About Love Lock Down

"Love Lockdown" is a song by American record producer and vocalist Kanye West from his fourth studio album, 808s & Heartbreak (2008). The song was produced by West, while co-produced by Jeff Bhasker. The producers co-wrote it with Esthero, Malik Yusef, and Starshell. West initially shared the song via his blog on September 10, 2008, before re-recording it after negative reactions. The song was later released for digital download on September 18, 2008 by Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam as the lead single from the album. An electropop song, its instrumentation relies on piano and Roland TR-808 drumbeats. West sings through Auto-Tune on the song, with the lyrics looking at a failed relationship's after effects. "Love Lockdown" received widely positive reviews from music critics, many of whom complimented the production. Some directed praise towards the drums in the production, while numerous critics highlighted West's vocal performance on the song. It was named to year-end lists for 2008 by multiple publications, including Pitchfork and Blender. The song won the award of Best Rap/Hip Hop Dance Track at the 2009 International Dance Music Awards. On the US Billboard Hot 100, it became West's highest debut by entering at number three on the chart. The song also reached the top 10 in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

"Love Lockdown" has been certified quadruple platinum and gold in the United States and the UK by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and British Phonographic Industry (BPI), respectively. An accompanying music video premiered on October 7, 2008. The video replicates the role of Christian Bale in the American film American Psycho (2000), with West making his appearance in his own apartment while all colour has been removed from the rooms. In 2008, Time listed the visual as their Video of the Year. West first performed the song live at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, taking influence from the 2008 Summer Olympics' opening ceremony for the performance. He later performed it on multiple occasions, including at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Hollywood Bowl in 2011 and 2015, respectively. The song was used for Grand Theft Auto's standalone video game compilation, Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City (2009). Cover versions of it were performed by Glass Animals and Lorde in 2014 and 2018, respectively. A remix 12" vinyl was released in November 2008 for "Love Lockdown", which included remixes done by Chew Fu and Jake Trothn, among others.