Act Like You Know | ||||
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Released | September 17, 1991 | |||
Recorded | 1990–1991 | |||
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Length | 62:18 | |||
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MC Lyte chronology | ||||
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Singles from Act Like You Know | ||||
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Act Like You Know is the third studio album by American hip hop recording artist MC Lyte. [2] It was released on September 17, 1991, by First Priority Music, distributed by Atlantic Records, and featured production from Audio Two, The 45 King, Ivan "Doc" Rodriguez, The King of Chill, Pal Joey, Epic Mazur, Richard Wolf and DJ Master Tee. [1]
In this album she develops in some tracks a softer sound influenced by R&B, [1] having more mixed reviews than in her previous albums. Commercially it performed weaker than its predecessor Eyes on This, peaking at No. 102 on the Billboard 200 Top Albums [3] and No. 14 on the Top R&B Albums. [4]
Two singles made it high on the Hot Rap Singles chart with "When in Love" peaking at No. 3 and Poor Georgie reaching No. 1. [5] "Poor Georgie" also cracked the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 83 in March 1992. [6]
During an interview with Angie Martinez in 2019, Lyte said that during this time she "was ready to be sexy" but was prevented by an executive. Lyte revealed "I was reprimanded by my label exec like, 'No, you don't have to do that.' (...) When she saw the photo shoot she called me and she said, 'What is this? I need you to put your jeans on and I need you to take a photo shoot on the streets of New York.'" [7]
Unlike her previous work, on this album Lyte features a more diverse production team, which includes her usual King of Chill and Audio Two adding to The 45 King of Queen Latifah's Flavor Unit, Ivan "Doc" Rodriguez, Wolf & Epic (who have previously worked with Seal, Sheena Easton, Bell Biv Devoe and Ralph Tresvant), among others. [1] On some tracks the album also had a softer sound influenced by New Jack Swing and R&B. [1] Regarding this Lyte commented in an interview to The New York Times "Oh, there are nutty people out there who want rappers to be this or that. I see rap melding into other types of music - reggae, house, R-and- B - to stay alive. After being underground for too long, you get ready to blow out. To me, the tracks still sound street, but they have something that adults could like, too. I'm the common denominator on all the tracks, and I tried to stay MC Lyte." [8]
In an interview with Vibe in 2011 Lyte commented "First you come into the game and you have no expectations. You just want the microphone to say what you want to say. But before long the pressure is on to actually sell records. Once you have that pressure on you, you have to come up with new and inventive ways to get there." [9]
On working with the Wolf & Epic production team, MC Lyte stated:
During that whole era, what was most constant in my mind was Bell Biv DeVoe's remixes(...) What I think it was, they were capturing what Puff Daddy was about to capture. As far as having hip-hop with dance. Or as far as having rap on top of a song that was R&B but still had very strong hip-hop influences to it. And when I heard that, I wondered how I could do this, how can I take it to where it needs to be. And at that point I sought for Wolf and Epic who had done the remixes for Bell Biv DeVoe. [10]
The album addresses topics such as sexuality ("Like a Virgin", "2 Young 4 What"), teenage pregnancy ("Eyes Are the Soul"), [11] [8] dysfunctional relationships ("Poor Georgie"), [11] [12] alcohol and drug addiction ("Poor Georgie", "Eyes Are the Soul") and AIDS ("Eyes Are the Soul", "Lola from the Copa"). [13] She said about the album content "I'm talking about so many things, from drinking and driving, smoking causing cancer, losing virginity, abortion from a pro-choice stance, drug addiction, AIDS. I tried to pick topics and issues that hadn't been done to death by rappers. Then I tried to make it seem funny, to put the message in a palatable way." [8]
In "Kamikaze" Lyte blasts rap that does not deal with real issues, singing: "They try to keep me down because I talk to a beat / In other words I try to teach / But if I talk that Yang Yang s—t / Like You Can't Touch This/That s—t'll hit." in reference to MC Hammer's hit song. [14] On the album Lyte also covers "Take It Off" by Spoonie Gee (1986). In the CD version of the album "K-Rock's the Man" was included as a bonus track, which is performed by Lyte's disc jockey, DJ K-Rock.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | A− [17] |
Orlando Sentinel | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
In his "Consumer Guide" column in The Village Voice , critic Robert Christgau highlighted the songs "When in Love" and "All That". [20] Writing for the magazine Details , Brantley Bardin declared that the album's "only real fault… is that with at least one message (if not six) per song, it verges on becoming the ultimate public service announcement." The magazine Sassy raved that the "record hits you with crazy hard beats, and Lyte's rhymes talk about life from a distinctly girly perspective," while Billboard lauded Act Like You Know as "a toughtalking effort that takes no prisoners," calling Lyte's style "tough but caring and, above all, smart." [14] Joan Morgan from Spin commented "If you consider yourself a rap aficionado, let alone an MC Lyte fan, skip the first side of Act Like You Know, " also found the samples and arrangements of the album's first half overwrought. "It falls way off and lands squarely in pop-rap hell.… [Lyte's] voice has the eerie, anemic sound of a lost MC in a musical identity crisis." Even so, Morgan admitted, "She finds herself on the second side, thank God, and comes back kicking shit harder than ever over fat, simple drum beats and some seriously slamming samples." [21]
Gil Griffin of The Washington Post wrote in his review of the album "Lyte proves she shines brightest among female rappers. Eighteen well-written songs, a mixture of deliveries, and fresh beats and samples give her a rough, tough and psychedelic symmetry." Although Griffin singled out socially conscious songs like Eyes Are the Soul, Poor Georgie, and When in Love, he would also comment that "When off the serious subjects, she's a devilishly funny and clever storyteller, and a ruthless competitor-slayer - especially when she goes after other rappers on Kamikaze." [22] People critic Michael Small noted that, in trying to branch out into the R&B genre, Lyte was spreading herself too thin, and risked "pleasing no one." While she was talented in both genres, he wrote, maintaining her "consistent skills" and proving she's a "great storyteller," the departure put her in a "confusing middle ground." [23] James Bernard of Entertainment Weekly rated the album an A−, saying "Hip-hop does not have to be hard; it can be sensitive and smooth, as this rap vet proves on her third effort. Act Like You Know finds MC Lyte softening her image without losing her edge." highlighting especially the socially conscious "Eyes Are the Soul" and the tracks on which "she gets in the trenches with a harder microphone attack" like "Search 4 the Lyte" and "All That." [24]
In hindsight, Alex Henderson of AllMusic commented that even with a more commercial sound, the album "is far from a sellout - Lyte's music still has plenty of bite, substance, and integrity." He also considered that as in her previous album "she's at her best when telling some type of story instead of simply boasting about her rapping skills." [1] In July 2016 it was included by The Boombox at No. 24 on their list "The 25 Greatest Rap Albums of 1991". [25] In January 2019, Albumism's Jesse Ducker called the album "a small misstep" in Lyte's career. [26]
The song writing information is according to the ASCAP website. [27] [28] [29]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
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1. | "When in Love" | Wolf & Epic | 3:58 | |
2. | "Eyes Are the Soul" |
| Wolf & Epic | 3:53 |
3. | "Search 4 the Lyte" |
| King of Chill | 3:21 |
4. | "Act Like You Know" |
| Wolf & Epic | 3:50 |
5. | "Mickey Slipper (Interlude)" |
| Wolf & Epic | 1:36 |
6. | "Poor Georgie" |
| DJ Doc | 4:30 |
7. | "Take It Off" |
| Pal Joey | 4:51 |
8. | "Beyond the Hype" |
| Wolf & Epic | 4:20 |
9. | "All That" (feat. Dana Eaves) |
| Audio Two | 3:10 |
10. | "Big Bad Sister" |
| The 45 King | 3:11 |
11. | "Like that Anna (Interlude)" |
| Audio Two | 0:53 |
12. | "Kamikaze" |
| The 45 King | 4:10 |
13. | "Can You Dig It" | Freddie Byrd | King Of Chill | 3:15 |
14. | "Like a Virgin" |
| The 45 King | 4:13 |
15. | "Lola from the Copa" |
| Audio Two | 3:04 |
16. | "2 Young 4 What" | DJ Master Tee | 3:32 | |
17. | "Absolutely Positively..... Practical Jokes" |
| The 45 King | 3:42 |
18. | "Another Dope Intro (Interlude)" |
| Wolf & Epic | 0:43 |
19. | "K-Rock's the Man" (CD only Bonus Track) |
| Audio Two | 2:05 |
Total length: | 62:18 |
Credits are taken from the liner notes. [30]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Lana Michele Moorer, better known by her stage name MC Lyte, is an American rapper. Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, MC Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first female rapper to release a full solo album with 1988's critically acclaimed Lyte as a Rock. The album spawned the singles "10% Dis" and "Paper Thin".
Yolanda "Yo-Yo" Whitaker is an American rapper and actress.
Mark Howard James, professionally known as The 45 King and also known as DJ Mark the 45 King, was an American hip hop producer and DJ from The Bronx, New York. He began DJing in the mid-1980s. His pseudonym, the 45 King, came from his ability to make beats using obscure 45 RPM records.
Audio Two was the Brooklyn, New York hip hop duo of emcee Kirk "Milk Dee" Robinson and DJ Nat "Gizmo" Robinson, best known for their first hit "Top Billin'".
Lyte as a Rock is the debut studio album by American hip hop recording artist MC Lyte. It was released on April 19, 1988 via First Priority and Atlantic Records, and featured production from Audio Two, Prince Paul, King of Chill and his group, Alliance.
I Don't Care: The Album is the second and final studio album by American hip hop duo Audio Two. It was released in 1990 through First Priority Music with distribution by Atlantic Records. Production was handled by its members Milk Dee and DJ Gizmo along with the King of Chill and Terence Dudley. It features guest appearances from MC Lyte and Positive K. I Don't Care: The Album was not a success, only peaking at number 74 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and spawning two singles: "On the Road Again" and "I Get the Papers". Its lead single, "On the Road Again", peaked at number 16 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.
Eyes on This is the second studio album American hip hop recording artist MC Lyte. It was released on October 3, 1989, via First Priority and Atlantic Records, and featured production from Audio Two, as well as Grand Puba, The King of Chill, Marley Marl and PMD.
Cha Cha Cha is the lead single from MC Lyte's second album Eyes on This. Produced by King Of Chill, who also has songwriting credits, it was released on September 8, 1989.
"Eyes Are the Soul" is the third and final single from MC Lyte's third album Act Like You Know. Produced by Wolf & Epic, it was released on April 9, 1992.
"Poor Georgie" is the second single from hip-hop artist MC Lyte's third album Act Like You Know (1991). The song was produced by Ivan 'Doc' Rodriguez, and released on December 12, 1991. The song seeks to convey an anti-addiction message, through the story of George and the dysfunctional relationship MC Lyte has with this individual with self-destructive behaviors. It features a sample of "Georgy Porgy" by rock band Toto.
The following is the discography of MC Lyte, an American hip hop musician.
"Ruffneck" is a hip hop song recorded by American rapper MC Lyte. It was published on May 27, 1993 by First Priority Music and Atlantic Street, as the lead single from her fourth studio album, Ain't No Other (1993). The song was produced by Aqil Davidson with Walter "Mucho" Scott, who along with Lyte have songwriting credits.
"Paper Thin" is the third single from MC Lyte's debut album Lyte as a Rock. It is produced by King of Chill, who along with Lyte has songwriting credits.
10% Dis is a single from MC Lyte's album Lyte as a Rock produced by the hip hop duo Audio Two, who are also credited as songwriters.
"Stop, Look, Listen" is a song by MC Lyte with DJ K-Rock, released as the second single from Lyte's second album Eyes on This. It was published on February 1, 1990. In its single version it is an Audio Two remix of the original version of the LP produced by King of Chill.
Cappucino is the third and final single from MC Lyte's album Eyes on This. It was published on August 2, 1990. In its single version it is a remix by Ivan "Doc" Rodríguez of the original version of the album produced by Marley Marl.
"I Cram to Understand U (Sam)" is the debut single by American rapper MC Lyte, in which features their DJ, DJ K-Rock, released in 1987. The song was part of her first album Lyte as a Rock, released the following year.
When in Love is the first single from MC Lyte's third album Act Like You Know. It was released on August 22, 1991. Although its original version of the album is produced by Wolf & Epic, its single version includes a remix made with Carmen Rizzo.
"Lyte as a Rock" is a 1988 single from the album of the same name by American rapper MC Lyte. Although in its version on the album it is produced by Audio Two, the single and the music video use a house music mix produced by King of Chill. The song was composed by Lyte With Audio Two's Milk Dee.
"I'm Not Havin' It" is a song by American rappers Positive K and MC Lyte. It was included on the 1988 compilation album The First Priority Music Family: Basement Flavor and released as a single the following year. The B-side "A Good Combination", by Positive K as solo artist, is the main song in some versions of the single.
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