Apollo Kids (album)
| Apollo Kids | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | December 21, 2010 | |||
| Recorded | 2010 | |||
| Studio | Red Bull Studios, Starks Studios (Staten Island, New York) | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 40:53 | |||
| Label | Def Jam Recordings | |||
| Producer | Sean C & LV, Jake One, Pete Rock, Chino Maurice, Scram Jones, Frank Dukes, Yakub, Big Mizza, Shroom, Anthony Acid | |||
| Ghostface Killah chronology | ||||
| ||||
Apollo Kids is the ninth
studio album[1] by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan-member Ghostface Killah, released on December 21, 2010, by Def Jam Recordings.[2] Guests on the album include several Wu-Tang members and affiliates, as well as Redman, Black Thought, Busta Rhymes, Joell Ortiz, and Game
, among others.
Apollo Kids is the follow-up to Ghostface's R&B-oriented Ghostdini: Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City (2009) and serves as a return to the characteristic "Wu-Tang Sound". Ghostface Killah recorded the album at Red Bull Studios and Stark Studios in New York City. He conceived it as a mixtape for Def Jam after having partially recorded the Supreme Clientele sequel album and opting not to release that with the label.
Although it only charted at number 120 on the Billboard 200, Apollo Kids received universal acclaim from music critics, who praised its gritty aesthetic and Ghostface Killah's unfiltered rapping.
Background
Ghostface Killah partially recorded the announced sequel album Supreme Clientele Presents... Blue & Cream: The Wally Era near the end of his contract deal with
Complex
:
They wanted Supreme, I’m gassing for them to do Supreme. But I caught them niggas real quick for their bread and then gave them Apollo Kids. That was gonna be called The Warm Up, but they was like, 'Nah, I know what you're trying to do.' They caught on.
Apollo Kids was recorded by Ghostface at Red Bull Studios and Starks Studios in Staten Island, New York.[3]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
Consequence of Sound |   [7] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A−[8] |
| Los Angeles Times | [9] |
| Pitchfork | 7.3/10[10] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[11] |
| Rolling Stone |  [12] |
| Slant Magazine | [13] |
| Spin | 7/10[14] |
The album debuted at number 128 on the US
Apollo Kids received universal acclaim from music critics. At
Allmusic's David Jeffries called it "a return to the grimey soul and stream-of-consciousness street flow of the man’s best work".[5] The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin stated, "The disc’s tightness, cohesion, and quality are even more surprising: Ghostface hasn’t sounded this hungry or focused since Fishscale [...] At its best, Ghostface’s music is about raw, visceral emotion and unfiltered rage".[6] Entertainment Weekly's Simon Vozick-Levinson viewed it as a timeless addition to Ghostface's catalogue and complimented its "jittery pulp fiction and zany free-associative zingers over scratchy soul, funk, and rock samples".[8] Rolling Stone writer Jonah Weiner stated "On track after track, he blows dust off some dirty-soul loop, with boasts as inspired as ever [...] and street-crime storytelling as vivid as ever".[12] Slant Magazine's Huw Jones complimented the album's "back-to-basics approach" and called it "a compact release that celebrates the staples of vintage rap music and, more specifically, vintage Wu".[13]
David Amidon of
Pitchfork Media's Ian Cohen noted a "lack of any sort of organizational principle" and commented that "basically arbitrary sequencing never allows too much momentum to build", but commended Ghostface's "harried intensity" and stated "he's still an incredibly ostentatious lyricist, just one that's easier to parse".[10] MSN Music's Robert Christgau gave the album a three-star honorable mention,[20] indicating "an enjoyable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well treasure."[21] He cited "In tha Park" and "Purified Thoughts" as highlights and quipped, "Living off his past, but it's quite a past and a damned decent living".[20]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Purified Thoughts" (featuring Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma | Frank Dukes | 3:43 | |
| 4. | "Drama" (featuring Joell Ortiz and Game) | Sean C & LV | 4:28 | |
| 5. | "2getha Baby" |
| Yakub | 3:01 |
| 6. | "Starkology" |
| Scram Jones | 2:25 |
| 7. | "In tha Park" (featuring Black Thought) |
| Frank Dukes | 3:47 |
| 8. | "How You Like Me Baby" |
| Pete Rock | 3:14 |
| 9. | "Handcuffin' Them Hoes" (featuring Jim Jones) |
| Chino Maurice | 2:30 |
| 10. | "Street Bullies" (featuring Sheek Louch, Shawn Wiggs and Sun God) |
| Big Mizza | 3:17 |
| 11. | "Ghetto" (featuring Raekwon, Cappadonna and U-God) |
| Anthony Acid | 4:09 |
| 12. | "Troublemakers" (featuring Raekwon, Method Man & Redman) | Jake One | 3:40 | |
| Total length: | 40:53 | |||
- Sample credits
- "Purified Thoughts" contains samples of "Am I a Good Man", written by Willie Clarke, originally performed by Them Two courtesy of The Numero Group.
- "Superstar" contains samples of the recording "He's a Superstar" as performed by Roy Ayers, written by Roy Ayers and Myrna Williams.
- "Black Tequila" contains samples of the recording "Jogan Ban Gayiu" as performed by Asha Bhosle, written by Anand Bakshi and Pyarelal Laxmikant.
- "2getha Baby" contains samples of "Together" performed by The Intruders, written by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff.
- "Starkology" contains excerpts from "Theme from Star Wars" performed by David Matthews, written by David Matthews.
- "In tha Park" contains samples of the recording "I'm Alive" performed by Johnny Thunder, written by Tommy James and Pete Lucia.
- "How You Like Me Baby" contains samples of "Different Strokes", written by John A. Cameron and John Zachary, originally performed by Syl Johnson.
- "Street Bullies" contains samples of the recording "You Are Just a Living Doll" performed by J. J. Barnes, written by David L. Jordan.
- "Ghetto" contains samples of the recording "Woman of the Ghetto" as performed by Marlena Shaw, written by Richard Evans, R. Miller, and Marlena Shaw.
Personnel
Credits for Apollo Kids adapted from
Allmusic.[22]
|
|
Charts
| Chart (2010–2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[23] | 120 |
| US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[24] | 28 |
| US Billboard Rap Albums[25]
|
10 |
References
- Vulture. New York Media. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- Def Jam. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
- ^ "Ghostface Killah - Apollo Kids CD Album". CD Universe. Muze. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- ^ "Reviews for APOLLO KIDS by Ghostface Killah". Metacritic. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- ^ Allmusic. Retrieved on 2010-10-22.
- ^ a b Rabin, Nathan (December 21, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids. The A.V. Club. Retrieved on 2010-12-21.
- Consequence of Sound. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- ^ a b Vozick-Levinson, Simon (December 30, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids Archived 2011-01-10 at the Wayback Machine. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2010-12-31.
- ^ Weiss, Jeff (December 21, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2010-12-21.
- ^ Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on 2011-01-03.
- ^ a b Amidon, David (January 13, 2011). Review: Apollo Kids. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2011-01-13.
- ^ a b Weiner, Jonah (December 21, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2010-12-21.
- ^ a b Jones, Huw (December 20, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids. Slant Magazine. Retrieved on 2010-12-20.
- ^ Soderberg, Brandon (December 21, 2010). Review: Apollo Kids. Spin. Retrieved on 2010-12-21.
- ^ Billboard 200: Week of January 08, 2011 – Chart Position: 121-140. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-30.
- ^ Jacobs, Allen (December 29, 2010). Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 12/26/2010. HipHopDX. Retrieved on 2010-12-29.
- ^ R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Week of January 08, 2011: Chart Position: 21-30. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-30.
- ^ Rap Albums – Week of January 08, 2011. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-31.
- ^ Apollo Kids Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2010-11-21.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (April 5, 2013). "Odds and Ends 027". MSN Music. Archived from the original on April 10, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (2000). "Key to Icons". Robert Christgau. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- ^ Credits: Apollo Kids. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2010-12-20.
- ^ Ghostface Killah Album & Song Chart History – Billboard 200. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-31.
- ^ Ghostface Killah Album & Song Chart History – R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-31.
- ^ Ghostface Killah Album & Song Chart History – Rap Albums. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-12-31.
