Quik Is the Name

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You're taking this from the man that wrote the synthesizer part to the song that I did released and fucking in 1991, called "Tonite", that's him!

Blake, David (April 5, 2010). "DJ Quik X EatUmUP Video X The Gooneez". RICHWORLD TV (Interview). Interviewed by The Real Richie Rich. Los Angeles. Archived from the original on 2016-03-10.

In an interview Quik revealed, that Profile Records gave him a $30,000 budget to mix the record over. He said: "If you do the math: a $1000 a-day studio…if we get Quik is the Name done in less than a month, that’s more money in my pocket. So we got it done in 17 days. We dumped everything out of the SP-1200, brought the turntables into the studio, scratched all the hooks, did all the overdubs and brought in a bass guitar player to fatten up the sound because we would lose a lot of the bass from sampling. We recorded some of the album at Westlake Recording Studios in Santa Monica, which is where Michael Jackson did Thriller . It was a trip being in there mixing "Tonite" on those big boards knowing that Michael was coming in and out of there". [2] The "Tonite" synth was programmed by LA Dream Team's former member and producer, the Real Richie Rich.

Singles

The album's lead single, "Born and Raised in Compton", was released on December 4, 1990. It peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and spent 14 weeks on the chart. [6] The album's second single, "Tonite" was released on June 10, 1991. It peaked at number 49 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 3 on the US Rap Songs chart. [7] The song became his most successful and highest charting single to date. [8] The album's third and final single, "Quik Is the Name", was released in 1991. The single did not chart.

Critical response

Quik Is The Name
Quik Is the Name.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedJanuary 15, 1991 (1991-01-15) [1]
Recorded1990
Studio Westlake (Los Angeles)
Genre
Length43:21
Label Profile
Producer
  • Courtney Branch (also exec.)
  • DJ Quik
  • Greg Jessie (exec.)
  • Tracy Kendrick (also exec.)
DJ Quik chronology
Quik Is The Name
(1991)
Way 2 Fonky
(1992)
Alternative cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Robert Christgau Rating-Christgau-dud.svg [9]
Entertainment Weekly B+ [10]
RapReviews8/10 [11]

Alex Henning of Rhapsody wrote that "Quik's debut set the groundwork for the G-funk era, largely due to the success of "Tonite." Much like Warren G, Quik focuses less on violence and more on mind-altering substances, ladies and cold chillin'. The optimistic "Born and Raised in Compton" offers a remedy to the hard life in the ghetto. [12] Alex Henderson of AllMusic rated the album with 4/5 stars and wrote that "in 1991 begged the question: does rap really need yet another gangsta rapper? Indeed, by that time, rap had become saturated with numerous soundalike gangsta rappers -- most of whom weren't even a fraction as interesting as such pioneers of the style as Ice-T, N.W.A, and Schoolly D. Nonetheless, rapper/producer Quik turned out to be more noteworthy than most of the gangsta rappers who debuted that year. Lyrically, the former gang member (who grew up in the same L.A. ghetto as N.W.A, Compton) doesn't provide any major insights. His sex/malt liquor/gang-banging imagery was hardly groundbreaking in 1991. But his hooks, beats, and grooves (many of which owe a debt to 1970s soul and funk) are likeable enough. [1]

Accolades

Quik Is the Name appeared on several critics' top albums lists. In 1998, the album was listed on The Source 's list of the 100 greatest Rap albums of all time list. [13] The album was listed at number 28 of "The 50 Greatest Debut Albums in Hip-Hop History" by Complex . [14] In 2022, Rolling Stone placed the album at No. 156 on its list of The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time. [15] American rapper Kendrick Lamar named it as his favorite album of all time. [16]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Sweet Black Pussy" David Blake DJ Quik 4:20
2."Tonite"BlakeDJ Quik5:23
3."Born and Raised in Compton"BlakeDJ Quik3:25
4."Deep" (featuring 2nd II None & AMG)
  • Blake
  • Darius Barnett
  • Jason Lewis
  • Kai McDonald
DJ Quik3:42
5."Tha Bombudd"BlakeDJ Quik3:47
6."Dedication"
  • Blake
  • Barnett
  • McDonald
DJ Quik1:30
7."Quik Is the Name"BlakeDJ Quik2:46
8."Loked Out Hood"BlakeDJ Quik2:50
9."8 Ball"Blake
  • DJ Quik
  • Courtney Branch [a]
  • Tracy Kendrick [a]
3:30
10."Quik's Groove"BlakeDJ Quik1:50
11."Tear It Off" (featuring AMG)
  • Blake
  • Lewis
DJ Quik3:46
12."I Got That Feelin'"BlakeDJ Quik3:38
13."Skanless" (featuring AMG, Hi-C & 2nd II None)
  • Blake
  • Barnett
  • Lewis
  • McDonald
  • Crawford Wilkerson
DJ Quik2:54

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1991)Peak
position
US Billboard 200 [17] 29
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums ( Billboard ) [17] 9

Year-end charts

Chart (1991)Position
US Billboard 200 [18] 64
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums ( Billboard ) [19] 17

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [20] Platinum1,068,203 [4]

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References

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  4. 1 2 "SoundScan summarized numbers". Hiphopuniverse.com. Archived from the original on 2018-06-13. Retrieved 2013-08-24.
  5. "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: DJ Quik - Forever Bars & Forever Scars". Archived from the original on May 19, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
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  7. Magazine, Billboard (August 30, 2013). "DJ Quik - Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  8. Magazine, Complex (August 30, 2013). "DJ Quik "Tonite" 1991". Complex . Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  9. Robert Christgau
  10. "Quik Is the Name". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on 2023-02-05.
  11. RapReviews
  12. "Quik is the Name". January 1991.
  13. "Source Magazine's "Top 100 Hip-Hop Albums Of All Time" on Lists of Bests". Archived from the original on 2011-08-11.
  14. "The 50 Greatest Debut Albums in Hip-Hop History". Complex Networks .
  15. "The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. June 7, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  16. Drake, David. "Kendrick Lamar's 25 Favorite Albums". Complex. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  17. 1 2 "Quik is the Name - DJ Quik | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic .
  18. https://www.billboard.com/artist/dj-quik/chart-history/billboard-200-albums
  19. https://www.billboard.com/artist/dj-quik/chart-history/r%26b/hip-hop-albums
  20. "American album certifications – DJ Quik – Quik Is the Name". Recording Industry Association of America.