Hip Hop Is Dead

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Hip Hop Is Dead
Nas chronology
Street's Disciple
(2004)
Hip Hop Is Dead
(2006)
Untitled
(2008)
Singles from Hip Hop Is Dead
  1. "Hip Hop Is Dead"
    Released: November 5, 2006
  2. "Can't Forget About You"
    Released: January 23, 2007

Hip Hop Is Dead is the eighth

studio album by American rapper Nas, released December 19, 2006, on Def Jam Recordings. His first album for the label, it was co-financed by Nas's previous label, Columbia Records, which once distributed for Def Jam. The album's title was inspired by Nas's view of the music industry and the state of hip hop music at the time. The album features appearances from Nas's then-wife Kelis, Def Jam label-mates Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Chrisette Michele, as well as will.i.am, Snoop Dogg, and The Game
, among others.

The album debuted at number one on the U.S.

Background

Nas announced the album's title after a performance on May 18, 2006.

MTV.com
, Nas discussed the concept of the album title and the social atmosphere and condition of the music industry that inspired it, stating:

When I say 'hip-hop is dead', basically America is dead. There is no political voice. Music is dead ... Our way of thinking is dead, our commerce is dead. Everything in this society has been done. It's like a slingshot, where you throw the muthafucka back and it starts losing speed and is about to fall down. That's where we are as a country ... what I mean by 'hip-hop is dead' is we're at a vulnerable state. If we don't change, we gonna disappear like Rome. I think hip-hop could help rebuild America, once hip-hoppers own hip-hop ... We are our own politicians, our own government, we have something to say.[7]

— Nas

A promo single, "Where Y'all At", was released in June 2006 and produced by Salaam Remi.[8] It contained a sample from Nas' "Made You Look",[9] but it did not make the final cut for Hip Hop Is Dead.[10] It was, however, released as a bonus track on the Japanese import version of the album.[11]

A music video for "

Hustlers, featuring The Game, followed.[13]

Title controversy

In an interview on the music television show

.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Pitchfork Media
(7.8/10)[22]
PopMatters(8/10)[23]
Rolling Stone[24]
USA Today[25]
The Village Voice(favorable)[26]

Hip Hop Is Dead received generally positive reviews from most music critics.

average score of 79, based on 22 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[27] Nas is hip-hop's "grumpiest man", according to Jody Rosen for Entertainment Weekly, and the album "is a lot like Nas himself: impossible not to admire, but hard to love".[28] Among those music writers and critics that reviewed Hip Hop Is Dead favorably was Jason Rubin of The A.V. Club, which gave the album an A− rating. Rubin praised the album's production quality and lyrical concept, and stated "Hip Hop is unsparing in its diagnosis of rap's ills, but ultimately, it's hopeful. It contains a smart, tight, cohesive analysis of where rap went astray, but also the seeds of the genre's rebirth and renewal."[29]

Despite perceiving its sound and musical quality as weaknesses,

50th Grammy Awards in February 2008.[32]

Commercial performance

Hip Hop Is Dead debuted at number one on the US

I Am… (1999) as Nas's third album to debut at number one on the chart.[33] In its second week, the album dropped to number four on the chart, selling an additional 101,000 copies.[34] In its third week, the album dropped to number eight on the chart, selling 44,800 copies that week.[35] On March 12, 2007, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies in the United States.[36]

The title track "

Hot 97.[5][38] The single recently reached #48 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart[39] and #41 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single from the album Hip Hop Is Dead is "Can't Forget About You" (Featuring Chrisette Michele). It contains a sample from Nat King Cole's "Unforgettable
".

Track listing

Information is based on Liner Notes.[40]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Money Over Bullshit" 
  • Devo Springsteen[a]
4:28
13."Play on Playa" (featuring Snoop Dogg) Scott Storch3:33
14."Can't Forget About You" (featuring Chrisette Michele) will.i.am4:34
15."Hustlers" (featuring The Game and Marsha Ambrosius)Marvin AmbrosiusDr. Dre4:06
16."Hope" (featuring Chrisette Michele) 
  • L.E.S.
  • Nas
  • Alexander "Spanador" Mosely
3:05
Total length:60:27
Bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
17."Shine On" (
Circuit City)
Salaam Remi2:48
19."Where Y'all At" (Best Buy)Salaam Remi4:09
Total length:70:06
Notes
  • ^[a] signifies a co-producer.

Personnel

Unless otherwise indicated, Information is based on Liner Notes.[40]

# Title Notes
Hip Hop Is Dead

Executive producer: Nasir Jones
A&R: Jay Brown
A&R for Ill Will Music Group: Mike Brinkley
A&R Administration: Terese Joseph
A&R Coordination: Fabienne Leys
Marketing: Tracey Waples
Marketing coordination: Shari Bryant
Management: Michael "Blue" Williams for Family Tree Entertainment
Mastering: Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound, NYC
Mixing: Dylan "3-D" Dresdow at Paper V.U. Studios, LA
Photography: Afshin Shahidi
Creative direction: Andy West
Cover design: Tavon Sampson
Wardrobe: Mike Bogard for The B Lynn Group
Photo and art coordination: Nichell Delavaille
Package production: Doug Joswick
Legal representation: Kenny Meiselas, Esq. and Paul Rothenberg, Esq.
Sample clearance agent: Deborah Mannis-Gardner for DMG Clearances, Inc.
Business Affairs: Michael Seltzer, Antoinette Trotman, Ian Allen

1 "Money Over Bullshit"

Songwriters: N. Jones, L. Lewis, W. Coleman
Additional Instruments: L.E.S. & Wyldfyer

2 "You Can't Kill Me"

Songwriters: N. Jones, L. Lewis, A. West
Sample: "Sly" by Herbie Hancock[41] and the Headhunters[42]
Additional Instruments: Al West

3 "Carry on Tradition"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Storch
All Instruments: Scott Storch

4 "Where Are They Now"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Gibbs, J. Brown, B. Byrd, R. Lehnhoff
Sample: "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" by James Brown
Sample: “Set It Off" by Big Daddy Kane[43]

5 "Hip Hop Is Dead"

Songwriters: N. Jones, W. Adams, J. Lordan, D. Ingle
Samples: "Apache" and “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”,
both by Michael Viner & The Incredible Bongo Band
Sample: "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly[44]
Sample: "The Big Beat" as performed by Billy Squier[45]
Additional Drums, Drum Machine, Farfisa organ & Keyboards: will.i.am

6 "Who Killed It?"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Gibbs, W. Adams
Sample: "I Ain't No Joke" by Eric B. & Rakim[46]
Drums, Bass & Keyboards: Salaam Remi
Flute, Soprano Saxophone & Clarinet: Vincent Henry
Bass Trumpet, Flugelhorn & Trumpet: Bruce Purse
French Horn: W. Marshall Sealy
Cello: Patrice Jackson
Viola: Adam Hill
Violin: Naira Underwood

7 "Black Republican"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Carter, L. Lewis, W. Coleman, C. Coppala
Sample: "Marcia Religiosa" by City of Prague Philharmonic

8 "Not Going Back"

Songwriters: N. Jones, T. Hermansen, M. Ericksen, K. Roger-Jones
Sample: “Alone" by Heart.[47]

9 "Still Dreaming"

Songwriters: N. Jones, K. West, C. Payne, C. Ernst-Wells
Sample: "The Interim" by Diana Ross[48]
”The Interim” written by Cheryl Ernst-Wells[49]
Sample: "Use Me" by Bill Withers[48]

10 "Hold Down the Block"

Songwriters: N. Jones, M. Batson
Drums, Bass & Keyboards: Mark Batson
Saxophone: Leroi Moore
Vocals: Mark B. Mayfield

11 "Blunt Ashes"

Songwriters: N. Jones, M. Webber
Sample: "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” by Marvin Gaye[50]
Additional Instruments: Chris Webber

12 "Let There Be Light"

Songwriters: N. Jones, K. West, T. Williams, D. Harris, P. Cho
Sample: "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller Band[51]
Drums: Mark Biondi
Keyboards: Paul Cho

13 "Play on Playa"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Storch, C. Broadus, M. Gaye, L. Ware, A. Ross
Sample: "After the Dance" by Marvin Gaye

14 "Can't Forget About You"

Songwriters: N. Jones, W. Adams, C. Payne, I. Gordon
Sample: "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole
Drums, Drum Programming & Keyboards: will.i.am

15 "Hustlers"

Songwriters: N. Jones, J. Taylor, M. Ambrosius, A. Young, M. Elizondo
Keyboards: Mike Elizondo & Lionel "LJ" Holoman
Bass played by LJ Holoman
Additional Vocals: Jaramye Daniels

16 "Hope"

Songwriters: N. Jones, L. Lewis
Additional Vocals: Chrisette Michele

* "Shine On"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Gibbs

* "The N (Don't Hate Me Now)"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Gibbs

* "Where Y'all At"

Songwriters: N. Jones, S. Gibbs, C. Stepney, R. Rudolph
Sample: "Made You Look" by Nas
Sample: "Rainy Day in Centreville" by Minnie Riperton[52]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[57] Silver 60,000*
United States (RIAA)[58] Gold 500,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date
Ireland December 15, 2006
United Kingdom December 18, 2006
United States December 19, 2006

References

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External links