"Heard 'Em Say" was the very first song that Kanye West recorded for his second studio album, "Late Registration" (2005). It was one of the tracks from "Late Registration" that West made several revisions to before its release. The recording sessions took place at Sony Music Studios in New York City and at Grandmaster Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. The track was then mixed at the Chalice Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. For the track, West employs poignant excerpts taken from the torch song "Someone That I Used To Love" as performed by soul singer Natalie Cole. He combines subtle hip-hop beats with a cascading piano melody, alongside restrained, experimental electronics reminiscent of late-1990s post-rock. His understated record production is driven by the piano line, which runs throughout over tumbling delayed beats laced with a parping synthesized bassline in addition to a subtle interjection of acoustic guitar. As time goes on, additional keyboards enter and sweep the song away towards an outro that consists of wobbly bass, jangling percussion and wailing synths. In comparison to the chipmunk-soul production technique which characterized his debut album, West incorporated a much broader array of live instrumentation on his sophomore effort. West opted in favor of a more symphonic orchestration to serve as a backdrop for his improved lyricism. Though elements of his trademark looped samples were still present, there was now a heavier reliance on keyboards, string sections and boisterous yet haunting horns. Additionally, elongated and vibrant outros were integrated into most tracks, providing them with more time to breath and settle into listener's ears.