Black Reign (album)

Black Reign
Studio album by Queen Latifah
Released	November 16, 1993
Recorded	November 1992 – September 1993
Studio	Skyline Studio Giant Studio Unique Recording Studios, New York City [1]
Genre	East Coast hip-hop [2] vocal jazz
Length	55:53
Label	Motown [3]
Producer	Sidney "S.I.D." Reynolds Tony Dofat KayGee Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah chronology
Nature of a Sista' (1991) Black Reign (1993) Order in the Court (1998)
Singles from Black Reign
"U.N.I.T.Y." Released: November 9, 1993 "Just Another Day..." Released: December 23, 1993 "Black Hand Side / Weekend Love" Released: 1994 "Rough... / I Can't Understand" Released: September 27, 1994

Black Reign is the third studio album by American rapper Queen Latifah, released in 1993. ^[4] Black Reign was her most successful album up to that point, peaking at number 60 on the Billboard 200. ^[5] The album also peaked at number fifteen on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album sold in excess of 500,000 copies, achieving gold status. ^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Robert Christgau	[7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[8]
NME	7/10 [9]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]
Select	[11]
The Source	[12]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	7/10 [13]

Trouser Press wrote that Latifah "rhymes over bottom-booming jeep beats and sings to sweet soul, dancehall and, in the case of 'Winki’s Theme,' a song for her late brother, a live jazz quartet." ^[14] The New York Times wrote: "As one of hip-hop's true vocal virtuosos, Queen Latifah tosses off articulate, quick-changing syncopations when she raps, slipping in and out of a Jamaican accent and singing melodic choruses in a sweet, strong voice." ^[15]

Track listing

Black Reign

No.	Title	Producer	Length
1.	"Black Hand Side"	S.I.D.	3:22
2.	"Listen 2 Me"	Tony Dofat	4:43
3.	"I Can't Understand"	Tony Dofat	3:50
4.	"Rough... (featuring Treach, Heavy D, and KRS-One)"	Tony Dofat	5:04
5.	"4 the D.J.'s (Interlude)"	S.I.D.	1:38
6.	"Bring the Flavor"	Tony Dofat	3:25
7.	"Coochie Bang..."	S.I.D.	3:46
8.	"Superstar"	S.I.D.	3:56
9.	"No Work"	Kay Gee	2:51
10.	"Just a Flow (Interlude)"	S.I.D.	1:30
11.	"Just Another Day..."	S.I.D.	4:29
12.	"U.N.I.T.Y."	Kay Gee & Mufi	4:11
13.	"Weekend Love (featuring Tony Rebel)"	Kay Gee	4:09
14.	"Mood Is Right"	S.I.D.	3:30
15.	"Winki's Theme"	Queen Latifah	5:29
Total length:			55:53

Music videos

• "U.N.I.T.Y."
• "Just Another Day"
• "Black Hand Side"
• "I Can't Understand"
• "Weekend Love"

Influence

The album was a major influence for young adult novelist Jason Reynolds, ^[16] who was inspired to start writing poetry when he discovered Black Reign at nine years old. ^[17]

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [6]	Gold	503,000 [18]

References

1. "Black Reign – Queen Latifah | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
2. "50 Greatest East Coast Hip-Hop Albums of the 1990s". The Boombox . October 20, 2017. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
3. "Queen Latifah, Black Reign (Motown): The recording..." OrlandoSentinel.com.
4. "Queen Latifah | Biography & History". AllMusic.
5. "Queen Latifah". Billboard.
6. "American album certifications – Queen Latifah – Black Reign". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved February 3, 2022.
7. Christgau, Robert (February 1994). "Consumer Guide Album". The Village Voice . Retrieved January 25, 2012.
8. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 6. MUZE. p. 711.
9. Batey, Angus (February 12, 1994). "Long Play". NME . p. 41. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
10. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 669.
11. Howe, Rupert (February 1994). "New Albums". Select . p. 75. Retrieved December 15, 2024.
12. Southerland, Curtis (February 1994). "Queen Latifah – Black Reign". Record Report. The Source . No. 53. New York. p. 68.
13. Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 318–319.
14. "Queen Latifah". Trouser Press. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
15. Pareles, Jon (February 22, 1994). "Review/Pop; Queen Latifah, Tough but Kind (Published 1994)" – via NYTimes.com.
16. Brown, Lesley-Ann (August 22, 2015). "The Graceful Power of Novelist Jason Reynolds". NBC News. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
17. Foster, Jordan (April 17, 2017). "Jason Reynolds: From Kid Poet to Award-Winning Author". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
18. Concepcion, Mariel (June 9, 2007). "A bad rap?". Billboard . Vol. 119, no. 23. pp. 24–25. Retrieved February 3, 2022– via Internet Archive.