Ray Charles

Did you know that Kanye West and Jamie Foxx’s “Gold Digger” earned Ray Charles his first Billboard Hot 100 #1 hit as a songwriter?

As a brilliant composer and musician, Charles was one of the pioneers of Soul music in the 1950s with numerous hits to his credit. However, the legendary performer, who inspired Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, James Brown and Prince, didn’t write either of his chart-topping songs on the Hot 100 – “Hit the Road Jack” and “I Can’t Stop Loving You”.

In fact, when when West and Foxx sampled Charles’ “I Got a Woman” for their monster hit “Gold Digger”, they helped him to earn his first ever #1 on the Hot 100 as a songwriter. The tune held the top slot on the lineup for 10 weeks, starting in September 2005, sold over 3.7 million to date and ranked as the 49th most successul song on the Hot 100 during the 1958-2008 period.

Watch the video for West and Foxx’s “Gold Digger” below:

Now you know!