We Major

Mood

Production Style

Background

One of Late Registration's most ambitious tracks in terms of length and lyrical density, 'We Major' features Nas and the rarely-sampled vocals of Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. The collaboration with Nas was significant — Nas was then among the most critically revered rappers alive, and his presence on the track amounted to a peer-level endorsement of Kanye as a lyricist.

Meaning & Interpretation

The song is a sustained celebration of having made it — specifically, of having made it against resistance from the very industry whose validation you sought. 'We major' is a plural declaration: not just Kanye, but everyone who was told they were not enough, who grinded in obscurity, who kept faith with their talent when institutions wouldn't. Nas's verse extends the song into a reflection on rap longevity, on what it means to persist across generations in a young person's game.

Notable Moments

• Kanye's opening verses catalogue the specific obstacles placed before him — the doubts about his rapping, the industry's preference for his beats over his voice — and reframe each as fuel rather than defeat.

• Nas arrives in the second half with a verse connecting his own Queensbridge origins to Kanye's Chicago roots, making the song's celebration a cross-generational, cross-city testimony.

• The Harold Melvin sample anchors the track in Philadelphia soul tradition, situating contemporary achievement within a longer history of Black artistic excellence.

Cultural Impact

The Nas collaboration added critical credibility to Kanye's claim to the lyrical rap tradition, and the track remains one of the most cited by fans who argue for Kanye's underrated pen.

Personal Connection

Kanye has spoken about Nas as one of the rappers who made him want to rap rather than just produce, and 'We Major' represents the realization of a version of himself he had been building toward.