| The New Danger | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 12, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | 2003-04 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 74:51 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer |
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| Mos Def chronology | ||||
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The New Danger is the second studio album by American rapper Mos Def, released on October 12, 2004, by Rawkus and Geffen Records. It is the follow-up to his breakthrough solo effort Black on Both Sides (1999), after which he devoted more time into his film and stage career. [1]
Production for the album was handled by Mos Def, Kanye West, 88-Keys, Minnesota, Warryn Campbell, and Psycho Les. It also features contributions from Mos Def's rock musical project Black Jack Johnson, which was named after boxing champion Jack Johnson and consists of guitarist Dr. Know, keyboardist Bernie Worrell, bassist Doug Wimbish, and drummer Will Calhoun. [1]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 59/100 [2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Blender | [4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | C+ [5] |
| The Independent | [6] |
| NME | 7/10 [7] |
| Pitchfork | 5.4/10 [8] |
| Q | [9] |
| Rolling Stone | [10] |
| Spin | B [11] |
| The Village Voice | A− [12] |
The New Danger received generally mixed reviews from critics; it holds an aggregate score of 59 out of 100 at Metacritic. [13] Blender called it "mushily sentimental, self-righteously indignant and constantly in your face", [4] while AllMusic's Andy Kellman said it was "a sprawling, overambitious mess". [3] New York magazine panned the album as "an unsatisfying muddle of protest music, black rock, and rap". [14] In The New York Times , Kelefa Sanneh wrote that the record suffered from extended soul songs that meandered, dull rock songs, and some raps such as "The Rape Over" that were devoid of Mos Def's usual "warmth and wit". [15] NME deemed some of the songs failed experiments but also highlighted "Boogie Man Song", "Modern Marvel", and "Champion Requiem" as more timeless material. [7] Rolling Stone critic Tom Moon was more enthusiastic, hailing the album as an "earthy, impressively diverse" work that showcased Mos Def's abilities to "create deeply nuanced characterizations" and "broaden the hip-hop palette without sacrificing, or selling out, its core ideals". [10] Writing for The Village Voice , Robert Christgau said while Mos Def's previous records were driven by his "verbal flow", The New Danger was more interesting musically and defined by its sonic flow, which the critic described as "a shadowy, guitar-drenched tone poem of the streets". [12] In his ballot for the annual Pazz & Jop critics poll, he named it the 19th best album of 2004. [16] LA Weekly included the track "Zimzallabim" in their list of "Ten Rap-Rock Songs That Are Actually Awesome". [17]
The New Danger was released by Geffen Records on October 12, 2004, in the United States and October 18 in the United Kingdom. [18] It debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 in its first week, [19] and by March 2014, it had sold 513,000 copies in the US. [20] In August 2017, the album was certified gold by the RIAA, indicating sales and their equivalents—streams and track downloads—of 500,000 units in the U.S. [21]
| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Boogie Man Song" | Mos Def, Raphael Saadiq | 2:22 |
| 2. | "Freaky Black Greetings" | Mos Def | 2:20 |
| 3. | "Ghetto Rock" | Minnesota | 3:53 |
| 4. | "Zimzallabim" | Easy Mo Bee, Mos Def | 3:41 |
| 5. | "The Rape Over" | Kanye West | 1:34 |
| 6. | "Blue Black Jack" (featuring Shuggie Otis) | Minnesota | 5:47 |
| 7. | "Bedstuy Parade & Funeral March" (featuring Paul Oscher) | Mos Def | 4:32 |
| 8. | "Sex, Love & Money" | Warryn Campbell | 4:09 |
| 9. | "Sunshine" | Kanye West | 4:25 |
| 10. | "Close Edge" | Minnesota | 3:10 |
| 11. | "The Panties" | Minnesota | 4:11 |
| 12. | "War" | Mos Def, Psycho Les | 3:07 |
| 13. | "Grown Man Business (Fresh Vintage Bottles)" (featuring Minnesota) | Minnesota | 3:24 |
| 14. | "Modern Marvel" | Minnesota | 9:19 |
| 15. | "Life Is Real" | Molecules | 3:11 |
| 16. | "The Easy Spell" | Mos Def | 5:32 |
| 17. | "The Beggar" (featuring Paul Oscher) | Mos Def | 5:19 |
| 18. | "Champion Requiem" | 88-Keys | 4:52 |
| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19. | "The Jump Off" (featuring Ludacris) | Minnesota | 4:21 |
Notes: The UK Edition bonus track is also featured on his 2007 compilation album, Mos Definite.
| Chart (2004) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Albums [22] | 12 |
| Canadian R&B Albums [23] | 20 |
| French Albums Chart [24] | 103 |
| Swiss Albums Chart [25] | 50 |
| UK Albums Chart [26] | 56 |
| US Billboard 200 [27] | 5 |
| US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums [28] | 2 |
| US Billboard Top Rap Albums [29] | 1 |
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2004 | "Sex, Love & Money" |
| "Close Edge" |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA) [30] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Yasiin Bey, formerly known as Mos Def, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor.
Black on Both Sides is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Yasiin Bey, then known as Mos Def, released on October 12, 1999, by Rawkus and Priority Records.
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It's About Time is the second album by American singer Christina Milian. The album was released by Island Records on June 15, 2004. It's About Time served as Milian's debut in the US; the September 11 attacks occurred two weeks prior to her debut album was scheduled to be released, and Milian opted to record a new album for the US market.
Touch is the second studio album by American singer Amerie, released on April 26, 2005, by Richcraft Records, Sony Urban Music, and Columbia Records. Following the release of her debut album, All I Have (2002), and her first acting role, Amerie began work on her second studio album. As with All I Have, the album was co-written and produced by mentor Rich Harrison, with contributions from additional productions. Unlike her debut, Amerie co-wrote every track but one, and assumed more creative control over the visual imagery accompanying the album, such as music videos and artwork.
Quality is the first studio album by American rapper Talib Kweli. The album was released on November 19, 2002, by Rawkus Records. It received wide critical acclaim and had some commercial appeal from the song "Get By", produced by Kanye West. Kludge magazine included it on their list of best albums of 2002.
Chocolate Factory is the fifth studio album by American recording artist R. Kelly, released on February 18, 2003, by Jive Records. Recording sessions took place mainly at Rockland Studios and Chicago Recording Company in Chicago, Illinois, and the album was primarily written, arranged, and produced by R. Kelly. Originally titled Loveland, Chocolate Factory was conceived by Kelly amid controversy over his sex scandal at the time.
Music of the Sun is the debut studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on August 29, 2005, by Def Jam Recordings. Prior to signing with Def Jam, Rihanna was discovered by record producer Evan Rogers in Barbados, who helped Rihanna record demo tapes to send out to several record labels. Jay-Z, the former chief executive officer (CEO) and president of Def Jam, was given Rihanna's demo by Jay Brown, his A&R at Def Jam, and invited her to audition for the label after hearing the song that would become her first single, "Pon de Replay". She auditioned for Jay-Z and L.A. Reid, the former CEO and president of record label group The Island Def Jam Music Group, and was signed on the spot to prevent her from signing with another record label.
Mama Said Knock You Out is the fourth studio album by American rapper LL Cool J. It was produced mostly by Marley Marl and recorded at his "House of Hits" home studio in Chestnut Ridge and at Chung King House of Metal in New York City. After the disappointing reception of LL Cool's 1989 album Walking with a Panther, Mama Said Knock You Out was released by Def Jam Recordings on September 14, 1990 to commercial and critical success.
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Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the official debut studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released on February 6, 2003, by Interscope Records, Eminem's Shady Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records. After signing with Eminem, 50 Cent also worked heavily with Dr. Dre acting as the album's executive producers, who worked to combine the gangsta rap and R&B combo prevalent in New York hip hop. Additional production is provided by Mike Elizondo, Sha Money XL, Mr. Porter, Rockwilder, Dirty Swift, Megahertz, and more.
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Because of You is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Ne-Yo. It was released by Compound Entertainment and Def Jam Recordings on April 25, 2007 in the United States. Ne-Yo reteamed with many previous collaborators to work on the follow-up to his debut album In My Own Words (2006), involving Ron "Neff-U" Feemster, StarGate, and Shea Taylor, as well as new and upcoming musicians such as The Heavyweights, Eric Hudson, Timothy Bloom, Knobody, and Syience. Next to them, Because of You features guest vocal contributions from rapper Jay-Z on "Crazy" and fellow R&B singer Jennifer Hudson on "Leaving Tonight".
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The discography of Yasiin Bey / Mos Def, an American rapper, consists of four solo albums, two compilation albums, and several singles. Mos Def began his hip hop career in 1994 in the underground rap group UTD alongside his sibling group members DCQ and Ces, after which he pursued a solo career. In 1998, he made his mainstream debut on Rawkus Records in the duo Black Star with rapper Talib Kweli. "Definition", the lead single from Black Star's self-titled debut album, reached No. 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 3 on the Hot Rap Singles chart.
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