| Loyal to the Game | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by 2Pac | ||||
| Released | December 14, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | 1991-1994 (2Pac vocals) 2004 (added guest vocals and reproduction) |
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| Genre | Hip hop, West Coast hip hop, Gangsta rap | |||
| Length | 64:56 | |||
| Label | Amaru, Interscope | |||
| Producer | Afeni Shakur (exec.), Eminem (also exec.) Scott Storch, Red Spyda, Raphael Saadiq, DJ Quik, Luis Resto |
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| 2Pac chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Loyal to the Game | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | link |
| Los Angeles Times | link |
| PopMatters | (5/10) link |
| RapReviews | (8/10) link |
| Rolling Stone | link |
Loyal to the Game is the sixth posthumous studio album by Tupac Shakur. It contains remixes of previously unreleased music recorded by Shakur before his death in 1996. Released in the United States on December 14, 2004 (December 12 in the United Kingdom), Loyal to the Game was produced by Eminem.
Contents |
According to an interview with MTV, Eminem was so moved by Tupac's life and work that he wrote a letter to Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, asking her to consider letting him produce the album. Shakur agreed, giving Eminem the go ahead.[1] The album featured two singles- "Thugs Get Lonely Too" and "Ghetto Gospel".[2]
Eminem used various unusual production techniques during the creation of this album, namely modifying the pace and pitch of Tupac's voice to better suit the beats produced.[3] There was also various uses of the cutting and pasting of vocals to produce new words synonymous with current rap culture, such as saying "G-Unit"", "Obie Trice" and "Em" instead of "LG", the original producer of "Out On Bail".[3]
The original title track was recorded in 1993 by 2Pac, Treach and Riddler for the Above The Rim and was produced by Reginald Heard. DJ Quik made a remix, the tempo of which is the same as the original, that was added as a bonus track; DJ Quik also suggested to Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, that the title track be known as "Loyal to the Game".
| No. | Title | Producer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Soldier Like Me" (feat. Eminem) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 3:50 |
| 2. | "The Uppercut" (feat. E.D.I. Mean & Young Noble) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 3:50 |
| 3. | "Out On Bail" | Eminem, Luis Resto (Originally produced by LG) | 3:54 |
| 4. | "Ghetto Gospel" (feat. Elton John) | Eminem, Luis Resto (Originally produced by Big D The Impossible) | 3:58 |
| 5. | "Black Cotton" (feat. Eminem, Kastro & Young Noble) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 5:03 |
| 6. | "Loyal to the Game" (feat. G-Unit) | Eminem, Luis Resto (Originally produced by Reginald Heard) | 3:23 |
| 7. | "Thugs Get Lonely Too" (feat. Nate Dogg) | Eminem, Luis Resto (Originally produced by Majesty from the Live Squad | 4:48 |
| 8. | "N.I.G.G.A." (feat. Jadakiss) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 3:02 |
| 9. | "Who Do You Love?" | Eminem, Luis Resto | 3:28 |
| 10. | "Crooked Nigga Too" | Eminem, Luis Resto | 2:55 |
| 11. | "Don't You Trust Me?" (feat. Dido) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 4:55 |
| 12. | "Hennessey" (feat. Obie Trice) | Eminem, Luis Resto | 3:27 |
| 13. | "Thug 4 Life" | Eminem, Luis Resto (Originally produced by Johnny "J") | 2:54 |
| 14. | "Po Nigga Blues (Scott Storch Remix) (Bonus Track)" (feat. Ron Isley) | Scott Storch (Originally Produced by Shock G) | 3:38 |
| 15. | "Hennessey (Red Spyda Remix) (Bonus Track)" (feat. E.D.I. Mean & Sleepy Brown) | Red Spyda | 3:18 |
| 16. | "Crooked Nigga Too (Raphael Saadiq Remix) (Bonus Tracks)" | Raphael Saadiq | 4:02 |
| 17. | "Loyal To The Game (DJ Quik Remix) (Bonus Track)" (feat. Big Syke & DJ Quik) | DJ Quik | 4:20 |
Loyal to the Game debuted on the Billboard 200 at number one with sales of over 330,000 copies in its first week. It was later certified Platinum in the US and Gold in UK.[4]
| Chart | Peak positions |
|---|---|
| Australian Charts | #21[5] |
| Belgium Charts (Flanders) | #100[6] |
| Billboard 200 | #1[7] |
| Canadian Charts | #7[7] |
| Deutsch Charts | #50[8] |
| Dutch Charts | #44[9] |
| French Charts | #55[10] |
| Irish Charts | #20[11] |
| New Zealand Charts | #31[12] |
| Switzerland Charts | #21[13] |
| Top Rap Albums | #1[7] |
| Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums | #1[7] |
| UK Chart | #20[14][15] |
| Preceded by The Red Light District by Ludacris |
Billboard 200 number-one album December 26, 2004 - January 1, 2005 |
Succeeded by Encore by Eminem |