Certified (David Banner album)

Last updated
Certified
David Banner Certified.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 20, 2005
Recorded2004-2005
Genre
Length68:36
Label SRC, Universal
Producer Billy Hume, Craig Love, Cyber Sapp, Down Beat, David Banner, Get Cool, Jazze Pha, Jake Arnold, Kevin Rudolf, Lil Jon, Mr. Collipark, Maestro, Mike Hartnett
David Banner chronology
MTA2: Baptized in Dirty Water
(2003)
Certified
(2005)
The Greatest Story Ever Told
(2008)
Singles from Certified
  1. "Play"
    Released: July 7, 2005
  2. "Touching"
    Released: January 10, 2006

Certified is the fourth studio album by American rapper David Banner, released on September 20, 2005 by SRC Records and Universal Records. [1] Most of the album's production was handled by Banner himself. The album features guest appearances from Jadakiss, Jazze Pha, Talib Kweli, Twista and Jagged Edge, among others. The album spawned one single, "Play", which reached number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Contents

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 71/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Entertainment Weekly B− [4]
MusicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Okayplayer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Pitchfork 8.4/10 [7]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [8]
RapReviews9/10 [9]
Stylus Magazine B− [10]
USA Today Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Vibe Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [12]

Certified garnered positive reviews from music critics who praised Banner's approach to over-the-top hip-hop stories and insightful political tracks. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 71, based on 13 reviews. [2]

Pedro Hernandez of RapReviews gave high praise to Banner for building upon his previous material and delivered an album with solid production, balanced themes and capable guest artists, concluding that "Certified treads a fine line between keeping it real and selling units, but Banner treads that line very well. Though it is his best album to date, hopefully this is only the beginning for the game's most conscious rapper." [9] AllMusic editor Andy Kellman said that despite the cluttered list of guest artists, the record delivers on Banner's established material with higher production values and gusto conviction, saying that "Certified certifies that Banner is as crucial to hip-hop in the early 2000s as any other MC." [3] PopMatters Dan Nishimoto admired Banner's approach of crafting a mainstream hip-hop album that over-exaggerates tropes while delivering serious topics in disguise, saying that "Certified's appeal lies in this tightrope act. Fully aware of his captive audience, Banner goes for broke to bring in as wide a swath as possible." [8]

Steve Jones of USA Today praised the album's balance of both political and sex-filled tracks, saying that "It's a mix that is certified to both educate and entertain." [11] Evan McGarvey of Stylus Magazine was lukewarm on the record, finding the production and guest artists not at the level of Banner's vision at times but said that its still able to deliver its twisted empathy, saying that, "Certified is mostly a frightening album because it’s so clearly not up to Banner’s full potential but still a dramatic cut above almost everything else." [10] Azeem Ahmad of MusicOMH felt that the album was over-bloated with numerous songs that told the same inane stories over similar beats found in Lil Jon's discography, concluding that "There's little familiarity, too little to relate to on Certified, and I for one would rather give airtime to British talent than to try and push the likes of David Banner, whose music may be groundbreaking, but is alien to our ears." [5]

Track listing

No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Lost Souls"David Banner, Craig Love3:15
2."Treat Me Like" (featuring Jadakiss) Lil Jon 3:53
3."Gangsta Walk" (featuring Three 6 Mafia, Marcus & 8Ball & MJG) Cyber Sapp 4:28
4."2 Fingers" (featuring Jagged Edge)David Banner3:29
5."Play" Mr. Collipark 3:50
6."Fucking" (featuring Jazze Pha) Jazze Pha 3:51
7."Thinking of You" (featuring Case)David Banner, Kevin Rudolf 5:03
8."On Everything" (featuring Twista)Get Cool4:09
9."Certified" (featuring Marcus)David Banner4:11
10."Ain't Got Nothing" (featuring Magic & Boosie Badazz)David Banner3:52
11."Bloody War" (featuring B.G.)David Banner4:30
12."Westside" Maestro 3:32
13."Take Your" (featuring Too Short, Bun B & Jazze Pha)David Banner4:42
14."My Life" (featuring Sky Keeton)David Banner, Mike Hartnett 3:54
15."Ridin'" (featuring Talib Kweli & Dead Prez)Down Beat4:34
16."X-ed" (featuring Kamikaze)David Banner3:41
17."Crossroads" (featuring Grout)David Banner, Billy Hume, Jake Arnold3:45
iTunes Bonus track
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
18."Shake that Booty (Krumpa Remix)" (featuring Elephant Man)David Banner3:10

Charts

Chart (2005)Peak
position
US Billboard 200 [13] 6
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [14] 3

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References

  1. "Certified (Bonus Track Version) by David Banner on iTunes". ITunes (US). September 20, 2005. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Reviews for Certified by David Banner". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Kellman, Andy. "Certified - David Banner". AllMusic . Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  4. Sinclair, Tom (September 16, 2005). "Certified". Entertainment Weekly . Time Inc. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  5. 1 2 Ahmad, Azeem (February 13, 2006). "David Banner - Certified". MusicOMH. Archived from the original on April 13, 2007. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  6. Ruhi, Adrian (September 2005). "David Banner - Certified". Archived from the original on October 17, 2006. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  7. Shepherd, Julianne (September 20, 2005). "David Banner: Certified". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  8. 1 2 Nishimoto, Dan (September 28, 2005). "David Banner: Certified". PopMatters . Archived from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  9. 1 2 Hernandez, Pedro (September 27, 2005). "David Banner :: Certified :: Universal Records". RapReviews. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  10. 1 2 McGarvey, Evan (September 26, 2005). "David Banner - Certified - Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on July 25, 2009. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  11. 1 2 Jones, Steve (September 19, 2005). "Bon Jovi rocks; Streisand rolls". USA Today . Gannett. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  12. Golianopoulos (September 2005). "David Banner 'Certified'". Vibe . Vibe Media. 13 (10): 231. ISSN   1070-4701 . Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  13. "David Banner Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 3, 2015.
  14. "David Banner Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 3, 2015.