The Wonder Years | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 27, 2011 | |||
Studio |
| |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 61:51 | |||
Label | It's a Wonderful World Music Group | |||
Producer | 9th Wonder | |||
9th Wonder chronology | ||||
|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 87/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
HipHopDX | 4/5 [3] |
RapReviews | 8/10 [4] |
XXL | 4/5 [5] |
The Wonder Years is the fourth studio album by American record producer 9th Wonder. It was released on September 27, 2011 through his own label It's a Wonderful World Music Group. Recording sessions took place at Khrysis' Crib, at the Peanut Gallery in Raleigh, North Carolina, at Brightlady Studios, and at Record Plant in Los Angeles. Production was handled entirely by 9th Wonder himself, who also served as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Terrace Martin, Median, Phonte, Actual Proof, Big Remo, Bird & The Midnight Falcons, Blu, Erykah Badu, Fashawn, GQ, Halo, Heather Victoria, Holly Weerd, Kendrick Lamar, Khrysis, King Mez, Mac Miller, Marsha Ambrosius, Masta Killa, MeLa Machinko, Murs, Problem, Raekwon, Rapsody, Skyzoo, Talib Kweli, Tanya Morgan, Thee Tom Hardy and Warren G. The album peaked at number 76 on the Billboard 200 in the United States.
It was originally scheduled to be released in 2008 through Asylum Records, but it was delayed to undisclosed reasons. The songs originally recorded for the album were leaked such as "Star" featuring his former group Little Brother, "Ms. Diva" featuring Tyler Woods and Talib Kweli and "Only Knew" featuring Tyler Woods and Styles P.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Make It Big (Intro)" (featuring Khrysis) | 5:14 | |
2. | "Band Practice Pt. 2" (featuring Phonte and Median) |
| 1:59 |
3. | "Enjoy (West Coastin')" (featuring Warren G, Murs and Kendrick Lamar) | 3:23 | |
4. | "Streets of Music" (featuring Tanya Morgan & Enigma of Actual Proof) |
| 3:06 |
5. | "Hearing the Melody" (featuring Skyzoo, Fashawn and King Mez) | 4:04 | |
6. | "Loyalty" (featuring Masta Killa and Halo) |
| 4:15 |
7. | "Now I'm Being Cool" (featuring MeLa Machinko and Median) |
| 4:09 |
8. | "Never Stop Loving You" (featuring Terrace Martin and Talib Kweli) |
| 4:00 |
9. | "Piranhas" (featuring Blu and Sundown) |
| 3:19 |
10. | "Peanut Butter & Jelly" (featuring Marsha Ambrosius) |
| 4:04 |
11. | "One Night" (featuring Terrace Martin, Phonte, Bird & The Midnight Falcons) |
| 4:22 |
12. | "Your Smile" (featuring Holly Weerd and Thee Tom Hardy) |
| 3:49 |
13. | "No Pretending" (featuring Raekwon and Big Remo) |
| 4:00 |
14. | "20 Feet Tall (Remix)" (featuring Erykah Badu and Rapsody) |
| 4:20 |
15. | "That's Love" (featuring Mac Miller and Heather Victoria) |
| 3:38 |
16. | "A Star U R" (featuring Terrace Martin, Problem and GQ) |
| 4:19 |
Total length: | 1:01:51 |
Chart (2011) | Peak position |
---|---|
US Billboard 200 [6] | 76 |
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [7] | 12 |
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard) [8] | 10 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [9] | 12 |
Tsidi Ibrahim, known professionally as Jean Grae, is an American rapper. She rose in the underground hip hop scene in New York City and has built an international fanbase. Grae's unique music and lyrical style have earned the artist recognition as a favorite emcee by many rap artists such as Talib Kweli, Jay-Z, and Black Thought of the Roots.
Patrick Denard Douthit, better known as 9th Wonder, is an American hip hop producer, record executive, and DJ from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, who is also teaching faculty at North Carolina Central University and Duke University, where he collaborates with Professor Mark Anthony Neal.
Robert Andre Glasper is an American pianist, record producer, songwriter, and musical arranger. His music embodies numerous musical genres, primarily centered around jazz. Glasper has won five Grammy Awards from 11 nominations.
Rock the Bells is an annual hip-hop festival that originally took place in Southern California only, but has since toured throughout the world. The concert features a line-up of high-profile alternative hip-hop artists, often headlined by a more mainstream artist. The first festival was held in 2004, featuring a re-united Wu-Tang Clan, who performed four months before Ol' Dirty Bastard's death. That festival is covered in depth by a 2006 documentary film also called Rock the Bells.
Jeanius is the third studio album by American rapper Jean Grae. She worked on it with hip hop producer 9th Wonder and intended to release it in 2004, but the album leaked prematurely and spawned various pirated versions of the unfinished project. After Grae's record deal with the label, Jeanius was released on July 8, 2008, by Talib Kweli's Blacksmith Records.
Gregory Skyler Taylor, known professionally as Skyzoo, is an American rapper and songwriter. He has released a number of notable solo and collaborative albums, including Cloud 9: The 3 Day High with 9th Wonder in 2006, The Salvation in 2009, A Dream Deferred in 2012, Music For My Friends in 2015, and his most recent solo album All the Brilliant Things. Skyzoo has also released a plethora of non-commercial mixtapes including Corner Store Classic and The Great Debater throughout his career, and has worked with artists such as Jill Scott, Wale, Lloyd Banks, Tyrese, Dr. Dre, Raheem Devaughn, Black Thought, Jadakiss, Talib Kweli, Spike Lee, John Legend, and others. Skyzoo has headlined or co-headlined often-yearly tours throughout Europe, the United Kingdom, Africa, Australia, and Asia, and he owns and operates the independent record label First Generation Rich.
Christopher Frederick Tyson, better known as Khrysis, is an American hip hop producer and occasional rapper. He is best known as a former member of the Justus League collective, being one half of the duo The Away Team with Sean Boog. He also operates as an in-house producer for The Soul Council, 9th Wonder's producer collective, and acts as one half of the duo Jericho Jackson with Elzhi.
The following songs were produced by 9th Wonder.
The following is a list of productions by American Hip hop producer, Khrysis. The record labels are in parentheses next to the album titles.
It's a Wonderful World Music Group is an independent record label, founded by hip hop producer 9th Wonder in 2008.
The Mama's Gun World Tour was a concert tour and the second by American R&B singer Erykah Badu in support of her multi-platinum selling album Mama's Gun. The tour started in North America on February 10, in Cleveland, Ohio at the Allen Theatre. Badu will perform two nights each in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Chicago.
Coalmine Records is a Brooklyn, New York-based independent hip-hop record label. Coalmine's catalog includes Pharaohe Monch, El Da Sensei, Kool G. Rap, Talib Kweli, Large Professor, Heltah Skeltah, Dilated Peoples, Bekay, Big K.R.I.T, Custom Made, Emilio Rojas, Torae, Skyzoo, Termanology, Alchemist, J.R.Rotem, M-Phazes, Illmind, Khrysis, Shuko, Domingo, DJ Kayslay, DJ Revolution, and DJ Babu.
This is a list of discographies by albums was released or distributed by It's A Wonderful World Music Group
Scars & Stripes is the fourth album by North Carolina hip hop duo The Away Team, it was released on October 11, 2011, on 9th Wonder's label Jamla Records and Duck Down. The album's entirely produced by Khrysis, featuring contributions from their labelmates Big Remo, Heather Victoria, Actual Proof, HaLo, Rapsody and GQ as well as Evidence, King Mez, Talib Kweli, among others. Unlike their previous albums, this also features the group member and producer Khrysis as an emcee.
Marlanna Evans, better known by her stage name Rapsody, is an American rapper. After signing with music producer 9th Wonder's music label It's a Wonderful World Music Group, she released a series of mixtapes and collaborated with Erykah Badu and Talib Kweli. Soon afterwards Rapsody released her debut album The Idea of Beautiful (2012). She would attain further prominence when she was featured on Kendrick Lamar's 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly, on the track "Complexion ".
Mez, formerly known as King Mez, is an American rapper, producer, writer and director. He is perhaps best known for his work with Dr. Dre and on the 2019 rap album Revenge of the Dreamers III. He was born on a military base in Fort Campbell, KY and grew up in Southeast Raleigh, NC.
The Seven is the collaborative EP by American hip hop recording artists Talib Kweli and Styles P. It was released on April 14, 2017, by Javotti Media and 3D. The EP features guest appearances from artists such as Common, Jadakiss, Sheek Louch and Rapsody, among others. The EP's production was handled by 88-Keys, Oh No, Nottz, Marco Polo, Khrysis and Amadeus.
The All is the sixth studio album by American hip hop duo Smif-N-Wessun. It was released on February 22, 2019 through Duck Down Music. Production was handled by 9th Wonder and members of his production team The Soul Council, including Khrysis, Eric G., E. Jones and Nottz. It features guest appearances from Heather Victoria, GQ, Musiq Soulchild, Raekwon, Rapsody, Rick Ross and SmittytheCAINSMITH.
The following list is a discography of production by J Dilla, an American hip hop record producer and recording artist from Detroit, Michigan. It includes a list of songs produced, co-produced and remixed by year, artist, album and title.