Ghetto Fabolous

Ghetto Fabolous
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 11, 2001 (2001-09-11)
Recorded2000–2001
Studio
Genre
Length63:11
Label
Producer
Fabolous chronology
Ghetto Fabolous
(2001)
Street Dreams
(2003)
Singles from Ghetto Fabolous
  1. "Can't Deny It"
    Released: June 19, 2001
  2. "Young'n (Holla Back)"
    Released: January 15, 2002
  3. "Trade It All"
    Released: 2002

Ghetto Fabolous is the debut studio album by American rapper Fabolous. It was released on September 11, 2001 through Desert Storm Records and Elektra Records. Production was handled by DJ Clue?, Duro, Armando Colon, DJ Envy, Just Blaze, Mono, Omen, Red Spyda, Rick Rock, Rockwilder, The Neptunes and Timbaland.

Ghetto Fabolous was supported by three singles: "Can't Deny It", Young'n (Holla Back)" and "Trade It All". The album received mixed critical reviews, and was a commercial success. The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 143,000 copies in its first week.[1] The album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[2]

Singles

[edit]

The first single from the album was "Can't Deny It". The single was produced by Rick Rock, and features a chorus by Nate Dogg that alters lyrics from 2Pac's "Ambitionz az a Ridah". The single peaked at number 25 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The second single from the album, "Young'n (Holla Back)", which was produced by The Neptunes. The single peaked at number 33. The third single from the album, "Trade It All", featuring vocals from Jagged Edge and produced by DJ Clue and Duro. It reached number 20, becoming the highest-charting single from the album.[3] All three singles had supporting music videos.

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Entertainment WeeklyC[5]
HipHopDX3.0/5[6]
Pitchfork7.2/10[7]
RapReviews6/10[8]
Rolling Stone[9]

Rolling Stone writer Kris Ex noted how the album contained "by-the-numbers danceable bounces" and "predictable thug rhyme themes" throughout the track listing but said that, "Ghetto Fabolous is the most entertaining argument for hip-hop excess to come along in a while, due to Fab's ability to add lyrical twists and turns to the genre."[9] DeMarco Williams of HipHopDX gave praise to Fabolous' "dynamic presence" and "rhyming skills" being reminiscent of Jay-Z and Jadakiss, concluding that "if you can get over the fact that his tracks have no heart, it's well worth a cop."[6] Entertainment Weekly writer Craig Seymour commended Fab's "Mase-like flow" on "Keepin' It Gangsta" and "Can't Deny It" but found it "too one-dimensional" to elevate the rest of the track listing, saying "this hip-hop newcomer doesn't live up to his deliberately misspelled moniker."[5] Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews highlighted the contributions from Timbaland, Rick Rock and DJ Envy as being "energetic and listenable" but felt that Fabolous was "vexing" as an artist for having a dated grab bag of references and DJ Clue lacking quality beats outside of "Trade It All" and "Ride for This", concluding that, "[T]he shame of this album is that by failing to make a huge dent, Fabolous ends up being lumped in with similar rappers like Jadakiss and Ma$e instead of dropping an industry bomb worthy of his star-studded name."[8]

Commercial performance

[edit]

Ghetto Fabolous debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart and number two on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 143,000 copies in its first week.[1] This became Fabolous' first US top-ten debut.[1] On February 3, 2003, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over a million copies in the US.[2] As of March 2003, the album has sold 1.05 million copies in the United States.[10]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Click & Spark"2:04
2."Keepin' It Gangsta"
  • Jackson
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
4:07
3."Young'n (Holla Back)"The Neptunes3:26
4."Get Right"Rockwilder4:35
5."Ride for This" (featuring Ja Rule)
  • Jackson
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
3:18
6."One Day"Omen4:38
7."Trade It All" (featuring Jagged Edge)
  • Jackson
  • Brandon Casey
  • Brian Casey
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
5:19
8."Right Now & Later On"Timbaland4:00
9."Take You Home" (featuring Lil' Mo)
  • Jackson
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
3:58
10."Get Smart"Rush Da Spyda3:45
11."Can't Deny It" (featuring Nate Dogg)Rick Rock5:06
12."Ma' Be Easy"Just Blaze3:45
13."We Don't Give a Fuck"
  • Jackson
  • Armando Colon
Armando Colon3:17
14."Bad Guy" (featuring Pain in Da Ass)
2:59
Total length:54:34
Bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
15."Gotta Be Thug"
  • Jackson
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
3:58
16."If They Want It"
  • Jackson
  • Shaw
  • Ifill
  • DJ Clue?
  • Duro
4:39
Total length:1:03:11
Sample credits

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[2] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Jay-Z Draws 'Blueprint' For Chart Dominance". Billboard. September 20, 2001. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "American album certifications – Fabolous – Ghetto Fabolous". Recording Industry Association of America.
  3. ^ "Fabolous Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-05-31.
  4. ^ Birchmeier, Jason. "Ghetto Fabolous - Fabolous". AllMusic. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  5. ^ a b Seymour, Craig (September 21, 2001). "Ghetto Fabolous". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Williams, DeMarco (October 2, 2001). "Fabolous - Ghetto Fabolous". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  7. ^ Pierre, Alphonse (May 30, 2020). "Fabolous: Ghetto Fabolous". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  8. ^ a b Juon, Steve 'Flash' (September 18, 2001). "Feature for September 18, 2001 - Fabolous' "Ghetto Fabolous"". RapReviews. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  9. ^ a b Ex, Kris (October 1, 2001). "Ghetto Fabolous : Fabolous : Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 3, 2008. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  10. ^ "50 Cent Overtakes Norah Jones At No. 1". Billboard. March 12, 2003. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  11. ^ "Fabolous Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  12. ^ "Fabolous Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  13. ^ "Canada's Top 200 R&B; albums of 2001". Jam!. January 8, 2002. Archived from the original on July 26, 2002. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
  14. ^ "Top 100 rap albums of 2001 in Canada". Jam!. January 8, 2002. Archived from the original on November 22, 2002. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  15. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2001". Billboard. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  16. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2001". Billboard. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  17. ^ "Canada's Top 200 R&B; albums of 2002". Jam!. Archived from the original on November 6, 2003. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  18. ^ "Top 100 rap albums of 2002 in Canada". Jam!. Archived from the original on October 12, 2003. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  19. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2002". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  20. ^ "Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2002". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
[edit]