Be (album)
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- For the album by Pain of Salvation, see BE (album)
| Be | ||
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| Studio album by Common | ||
| Released | May 24, 2005 (U.S.) | |
| Recorded | 2004-2005 | |
| Genre | Hip hop | |
| Length | 42:43 | |
| Label | GOOD/Geffen | |
| Producer(s) | Kanye West J Dilla |
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| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Common chronology | ||
| Electric Circus (2002) |
Be (2005) |
Finding Forever (2007) |
Be is a 2005 album by rapper Common, produced by Kanye West and J Dilla. The album reached a peak of #2 on the Billboard 200 pop albums chart, and became Common's second album to sell over 500,000 copies. Currently it has sold 800,000.[1] Common released Be under West's record label, GOOD Music, and West produced 9 of the 11 songs off the album ("Love Is..." and "It's Your World" are both produced by Dilla).
Contents |
[edit] Overview
Be was touted as Common's comeback album after the commercially disastrous Electric Circus. His new alliance with Kanye West, also helped to spark public interest in the project. The results show that Common was clearly aware, and perhaps agreeing, with the negative criticisms about Electric Circus. In comparison to that album, Be is lean, immediate, and commanding, yet also restrained in its musical ambitions. Many believe it to be his safest album. Of the reaction to the album, the rapper said: "I don't think Electric Circus was as focused. Though I'd done some progressive hip-hop, people know me as the b-boy. When I showed them something different, a different style of b-boy, there were like, "Hold up. You can be Afrocentric, but what's this rock shit that you're doing?"[2]
[edit] Singles
Common gave his reasons for featuring controversial spoken word recording artists, The Last Poets, on the album's first official single, "The Corner": "They gifted at writing. They voices is incredible. They took my song to a higher level. And that's what hip-hop was about to me. It would have a message. It would take you to the next place. It was fresh as people say -- something new. They brought newness to what "The Corner" was and they also brought some nostalgia, too. Just them being from the '70s and being used in hip-hop and their spirit brought something pure to it. They gave me a better understanding of the corner after that. I knew those who had been listening to hip-hop would know who the Last Poets were and if they didn't they would feel it in their souls sooner or later. And I also felt good about introducing some of the youth to the Last Poets.[3]
"Go!"
- "Go!" excerpt (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- From the album Be
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
"Go" was the album's second, and highest charting single. The song featured Kanye West and John Mayer, however all the verses are performed by Common. The song continued Common's now apparent "ladies' man" persona, which begun with 2000's "The Light", and 2002's "Come Close". The video for the song included shots of Common surrounded by numerous models.
"Testify"
The album's third single, "Testify" received a type of promotional video known as a "mini-movie"; a term coined by Michael Jackson to describe a music video with a complex plot and a suitably long running time, often with intermissions between the song's parts. The video featured acting parts from, Taraji P. Henson, Bill Duke, Steve Harris, and Wood Harris, and received notable spins on specialist channels such as MTV2. The song samples "Innocent Until Proven Guilty" by Honey Cone.
[edit] Grammy Nominations
Be was nominated for four 2006 Grammy Awards.
- Best Rap Album, for Be
- Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, for "The Corner" (featuring The Last Poets) (from Be)
- Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, for "They Say" (featuring Kanye West and John Legend) (from Be)
- Best Rap Song, for writing "Testify" (from Be)
[edit] Track listing
| # | Title | Length | Songwriters | Producer(s) | Performer (s) | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Be (Intro)" | 2:24 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Caesar Frazier |
Kanye West | Common James Poyser (keyboards) Derick Hodge (acoustic bass) |
|
| 2 | "The Corner" | 3:45 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Abiodun Oyewole Umar Bin Hassan Leon Moore |
Kanye West | Common Kanye West The Last Poets |
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| 3 | "Go!" | 3:44 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West John Mayer Linda Lewis |
Kanye West | Common John Mayer Kanye West DJ A-Trak (scratches) Num Amuntehu (percussion) |
|
| 4 | "Faithful" | 2:36 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Dewayne Julius Rogers |
Kanye West | Common Bilal John Legend James Poyser (keyboards) Ken Lewis (sample recreation) |
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| 5 | "Testify" | 2:36 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Angelo Bond General Johnson Gregory Perry |
Kanye West | Common |
|
| 6 | "Love Is..." | 4:10 | Lonnie Lynn James Yancey Anne Gaye Marvin Gaye James Nyx Elgie Stover |
J Dilla | Common Luna E James Poyser (all instruments) |
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| 7 | "Chi-City" | 3:27 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Eddie Cornelius |
Kanye West | Common Kanye West DJ A-Trak (scratches) DJ Dummy (scratches) |
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| 8 | "The Food (Live)" | 3:36 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Sam Cooke Stanley McKenney Eugene Record |
Kanye West | Common Dave Chappelle Kanye West DJ Dummy (scratches) |
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| 9 | "Real People" | 2:48 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West Caesar J. Frazier |
Kanye West | Common |
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| 10 | "They Say" | 3:57 | Lonnie Lynn Kanye West John Legend Thomas Bell Linda Epstein |
Kanye West | Common John Legend Kanye West |
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| 11 | "It's Your World (Part 1 & 2)" | 8:33 | Lonnie Lynn James Yancey James Poyser Karriem Riggins Lonnie "Pops" Lynn Robert Curington Willie Lestor |
J Dilla James Poyser (co-producer) Karriem Riggins (co-producer) |
Common Bilal Lonnie "Pops" Lynn "The Kids" Kanye West (keyboards) James Poyser (keyboards and strings) Karriem Riggins (percussion) |
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[edit] Album singles
| Single information |
|---|
| "The Corner" |
| "GO!" |
"Testify"
|
"The Food" was unofficially released as a single.[4]
Although not officially released as a single, "Be" received a video treatment from Paul Hunter.[5]
[edit] Chart positions
[edit] Album
| Year | Album | Chart positions | ||
| Billboard 200 | Top Canadian Albums | Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | ||
| 2005 | Be | #2 | #10 | #1 |
| 2006 | Be | #1 | ||
[edit] Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | "Go!" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 31 |
| 2005 | "Go!" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 46 |
| 2005 | "Go!" | Hot Rap Tracks | 21 |
| 2005 | "Go!" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 79 |
| 2005 | "Go!" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 68 |
| 2005 | "Testify" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 44 |
| 2005 | "The Corner" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 42 |
| 2005 | "The Corner" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks | 64 |
[edit] External link
- XXL Calls 'Be' a Classic
- Common Hoping To Get Kanye To Work On His New Album Tentatively Titled "Finding Forever"
[edit] References
| Common |
|---|
| Discography |
| Studio albums |
| Can I Borrow a Dollar? (1992) | Resurrection (1994) | One Day It'll All Make Sense (1997) | Like Water for Chocolate (2000) | Electric Circus (2002) | Be (2005) | Finding Forever (2007) |
| Singles |
| "Take It EZ" | "Breaker 1/9" | "Soul by the Pound" | "I Used to Love H.E.R." | "Resurrection" | "The Bitch in Yoo" | "Never Give Up" | "Retrospect for Life" | "Reminding Me (Of Sef)" | "One-Nine-Nine-Nine" | "Car Horn" | "The 6th Sense" | "The Light" | "Geto Heaven Remix T.S.O.I. (The Sound of Illadelph)" | "Come Close" | "The Corner" | "Go!" | "Testify" |
| See Also |
| Soulquarians | Native Tongues Posse | Lonnie Lynn | GOOD Music | List of Common songs | Smokin' Aces | American Gangster |
