire, which he co-wrote.

“You have the sample that defines [Ye’s] career,” he shares. “‘Through the Wire’ is presumably the biggest sample of your catalog.”

Offering a glimpse into the discussions both parties held, Foster says, “Yeah, it was massive. It felt great. A free round two."

But he was not the only one who wrote the song; Tom Keane and Cynthia Weil also shared the credit. So, their permission was crucial, too, to give West 50% credit on songwriting because he wrote the rap verses.

“I would’ve given it to him, would’ve given him half,” he recalls as he says that Ye's career at the time was booming. But Weil did not agree to give him the share.

“Cynthia was like, ‘F*** that. No, he gets nothing,’” Foster remembers. “So he got nothing. We still remain the 100 percent writers. Ain't that something?”

However, it is worth noting that Foster claims West did not receive money from publishing royalties; this does not rule out he did not get a sum from other avenues, such as artist and producer royalties.