Ready to Die

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Ready to Die (disambiguation).
Ready to Die
Ready to Die cover
Studio album by The Notorious B.I.G.
Released September 13, 1994
Genre East Coast hip hop
Length 68:58
Label Bad Boy/Universal
Producer(s) Sean "Puffy" Combs, DJ Premier, Easy Mo Bee, Lord Finesse, Chucky Thompson
Professional reviews 
link
The Notorious B.I.G. chronology
Ready to Die
(1994)		 Life After Death
(1997)


Ready to Die is the debut album of East Coast hip hop artist The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994 (see 1994 in music). The album was critical in revitalizing East Coast hip hop after Dr. Dre and Death Row Records took over the industry in 1992 (see 1992 in music). The album was very popular, and crossed over into the mainstream, partially as a result to Biggie's slow, easy-to-understand style, though his complex rhymes made the album a critical success as well. The smooth production sound of the hit singles "Juicy" and "Big Poppa" helped the album reach multi-platinum sales as well.

Upon its release, Ready to Die was hailed as a classic by critics, but unlike other East Coast albums released between 1993-1994 such as the Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) and Nas' Illmatic, such critical success was matched with commercial success. Thus, while it was not the first album of what many critics refer to as the "East Coast renaissance," it was the first album to bring East Coast hip hop back to the mainstream[citation needed].

While Sean "Puffy" Combs is commonly associated with this album's production, most of the beats were provided by other producers such as Easy Mo Bee and Poke Olivier; Combs only produced the two interludes on the album, "Intro" and "Fuck Me (Interlude,)" though he is listed as a co-producer on the hit singles "Juicy" and "Big Poppa" as well as the song "Respect." As the head of Bad Boy Records, he also executive-produced the album. Combs would play a more notable role in Biggie's follow-up album Life After Death, co-producing several tracks with his Bad Boy production team.

The album peaked at #3 and #15 on Billboard's (North America) Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums and the Billboard 200 album charts. It was ranked 30 in Spin's "100 Greatest Albums, 1985-2005". In 2003, the album was ranked number 133 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. It has the distinction of being one of the highest ranked rap albums on their list (it's closely followed by Dr. Dre's The Chronic, ranked #137).

On March 19, 2006, a judge ordered that sales of Ready to Die to be halted because the title track sampled a 1992 song by the Ohio Players, "Singing in the Morning", without permission. [1]. Combs has said he plans to appeal the ruling, and is confident it will be overturned.

Contents

[edit] Track listing

# Title Producer(s) Performer (s)
1 "Intro" Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G.
2 "Things Done Changed" Darnell Scott The Notorious B.I.G.
3 "Gimme The Loot" Easy Mo Bee The Notorious B.I.G.
4 "Machine Gun Funk" Easy Mo Bee The Notorious B.I.G.
5 "Warning" Easy Mo Bee The Notorious B.I.G.
6 "Ready To Die" Easy Mo Bee The Notorious B.I.G.
7 "One More Chance" The Bluez Brothers, Chucky Thompson & Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G., Total
8 "Fuck Me (Interlude)" Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G.
9 "The What" Easy Mo Bee Method Man, The Notorious B.I.G.
10 "Juicy" Poke & Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G., Total
11 "Everyday Struggle" The Bluez Brothers The Notorious B.I.G.
12 "Me & My Bitch" The Bluez Brothers, Chucky Thompson & Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G.
13 "Big Poppa" Chucky Thompson & Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G.
14 "Respect" Poke & Sean "Puffy" Combs Diana King, The Notorious B.I.G.
15 "Friend Of Mine" Easy Mo Bee The Notorious B.I.G.
16 "Unbelievable" DJ Premier The Notorious B.I.G.
17 "Suicidal Thoughts" Lord Finesse The Notorious B.I.G.
18 "Who Shot Ya" [Extended Version Bonus Track] Nashiem Myrick & Sean "Puffy" Combs The Notorious B.I.G.
19 "Just Playing (Dreams)" [Extended Version Bonus Track] Rashad Smith The Notorious B.I.G.

[edit] Partial list of Samples

The following lists some of the songs and sounds sampled on Ready to Die.

Intro

Things Done Changed

Gimme the Loot

Machine Gun Funk

Warning

Ready to Die

One More Chance

Juicy

Everyday Struggle

Me & My Bitch

  • "Computer Love" by Zapp

Big Poppa

Respect

Friend of Mine

Unbelievable

Who Shot Ya?

Just Playing (Dreams)

[edit] Album singles

Single information
"Juicy"
"Big Poppa"
  • Released: 1994
  • B-side: "Who Shot Ya?" & "Warning"
" One More Chance"

[edit] Album Chart Positions

Year Album Chart positions
Billboard 200 Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums
1994 Ready To Die #15 #3

[edit] Singles Chart Positions

Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles Rhythmic Top 40 Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales
1994 "Juicy/Unbelievable" #27 #14 #3 #36 #1
1995 "One More Chance/Stay With Me" #2 #1 #1 #7 #1
1995 "Big Poppa/Warning" #6 #4 #1 #12 #1
 v • d • e 
The Notorious B.I.G.

Albums and EPs: Ready to Die | Conspiracy | Life After Death | Born Again | Duets: The Final Chapter

Singles: "Party And Bullshit" | "Juicy" | "Big Poppa" | "One More Chance" | "Fuck You Tonight" | "Hypnotize" | "Mo Money Mo Problems" | "Sky's The Limit" | "Notorious B.I.G." | "Dead Wrong" | "Nasty Girl" | "Spit Your Game" | "Hold Ya Head"

See Also: 2Pac vs. The Notorious B.I.G. | Bad Boy Records | Junior M.A.F.I.A. 
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../r/e/a/Ready_to_Die_aa30.html"
In other languages