Kanye West built his entire career on one of Hip-Hop’s most inspiring comeback stories, but the song that launched everything never put a single dollar in his pocket.

Producer David Foster dropped a bombshell during his recent And The Writer Is podcast appearance. The legendary hitmaker revealed that Ye gets zero publishing money from “Through The Wire” because his name appears nowhere on the official writing credits.

“Through The Wire” launched The College Dropout, which sold over 6.5 million copies worldwide.

The album established Kanye as Hip-Hop’s most innovative producer-rapper and spawned multiple platinum singles, including “Jesus Walks” and “All Falls Down.”

“Through The Wire” samples Chaka Khan’s 1984 classic “Through the Fire,” written by Foster, Tom Keane, and Cynthia Weil. When Kanye wanted 50 percent of the writing credits, Foster says he would have agreed to the deal.

“Kanye’s camp is like, ‘Hey, we want to use your song all the way through this record and he wants 50% of the writing or whatever.’ I was like, ‘Okay.’ And because he was huge at that time, he was getting really huge. Cynthia was like, ‘F### that.’ No, he gets nothing. We still remain the 100% writers. Aint that something?”

The decision cost Kanye millions in potential earnings. “Through The Wire” peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold 97,500 physical copies. The track generated over 1.5 billion streams across platforms and remains one of Hip-Hop’s most celebrated debut singles.

Chaka Khan initially supported the sample after Kanye called her from his hospital bed. The Chicago rapper suffered a near-fatal car accident in October 2002 that left his jaw wired shut for months.

“He said, ‘You were so instrumental in my healing process. I changed the words a little bit to the song, but I had to eat through a wire. Jaws wired shut through a straw.’ It meant that much to me,” Chaka Khan recalled during a 2019 Watch What Happens Live appearance.

Khan’s feelings changed when she heard the final version. The sped-up vocal sample made her voice sound like a chipmunk, which she found insulting.

“If I’d known he was gonna do that, I would have said, ‘Hell no,'” she admitted.

The R&B legend eventually apologized for her harsh criticism. During a 2023 Rolling Stone interview, Khan called her anger a “silly grudge” and acknowledged she didn’t understand Hip-Hop production techniques at the time.

“That was my fault, too, for feeling salty about that in any way. Because if I understood the rap game more completely, like I do now, then that wouldn’t have been a big deal to me,” Khan explained.

This situation might shock fans, but Kanye’s net worth remains substantial despite missing out on “Through The Wire” royalties.

Forbes estimates his current wealth at $400 million, down from previous billion-dollar valuations after losing major brand partnerships.

oster’s revelation comes as Kanye prepares to release Bully on January 30. The 13-track project represents his first major album since the controversial Vultures series with Ty Dolla $ign.