La Bella Mafia
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| La Bella Mafia | |||||
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| Studio album by Lil' Kim | |||||
| Released | March 4, 2003 | ||||
| Recorded | 2002–2003 | ||||
| Genre | Hip hop | ||||
| Length | 75:33 | ||||
| Label | Atlantic Records 83572 |
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| Producer | Havoc, Scott Storch, Timbaland, Swizz Beatz, DJ Bless, EZ-Elpee, Ron Browz, Kanye West | ||||
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| Lil' Kim chronology | |||||
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| Singles from La Bella Mafia | |||||
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La Bella Mafia is the third album and fourth recording by American female rap artist Lil' Kim. It was released on March 4, 2003 to positive reviews and debuted at number-five on the Billboard 200 charts, selling 166,000 copies in its first week. The album was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and has sold over 2 million copies worldwide.[citation needed]
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[edit] About the album
In late 2001, Lil' Kim left Junior M.A.F.I.A. and severed ties with all members. She also ended her friendship and business relationship with longtime collaborator Sean "Diddy" Combs after he abandoned her when her sophomore album The Notorious K.I.M. - to which he served as executive producer, received a lukewarm reception.[1]
Recording sessions for La Bella Mafia began in the spring of 2002. In April 2002, Lil' Kim stated in an interview that she had begun working with Dr. Dre in the recording studio. She told MTV, "I've been talking to Dre a lot. And Dre and I are talking about possibly doing some collaborations. He's a cool cat. I love Dre. Our chemistry in the studio was just like, cool. We've been working, you know, trying to cook up some things." Kim also stated that she wanted to work with Eminem, Timbaland, and The Neptunes.[2]
The original title for the album was Hollyhood (which was also set to be the name of her clothing line), but changed the title to La Bella Mafia (which in Italian means 'Beautiful Mafia') after watching a film of the same name about a family of mob widows who seek revenge for the murders of their mobster husbands. She stated, "Any girl who's strong and very dedicated to what they do and don't take no mess, they can be apart of La Bella Mafia."[3]
[edit] Critical reception
La Bella Mafia was released to generally positive reviews. All Music critic Jason Birchmeier stated her previous album The Notorious K.I.M. was considered a "disappointment" as a follow-up to her debut album Hard Core and La Bella Mafia reestablished her as an "industry icon".[4] Nick Catucci, a critic for Spin Magazine, who gave the album 3 stars claimed, "The King is dead - long live the Queen."[5]
Stylus magazine critic Brett Berliner gave the album a B+ calling the album "one of the top hip-hop albums of 2003" and said, "Kim is now in a class of female MCs that includes only Rah Digga, Foxy Brown, and MC Lyte - and she's more confident, funny, and sexy than any of them". Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine gave the album 3 stars stating the album was her "most consistent effort to date," and added the album "plays like one giant bravado about everything: fame, money, power, sex, clothes, rhymes."[6]
Critics were also impressed with her lyrical ability. Jon Caramanica of Rolling Stone gave the album 3 stars stating, "When she really gets her hands dirty, Kim sounds more forceful and engaged than she's been in years."[7]
However, some critics felt the album was too long and contained too many fillers. Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic stated the album could use a little "trimming". Brett Berliner of Stylus Magazine said, "I enjoy about eight songs on this album, but they're tracks I only feel like listening to from time to time".[8]
[edit] Commercial reception
La Bella Mafia was released on March 4, 2003. It debuted on the Billboard 200 charts at number-five and number-four on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart selling 166,000 copies in its first week. On April 8, 2003 it was certified Gold on the Recording Industry Association of America and remained on the Billboard 200 charts for 29 weeks. It was certified Platinum on October 16, 2003, six months after the album's release. It has sold 1.1 million copies to date in the United States.
The album reached #80 in the United Kingdom where it remained on the charts for seven weeks. It also spent three weeks on the Swiss charts - peaking at #81, and #105 on the French album charts where it reached #105.
[edit] Track listing
1. "Intro" 1:25
- Produced by Shaft for Shadt Entertainment & "Big Hill" for Queen Bee Entertainment.
- Contains a sample from "Juicy" performed by The Notorious B.I.G.
2. "Hold It Now" (featuring Havoc) 5:25
- Produced by Havoc for Mobb Deep Inc.
- Contains a sample of "Paul Revere" performed by The Beastie Boys.
3. "Doing It Way Big" (4:00)
- Produced by J. Waxx Garfield for Raw Waxx Productions.
- Background Vocals: Ice Drake & Glace
4. "Can't Fuck with Queen Bee" (featuring Governor & Shelene Thomas with Full Force) (4:58)
- Produced by Full Force for Forceful Enterprises Inc.
- Background Vocals: Shelene Thomas, Full Force, Governor & Danielle.
- Contains an interpolation from the composition "Free", written by Coton Greene, Henry Redd, Deniece Williams, Nathan Watts.
5. "Hollyhood Skit" (0:51)
6. "Shake Ya Bum Bum" (featuring Lil' Shanice) (3:18)
- Produced by J. Waxx Garfield for Raw Waxx Productions.
- Contains a sample from "Hum", courtesy of Saregama India Ltd.
7. "This Is Who I Am" (featuring Swizz Beatz & Mashonda) (3:16)
- Produced by Swizz Beatz for Swizz Beatz Productions.
8. "The Jump Off" (featuring Mr. Cheeks) (3:54)
- Produced by Timbaland for Timbaland Productions, Inc.
- Contains a sample of "Jeeps, Lex, Coups, Bimaz, and Benz" performed by The Lost Boyz
9. "This Is a Warning" (3:42)
- Produced by Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones.
- Background Vocals: Lil' James of 3 Down
- Contains sample from "A Women's Threat" performed by R. Kelly
10. "(When Kim Say) Can You Hear Me Now?" (featuring Missy Elliott) (3:12)
- Produced by Scott Storch for Tuff Jew Productions.
11. "Thug Luv" (featuring Twista) (4:36)
- Produced by Scott Storch for Tuff Jew Productions.
12. "Magic Stick" (featuring 50 Cent) (3:31)
- Produced by Phantom of the Beats.
- Co-produced by Sha Money XL for Teamwork Music.
- Contains sample from "The Thrill Is Gone" performed by B.B. King.
13. "Get In Touch with Us" (featuring Styles P) (3:47)
- Produced by EZ ELPEE for EZ ELPEE Music & Thorobreads for Paper Chase, Inc.
- Contains a sample from "Zingdagi Ban Gaye To Tum", courtesy of Saregama India Ltd.
14. "Heavenly Father" (featuring Hillary Weston) (5:07)
- Produced by Shaft for Shaft Entertainment.
- Contains a sample of "A Prayer" performed by The O'Jays.
15. "Tha Beehive" (featuring Reeks, Bunky S.A., Vee & Saint from The Advakids) (8:07)
- Produced by DJ Bless.
16. "Came Back for You" (4:20)
- Produced by Kanye West for Kanman Productions.
- Contains a sample from "Didn't We" performed by Irene Reid.
[edit] Album Outtakes
- "What's the Word" (Japan Bonus Track)
- "Knock 'Em Out the Box" (featuring Method Man)
- "Back Together Again" (featuring The Notorious B.I.G.)
- "Who Shot Ya?"
[edit] Authorized Remixes
- "What's the Word (Remix)" (featuring The Advakids Joe Budden, & Lil Shanice )
- "The Jump Off (Remix)" (featuring Mr. Cheeks & Mobb Deep)
[edit] Certifications, peaks & sales
| Country | Peak Position | Certification | Sales/Shipments |
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| France | 105 | N/A | N/A |
| Switzerland | 81 | N/A | N/A |
| United Kingdom | 80 | N/A | N/A |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 5 | Platinum | 1,100,000+ |
[edit] Album credits
[edit] Personnel
- Executive Producers: Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones & The Notorious B.I.G.
- Associate Producers: Hillary Weston & Jean Nelson
- Queen Bee A&R: Jean Nelson & Dre Weston
- Atlantic A&R: Huston "Hutty" Miller
- Atlantic A&R Administrator: Lanre Gaba
- Atlantic A&R Coordinator: Chris Wade
- Queen Bee Project Manager: Jamel "Mann" Jackson
- Atlantic Project Manager: Joi Brown
- Album Assistant Engineer: Greg "Gee" Stewart
- Management: Hillary Weston
- Legal Affairs: L. Londell McMillan, P.C.
- Business Affairs: David Berdon LLP & Co.
- Album Sequencing: DJ 45 & Dan "The" Man
- Cover Photo & Photos 1, 2: Vincent Soyez
- Hair: Tre Major
- Makeup: JJ
- Styling: Derek Lee and Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones
- Prop Stylist: Linda Keil
- Jewelry: MiMi So
- Additional Jewelry: Prestige Diamonds
- Photos 3, 4: David LaChapelle
- Hair: Cessy Lima
- Makeup: Scott Barnes
- Styling: Andrea Leiberman
- Jewelry: Diamond Quasar
- Art Direction: Lynn Kowalewski
- Design: Kevin Wolahan
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.mtv.com/bands/l/lil_kim/news_feature_032103/index2.jhtml "MTV - Lil' Kim, Keep It Moving, Shaheem Reid
- ^ http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1453499/20020419/lil_kim.jhtml "MTV - Lil' Kim Has List of Men She Wants For Her Next LP, Corey Moss
- ^ http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1470462/20030310/lil_kim.jhtml "MTV - Lil' Kim Battles Butterflies, Invites Strong Girls To Join Her Mafia, Shaheem Reid
- ^ http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=A7bu1z87a4yv4 "All Music - La Bella Mafia Review
- ^ http://www.spin.com/reviews/lil-kim-la-bella-mafia-queen-beebig-entertainmentatlantic "Spin Magazine - La Bella Mafia Review
- ^ [http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=277 / http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=277] "Slant Magazine - La Bella Mafia Review
- ^ http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/lilkim/albums/album/266665/review/6068365/la_bella_mafia "Rolling Stone - La Bella Mafia Review
- ^ http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/lil-kim/la-bella-mafia.htm "Stylus Magazine - La Bella Mafia Review
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