Before recording in the afternoon, West and most of his crew played games of 21 against locals at the Honolulu YMCA for leisure. He often worked through the night and napped in the studio, and recording engineers were present behind the mixing board 24 hours a day. he heads to another studio room to make progress on another song". According to Noah Callahan-Bever, who visited West during the recording sessions, "when he hits a creative wall. West, who had previously recorded at Avex for 808s & Heartbreak, block-booked the studio's three session rooms indefinitely to work on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Nicki Minaj (left) and Kid Cudi (right) each performed vocals for multiple tracks on the album. Madlib said he made five beats for the album, while DJ Premier said his beats were ultimately discarded. Record producers who participated in the sessions with West included Q-Tip, RZA, DJ Premier, Madlib, and Pete Rock. Rap Camp!" Artists who were reported to have participated in the sessions for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy included Raekwon, RZA, Pusha T, Rick Ross, Charlie Wilson, Big Sean, Cyhi the Prynce, Swizz Beatz, Dwele, Nicki Minaj, T.I., Drake, Common, Jay Z, Eminem, Lil Wayne, John Legend, Fergie, Rihanna, The-Dream, Ryan Leslie, Elton John, M.I.A., Justin Vernon, Seal, Beyoncé, Kid Cudi, Mos Def, Santigold, Alicia Keys, Elly Jackson, and Tony Williams. He later explained the initial recording process to Noah Callahan-Bever, Complex editor-in-chief and West's confidant at the time, who said that "he'd holed up in Hawaii and was importing his favorite producers and artists to work on and inspire his recording. It was reported that West spent over $3 million in expenses from his record label Def Jam on the recording. Recording sessions took place primarily at Avex Recording Studio in Honolulu, Hawaii, with additional recording at Glenwood Place Studios in Burbank, California, and at Electric Lady Studios and Platinum Sound Recording Studios in New York City.
On July 28, 2010, West announced via his new official Twitter account that "The album is no longer called 'Good Ass Job' I'm bouncing a couple of titles around now." The official title, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, was announced on October 5, 2010. On July 24, 2010, on Kanye West's blog, a banner appeared reading "My Dark Twisted Fantasy Trailer". GOOD Music artist Big Sean was the second to announce the title of the album as Good Ass Job. It was formerly known as Good Ass Job and tentatively Dark Twisted Fantasy. Amid negative response to the incident, his scheduled tour with recording artist Lady Gaga in promotion of his previous album, 808s & Heartbreak, was cancelled on October 1, 2009, without citing a reason. West later said that his fatigue from overworking led to his controversial outburst at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, his disgust with its ensuing media response, and his hiatus from recording. The album was conceived during West's self-imposed exile in Oahu, Hawaii, following a period of legal and public image controversy amid an overworked mental state. A widespread critical success, it was named the best record of 2010 by many publications and has since appeared on several lists ranking the greatest albums of all time. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and eventually sold 1,032,000 copies in the United States. It was also promoted with a short film set to the record's music, Runaway.
To promote the album, West released free songs through his GOOD Fridays series and four singles: the Billboard hits " Power", " Monster", and " Runaway", and the international hit " All of the Lights". My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was released on November 22, 2010, by Roc-A-Fella Records. The album deals with themes of excess and celebrity, and explores such issues as consumer culture, race, and the idealism of the American Dream. Noted by critics for its maximalist aesthetic, opulent production quality, and dichotomous themes, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy incorporates aspects of West's previous works, including soul, baroque, electro, and symphonic styles.
Production was led by West himself, alongside a variety of high-profile record producers including Mike Dean, No I.D., Jeff Bhasker, RZA, S1, Bink and DJ Frank E. The album features guest appearances from Bon Iver, Jay Z, Pusha T, Rick Ross, Kid Cudi, Nicki Minaj, John Legend and more. There, he worked on the album in a communal recording environment that involved numerous contributing musicians and producers.
Following a period of public and legal controversy, West retreated to a "self-imposed exile" in Hawaii in 2009.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is the 2010 fifth studio album by American hip hop rapper and producer Kanye West.