From Nothin' to Somethin'

"Change Up" redirects here. For the type of baseball pitch, see changeup.

From Nothin' to Somethin'
Studio album by Fabolous
Released	June 12, 2007 (2007-06-12)
Recorded	2006–2007
Genre	Hip hop
Length	63:24
Label	Desert Storm Street Family Def Jam
Producer	Reefa Freebase Akon Jermaine Dupri LRoc Just Blaze Timbaland Polow da Don Big Tank Steve Morales Raymond "Sarom" Diaz Versatile Don Cannon Antwan "Amadeus" Thompson Nova
Fabolous chronology
Real Talk (2004) From Nothin' to Somethin' (2007) Loso's Way (2009)
Singles from From Nothin' to Somethin'
"Diamonds" Released: April 3, 2007 "Return of the Hustle" Released: April 24, 2007 "Make Me Better" Released: May 15, 2007 "Baby Don't Go" Released: May 22, 2007

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[1]
AllMusic	[2]
DJBooth.net	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B+ [4]
HipHopDX	[5]
The Independent	(unfavorable) [6]
PopMatters	[7]
RapReviews.com	[8]
Slant Magazine	[9]
USA Today	[10]

From Nothin' to Somethin' is the fourth studio album by American rapper Fabolous. The album was released on June 12, 2007, by Desert Storm Records, Street Family Records and Def Jam Recordings. The production on the album was handled by Akon, Timbaland, Jermaine Dupri, Just Blaze and Polow da Don, among others.

From Nothin' to Somethin' was supported by four singles: "Diamonds", "Return of the Hustle", "Make Me Better" and "Baby Don't Go". The album received generally positive reviews and was a commercial success. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 159,000 copies in its first week. ^[11] It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). ^[12]

Commercial performance

From Nothin' to Somethin' debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 159,000 copies in its first week. ^[11] This became Fabolous' fourth US top-ten debut. ^[11] In its second week, the album dropped to number nine on the chart, selling an additional 59,000 copies. ^[13] On June 24, 2007, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies. ^[12] As of October 2009, the sold over 566,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan. ^[14]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. ^[15]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"From Nothin' to Somethin'" (Intro)	John Jackson Sharif Slater	Reefa	2:54
2.	"Yep, I'm Back"	Jackson Jeffrey Contella	Freebass	4:27
3.	"Change Up" (featuring Akon)	Jackson Aliaune Thiam	Akon	4:26
4.	"Make Me Better" (featuring Ne-Yo)	Jackson Timothy Mosley Scott Storch Shaffer Smith	Timbaland Scott Storch	4:13
5.	"Baby Don't Go" (featuring T-Pain and Jermaine Dupri)	Jackson Jermaine Dupri Faheem Najm Vincent Bell	Jermaine Dupri LRoc (add.)	3:36
6.	"Return of the Hustle" (featuring Swizz Beatz)	Jackson Justin Smith Kasseem Dean Dennis Coles Robert Diggs Gary Grice Lamont Hawkins Isaac Hayes Jason Hunter Russell Jones David Porter Clifford Smith Corey Woods	Just Blaze	3:44
7.	"Gangsta Don't Play" (featuring Junior Reid)	Jackson Dorrell Mays Tony Scales Delroy Reid	Bigg Makk Chef Tone	4:23
8.	"Real Playa Like" (featuring Lloyd)	Jackson Jamal Jones S. Smith	Polow da Don	4:07
9.	"First Time" (featuring Rihanna)	Jackson Derryck Thornton Trina Powell	Big Tank	3:53
10.	"Diamonds" (featuring Young Jeezy)	Jackson Steve Morales Raymond Diaz Jay Jenkins Slater	Steve Morales Raymond "Sarom" Diaz	4:16
11.	"Brooklyn" (featuring Jay-Z and Uncle Murda)	Jackson Andrew Roettger Shawn Carter Leonard Grant Tupac Shakur Christopher Wallace	Versatile	3:56
12.	"I'm the Man" (featuring Red Cafe)	Jackson Christopher Whitacre Justin Henderson	Tha Bizness	3:28
13.	"Joke's On You" (featuring Pusha T)	Jackson Don Cannon Terrance Thornton Bo Hansson Kenny Håkansson	Don Cannon	4:31
14.	"What Should I Do" (featuring Lil' Mo)	Jackson Antwan Thompson Jeremy Skaller Robert Larow Ken Ifill Arama Brown	Amadeus	4:41
15.	"This Is Family" (featuring Ransom, Freck Billionaire, Red Cafe, Joe Budden and Paul Cain)	Jackson Scott Novelli Stephen Hacker Jeffrey Whitters Devin Copeland Joe Budden Paul Cain Jermaine Denny Angelo Bond William Weatherspoon	Nova	6:53

iTunes Store bonus tracks

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
16.	"Supa"	Kanye West, DJ Clue	3:16
17.	"I Shine You Shine" (featuring Makeba)	Versatile	4:03
18.	"Chirp Back" (featuring Bleu Davinci)	Shamtrax	4:12

Sample credits ^[15]

• "Baby Don't Go" contains interpolations from "Finer Things In Life", written by Vincent Bell.
• "Return of the Hustle" contains resung lyrics from "C.R.E.A.M.", written by Dennis Coles, Robert Diggs, Gary Grice, Lamont Hawkins, Isaac Hayes, Jason Hunter, Russell Jones, David Porter, Clifford Smith, and Corey Woods.
• "Diamonds" contains interpolations from "Do the Damn Thang", written by John David Jackson, Jay W. Jenkins, and Sharif Slater.
• "Brooklyn" contains samples from "Biggie Tupac Live Freestyle", written by Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace, as performed by Funkmaster Flex and Big Kap.
• "Joke's On You" contains samples from "Born of a Gentle South", written by Bo Hansson and Kenny Håkansson, as performed by Bo Hansson.
• "This Is Family" contains a sample from "I Can't Believe You're Gone", written by Angelo Bond and William Weatherspoon, as performed by The Barrino Brothers.

Personnel

• Chris Athens – mastering
• Ashaunna Ayars – marketing
• David Brown – engineer
• Shari Bryant – marketing
• Miguel Bustamante – mixing assistant
• Don Cannon – producer, engineer
• Jermaine Dupri – producer, mixing
• King Khaliyl - producer
• Aaron Heick – saxophon
• John Horesco IV – engineer
• Josh Houghkirk – mixing assistant
• Ken Ifill – executive producer
• Terese Joseph – A&R
• Just Blaze – producer, mixing
• Jeff Kievit – trumpet
• Tai Linzie – photography, art coordinator
• Supa Engineer DURO – mixing
• Jonathan Mannion – photography
• Rob Mathes – arranger
• Darryl "Big Baby" McClary – keyboards
• Steve Morales & Sarom – producer
• Sandra Park – violin
• Ken "Duro" Ifill – engineer
• Wen Qian – violin
• TaVon Sampson – art direction
• Alan J. Stepansky – cello
• Phil Tan – mixing
• Antwan "Amadeus" Thompson – drums, producer
• Versatile - producer
• Andrew Roettger "Versatile" - producer
• Timbaland – producer
• Dan Tobiason – mixing assistant
• Steve Tolle – mixing assistant
• Ryan West – engineer, mixing
• Jordan "DJ Swivel" Young – assistant engineer, mixing assistant
• Rebecca Young – viola

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2007) Peak position Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [16] 55 UK Albums (OCC) [17] 89 US Billboard 200 [18] 2 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [19] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2007) Position US Billboard 200 [20] 98 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [21] 29

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [12]	Gold	500,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Fabolous - From Nothin' To Somethin' - Fabolous From Nothin To Somethin (Def Jam)". Rap.about.com. 2007-07-24. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
2. Andy Kellman (2007-06-12). "From Nothin' to Somethin' - Fabolous | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
3. "Fabolous - From Nothin' to Somethin' | Album Review, Stream". DJBooth. Archived from the original on 2015-12-06. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
4. Vozick, Simon (2007-06-08). "From Nothin' to Somethin'". EW.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-30. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
5. "Fabolous - From Nothin' To Somethin'". HipHopDX. 2007-06-13. Archived from the original on 2008-07-04. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
6. Going out?. "Album: Fabolous - Reviews, Music - The Independent". Archived from the original on December 26, 2008. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
7. "Fabolous: From Nothin To Somethin". PopMatters. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
8. "Feature for June 12, 2007 - Fabolous' "From Nothin' to Somethin'"". Rapreviews.com. 2007-06-12. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
9. "Fabolous: From Nothin' To Somethin'". Slant Magazine. 2007-07-07. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
10. "Listen Up: Keith's 'Daddy' fulfills, confounds". Usatoday.Com. 2007-06-11. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
11. Katie Hasty (June 20, 2007). "Toby Keith's 'Big Dog' Heads Straight To No. 1". Billboard . Retrieved March 1, 2020.
12. "American album certifications – Fabolous – Real Talk". Recording Industry Association of America.
13. Katie Hasty (June 27, 2007). "Bon Jovi Scores First No. 1 Album Since 1988". Billboard . Retrieved March 1, 2020.
14. "XXL Scans: Def Jam's Entire Discography & Record Sales" . Retrieved 2015-08-01.
15. From Nothin' to Somethin' (booklet). Desert Storm, Def Jam. 2007.
16. "Swisscharts.com – Fabolous – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
17. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
18. "Fabolous Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
19. "Fabolous Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
20. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2007". Billboard. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
21. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2007". Billboard. Retrieved October 10, 2020.