The King & I (Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G. album)

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The King & I
Studio album by
Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G.
ReleasedMay 19, 2017
Genre
Length72:13
LabelRhino
Producer
Faith Evans album chronology
Incomparable
(2014) 		The King & I
(2017)
The Notorious B.I.G. album chronology
Notorious
(2009) 		The King & I
(2017)

The King & I is a collaborative album by American singer Faith Evans and late rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released by Rhino Entertainment Company on May 19, 2017.[3]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic48/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The Guardian[6]
HipHopDX3.1/5[7]
Musikexpress[8]
The Observer[9]
Pitchfork4.5/10[1]

The King & I received generally mixed reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 48 based on 10 reviews.[4] HipHopDX critic Jesse Fairfax called the album a "worthwhile concept that once deserved to see the light of day," but noted that "excessive filler and intermissions dull the shine of" the release.[7] Hannah J. Davis, writing for The Guardian, noted: "With vocals smoother than a vat of cocoa butter, Evans moves from poignant duet to "Juicy"-style sexathon alongside [The Notorious B.I.G. ], although – naturally – it lacks a certain improvisation and cohesion."[6] AllMusic editor Andy Kellman felt that "the constant recycling, along with the quantity and variety of other voices, detract from some of Evans' best, most impassioned performances, which are matched with some solid work from a roster of co-producers."[5]

Pitchfork editor Evan Rytlewski found that while "the project oozes affection for Biggie, it's yet another gangly, recycled posthumous album of verses we've all heard before [...] The muse is solid, and there's something sweet about the idea that after all these years, Biggie still brings out the best in Evans. Now if only his reconstituted raps weren't plastered over every inch of the record."[1] Spin critic Brian Josephs called the album "an unconvincing Biggie tribute" and added: "It's a sweet sentiment, but The King & I wastes too much energy centering a known relationship on these formless descriptions, a flaw that turns a 72-minute project into a poshly produced endurance contest. The classicist early-aughts R&B is informed by Evans' nostalgic impulse, but the effect is often touristic rather than resonant."[2] Damien Morris from The Observer noted that The Notorious B.I.G. "was never boring, unlike this compilation of tired productions and mawkish interludes. Duets should be meetings of equals. Instead, the greatest rapper of all time is propped up slack-jawed and open-eyed in the corner of each track,"[9]

Commercial performance[edit]

In the United States of America The King & I debuted at number 65 on the Billboard 200, with 9,000 album-equivalent units.[10] By February 2018, it sold 24,000 copies in the United States.[11]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."A Billion"
0:59
2."Legacy"
  • Evans
  • Stevie J
  • Zach Brunson[A]
4:11
3."Beautiful (Interlude)"
Thompson0:30
4."Can't Get Enough"
3:53
5."Don't Test Me"
  • Evans
  • Remi
3:48
6."Big/Faye (Interlude)" (featuring Jamal Woolard)
  • Evans
  • Jeffrey "J. Dub" Walker
J. Dub1:28
7."Tryna Get By"
  • Evans
  • Dixon
  • Hooper
  • Coleman
  • J. Drew Sheard II
  • Candace Wakefield
  • Curtis Rodgers II
  • Wallace
  • Robert Caldwell
  • Hubert Eaves
  • James Williams
  • Rodolfo Franklin
  • Combs
  • Evans
  • Sheard
3:46
8."The Reason"
Just Blaze3:38
9."I Don't Want It" (featuring Lil' Cease)
3:29
10."I Got Married (Interlude)" (featuring Mama Wallace)
  • Evans
  • Jordan
  • Wallace
  • Evans
  • Stevie J
2:26
11."Ten Wife Commandments"
  • Evans
  • Briggs
  • Sheard
  • Rebekah Muhammad
  • Rufus Moore
  • Coleman
  • Wallace
  • Khary Kimani Turner
  • Evans
  • Sheard
3:47
12."We Just Clicked (Interlude)" (featuring Mama Wallace)
  • Evans
  • Jordan
  • Wallace
  • Evans
  • Stevie J
1:05
13."A Little Romance"
3:04
14."The Baddest (Interlude)"
  • Evans
  • Jordan
  • Evans
  • Stevie J
0:43
15."Fool for You"
  • Evans
  • Thompson
4:22
16."Crazy (Interlude)" (featuring 112 and Mama Wallace)
  • Evans
  • Thompson
1:13
17."Got Me Twisted"
  • Evans
  • Thompson
  • Dixon
  • Hooper
  • Walker
  • Combs
  • Evans
  • J. Dub
  • Combs
2:54
18."When We Party" (featuring Snoop Dogg)
  • Evans
  • Sheard
  • Combs
3:27
19."Somebody Knows" (featuring Busta Rhymes)
  • Evans
  • Poyser
  • Remi
5:15
20."Take Me There" (featuring Sheek Louch and Styles P)
Just Blaze4:01
21."One in the Same"
  • Evans
  • Poyser
  • Remi
3:25
22."I Wish (Interlude)" (featuring Kevin McCall and Chyna Tahjere)
  • Evans
  • Griffin
  • McCall
  • Evans
  • McCall
1:27
23."Lovin' You for Life" (featuring Lil' Kim)
  • Evans
  • Edwards
3:49
24."NYC" (featuring Jadakiss)
3:29
25."It Was Worth It"
  • Evans
  • Dixon
  • Hooper
  • Jordan
  • Brunson
  • Evans
  • Stevie J
  • Brunson[A]
1:58
Total length:72:13
Bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
26."Body Language"
  • Evans
  • Sheard II
3:20
27."My B"
  • Evans
  • Sheard II
3:15

Notes

  • ^[A] denotes co-producer

Sample credits

  • "Legacy" – "Would You Die For Me?"
  • "Can't Get Enough" – "Bust A Nut".
  • "Don't Test Me" – "Gettin' Money (The Get Money Remix)".
  • "Tryna Get By" – "Sky's The Limit".
  • "The Reason" – "Why You Tryin' To Play Me". Licensed by Xtra Large Entertainment on behalf of Derrick Hodge and LeTroy Davis.
  • "I Don't Want It" – Reference track for "We Don't Need It" by Lil' Kim, previously unreleased.
  • "Ten Wife Commandments" – "Ten Crack Commandments".
  • "A Little Romance" – "Fuck You Tonight".
  • "Got Me Twisted" – "Things Done Changed".
  • "When We Party" – "Going Back To Cali".
  • "Somebody Knows" – "Who Shot Ya?".
  • "Take Me There" – Reference track for "Drugs" by Lil' Kim, previously unreleased.
  • "One In The Same" – "Respect".
  • "Lovin' You for Life" – "Miss U".
  • "NYC" – "Mumblin' and Whisperin'".

Charts[edit]

Chart performance for The King & I
Chart (2017) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[12] 85
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[13] 132
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[14] 174
US Billboard 200[15] 65
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[16] 31

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Rytlewski, Evan (May 23, 2017). "The King & I Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Josephs, Brian (May 22, 2017). "Review: Faith Evans and the Notorious B.I.G.'s The King & I Is an Unconvincing Biggie Tribute". Spin. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  3. ^ "The King & I". iTunes.Apple (US). Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  4. ^ a b "The King & I – Faith Evans & The Notorious B.I.G." Metacritic. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Davies, Hannah J. (May 18, 2017). "Faith Evans and Notorious BIG: The King & I review – an unmistakably juicy revival". The Guardian. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Fairfax, Jesse (June 2, 2017). "Review: Faith Evans Makes Lemonade From Lemon Zest On "The King & I"". HipHopDX. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  8. ^ Bortot, Davide (May 19, 2017). "Faith Evans & The Notorious B.I.G.: The King & I". Musikexpress. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Morris, Damien (May 21, 2017). "Faith Evans and the Notorious BIG: The King & I review – plundering the graveyard". The Observer. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  10. ^ "Hip Hop Album Sales: Snoop Dogg, Faith Evans & David Banner Limp Onto Billboard 200". Hip Hop DX. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  11. ^ "The Notorious B.I.G. Scores Fifth Million-Selling Album". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-02-15.
  12. ^ "ARIA Chart Watch #422". auspOp. May 27, 2017. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G. – The King & I" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  14. ^ "Ultratop.be – Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G. – The King & I" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  15. ^ "Faith Evans Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
  16. ^ "Faith Evans Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
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