Philadelphia Freeway

Last updated

Philadelphia Freeway
Philadelphia Freeway.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 25, 2003 (2003-02-25)
Recorded2002
Studio
Genre East Coast hip hop
Length1:10:27
Label
Producer
Freeway chronology
Philadelphia Freeway
(2003)
Free at Last
(2007)
Singles from Philadelphia Freeway
  1. "What We Do"
    Released: September 3, 2002
  2. "Alright"
    Released: January 14, 2003
  3. "Flipside"
    Released: February 25, 2003

Philadelphia Freeway is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Freeway. It was released on February 25, 2003 via Roc-A-Fella Records. Recording sessions took place at Baseline Studios, Quad Recording Studios and Sound On Sound in New York, Circle House Studios in Miami and Larrabee North in Los Angeles. Production was handled by Just Blaze, Kanye West, Bink!, Black Key and Ruggedness, with co-producer E-Bass and additional producer Gee Roberson. It features guest appearances from Beanie Sigel, Jay-Z, Young Gunz, Allen Anthony, Faith Evans, Nate Dogg, Nelly, Sparks, Peedi Crakk, Rell, Snoop Dogg and Mariah Carey.

Contents

In the United States, the album debuted at number 5 on the Billboard 200, selling 132,000 copies in its first week. [1] It was supported by three singles: "What We Do", "Alright" and "Flipside". Its lead single, "What We Do", reached number 97 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 47 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America. The second single off of the album, "Alright", made it to number 64 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The album's third and final single, "Flipside", peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 40 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and was featured on the Bad Boys II: The Soundtrack .

Its sequel, Philadelphia Freeway 2 , was released on May 5, 2009 for Real Talk Entertainment.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 74/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllHipHop Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [3]
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [4]
RapReviews7/10 [5]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Spin A- [7]
Stylus 5/10 [8]
The Village Voice Five Pointed Star Solid.svg [9]

Philadelphia Freeway was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 74 based on seven reviews. [2]

Chris Ryan of Spin called the album "the rare hip-hop debut that does justice to its buzz". [7] Jon Caramanica of Rolling Stone stated that the album is "supported by the most accomplished set of beats in recent hip-hop memory". [6] In his mixed review for Stylus , Brett Berliner concluded: "Freeway is great on guest appearances, but it seems that he can't string together an entire song by himself". [8]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
1."Free" Just Blaze 3:25
2."What We Do" (featuring Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel)Just Blaze3:49
3."All My Life" (featuring Nate Dogg) Bink! 5:31
4."Flipside" (featuring Peedi Crakk)
Just Blaze3:57
5."On My Own" (featuring Nelly)
Just Blaze4:09
6."We Get Around" (featuring Snoop Dogg)
Just Blaze3:56
7."Don't Cross the Line" (featuring Faith Evans)Just Blaze4:03
8."Life" (featuring Beanie Sigel)
  • Ruggedness
  • E-Bass [a]
4:32
9."Full Effect" (featuring Young Gunz)Just Blaze4:50
10."Turn Out the Lights (Freewest)"
Kanye West 3:59
11."Victim of the Ghetto" (featuring Rell)
  • Pridgen
  • Harrell
  • Yvette Davis
Bink!5:12
12."You Don't Know (In the Ghetto)" (featuring Sparks)Black Key4:13
13."Alright" (featuring Allen Anthony)
  • Just Blaze
  • Gee Roberson [b]
5:26
14."Hear the Song"
  • Pridgen
  • West
Kanye West3:36
Bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
15."You Got Me" (featuring Mariah Carey and Jay-Z)
5:12
16."Line 'Em Up" (featuring Young Chris)
  • Pridgen
  • Ries
  • Smith
Just Blaze4:46
Total length:1:10:27
Leftover Tracks

Notes

Sample credits

Personnel

Charts

References

  1. Dansby, Andrew (March 5, 2003). "Norah Tops 600,000". Rolling Stone . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Critic Reviews for Philadelphia Freeway - Metacritic". Metacritic . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  3. Blanco, Alvin "Aqua Boogie" (March 1, 2003). "Philadelphia Freeway". AllHipHop . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  4. Kellman, Andy. "Philadelphia Freeway - Freeway | Album | AllMusic". AllMusic . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  5. Juon, Steve 'Flash' (February 27, 2003). "Freeway :: Philadelphia Freeway :: Roc-A-Fella Records". RapReviews. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  6. 1 2 Caramanica, Jon (March 20, 2003). "The Rolling Stone review » New CDs". Rolling Stone . No. 918. p. 66. Archived from the original on March 12, 2003. Retrieved March 12, 2003.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. 1 2 Ryan, Chris (April 2003). "Reviews". Spin . Vol. 19, no. 4. SPIN Media LLC. pp. 104, 106. ISSN   0886-3032.
  8. 1 2 Berliner, Brett. "Freeway | Philadelphia Freeway | Rocafella / Def Jam Records | 2003". Stylus Magazine . Archived from the original on April 17, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2003 via Wayback Machine.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. Christgau, Robert (July 29, 2003). "Shadows in the Cave". The Village Voice . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  10. "Freeway Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  11. "Freeway Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  12. "2003 Year-End Charts – Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard . Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  13. "2003 Year-End Charts – Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard . Retrieved November 29, 2024.