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LAX (album)

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Untitled

LAX[1] is the third and final[2][3] studio album by rapper The Game, released on August 22, 2008.

Background

On December 31, 2007, The Game announced at Nas' New Year's Eve party the title and release date of the album.[4] The album's title was originally "The D.O.C.", but was changed to "LAX". It was reported near mid-March that The Game had been released from jail. His manager later stated that he had not yet been but was expected to be released in time to promote the album.[5] He was released after serving eight days, and went back to work with Cool & Dre.[6] Dre (of Cool & Dre), stated The Game was like 'Pac, and that lyrically, he was "[somewhere] else right now".[6]

The album was pushed back to June 24, which would have had the album in competition with G-Unit's second album,[7] but was later changed to July 8, as Interscope moved both albums. On June 8, it was announced that LAX would be pushed back a week later to July 15, the same release date as Nas' Untitled.[8] LAX had then been pushed back another week to July 22, and finally to August 26.[9]

On May 1, The Game told Power 106 that "Big Dreams" might not be on the album.[10]

The Game appeared on 106 & Park on May 16, where he confirmed LAX may be the last studio album he records, as he intends to promote his record label, Black Wall Street.[citation needed]

However in a later interview, The Game said that he may release a fourth album titled "D.O.C." or "Diary of Compton" but only if he can get the production help of Dr. Dre, MC Ren, King Tee, DJ Yella, Ice Cube and DJ Quik.[11] However, he recently said that "D.O.C." will not be coming out and that LAX is definitely his last album.[2]

On July 28, 2008, The Game told J Hyphen and J. Moore of Sunday Night Sound Sessions that the album was finished and the official release date was August 26. He said the album was going to be 16 tracks long and he would leak the clean version two weeks before the official release.[1] The Game mentioned that he recorded over 220 tracks for the album.[citation needed]

On August 6, 2008 iTunes revealed some information on the album via the iTunes Store. They confirmed the DJ Toomp produced track "House of Pain" would be the fourth single. They had also revealed that the standard edition would have fourteen tracks with one bonus track and the "deluxe edition" would have 18 tracks and one additional bonus track.[citation needed]

On August 10, 2008 The Game told Friday Night Flavas that he would be dropping two mixtapes; "Superman", featuring all original tracks, which didn't appear on the album, in a week and a half and "You Know What It Is Vol. 5" after the album. He also blamed DJ Haze for the leak of the Just Blaze produced track "Superman".[12]

Music

Production

The Game originally had announced that Dr. Dre would be producing for the album, but neither Dr. Dre nor Aftermath Entertainment had confirmed.[4] Nu Jerzey Devil also later confirmed Dr. Dre as a producer, among others, such as Scott Storch, and Cool & Dre.[13][14] On March 28 on the Tim Westwood show, The Game said that he had been in the studio with Scott Storch, Cool & Dre and Just Blaze. He also said that he "made shit for the clubs" with Scott Storch.[citation needed] On May 1, The Game told Power 106 that at the time he had worked with Just Blaze, Kanye West, Cool & Dre, Scott Storch, Timbaland, Knobody, Ervin "E.P." Pope, Jelly Roll & Tre Beats[10]. After the "confirmation" from The Game and Nu Jerzey Devil, The Game told 106 & Park that he spoke to Dr. Dre on May 15 and there was still a possibility that one or more Dr. Dre beats would be on the album.[citation needed] Later on 106 & Park, The Game confirmed that Dr. Dre would not be on the album and they may never work together in the future.[citation needed] At a listening party on June 23, it was mentioned that the Trackmasters were in part of the production of the album.[15]

Guests

Nu Jerzey Devil had stated that Lil Wayne[13] would be making a guest appearance. It was later confirmed that Akon, André 3000, Busta Rhymes[16], Chris Brown[17], Chrisette Michele, Common[16], Ice Cube, Keyshia Cole[13], DMX [18], Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, Marsha Ambrosius, Mary J. Blige, Nas[19], Ne-Yo, Raekwon, Raheem DeVaughn, Fabolous, and Robin Thicke[16] were all to make appearances.[20]

Though many guests were confirmed, Travis Barker, Bilal, Keyshia Cole, Common, Raheem DeVaughn, DMX, Ice Cube, Lil Wayne, Ludacris, Chrisette Michele, Nas, Ne-Yo, Raekwon, and LaToya Williams were the select few to make the final cut.

Sales

The album, which has received favorable to mixed reviews from critics, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, with 238,382 copies sold, just behind Alternative metal band Slipknot's All Hope Is Gone. At first it looked like LAX had debuted ahead of All Hope Is Gone by 13 copies, with such a close difference, Slipknot's labels Warner Music Group and Roadrunner Records asked for a SoundScan recount, a historic first. Nielsen proceeded to the recount, which placed LAX at No.2 with 238,382 copies, and Slipknot in first position with 239,516 copies scanned, a margin of 1,134 copies. Billboard then immediately proceeded to the corrections.[21]

Track listing

# Title Featured guest(s) Producer(s) Sample(s) Note(s) Time
1 "Intro" Ervin "EP" Pope 1:20
2 "LAX Files" J. R. Rotem
  • Vocals by Shorty
 3:59
3 "State of Emergency" Ice Cube J. R. Rotem 3:38
4 "Bulletproof Diaries" Raekwon Jelly Roll
  • Keyboards by 1500 Or Nothin & Ervin "EP" Pope
  • Bass Guitar by Willam "kiddFLYY" Taylor
 4:52
5 "My Life" Lil Wayne Cool & Dre
  • Contains elements of "So Tired" by Birdman
 5:20
6 "Money" Cool & Dre 5:13
7 "Cali Sunshine" Bilal Nottz
  • Contains elements & sample of the recording of "California Sunshine" by The Dramatics
 4:33
8 "Ya Heard" Ludacris Nottz
  • Contains elements & features samples from "Jam On It" by Newcleus
 4:04
9 "Hard Liquor (Interlude)" Ervin "EP" Pope
  • Vocals by Jellyroll
 1:50
10 "House of Pain" DJ Toomp
  • Additional keys by Jay Mac
  • Vocals by Traci Nelson
 4:32
11 "Gentleman's Affair" Ne-Yo J. R. Rotem 3:39
12 "Let Us Live" Chrisette Michele Scott Storch
  • Keyboards by Ervin "EP" Pope
 4:39
13 "Touchdown" Raheem DeVaughn 1500 or Nothin'
  • Additional keyboards by Ervin "EP" Pope
 3:59
14 "Angel" Common Kanye West 4:28
15 "Never Can Say Goodbye" LaToya Williams Ervin "EP" Pope
  • Bass by Willam "kiddFLYY" Taylor
  • Guitar by Glenn Jeffrey
  • Vocals by Traci Nelson & Jellyroll
 4:40
16 "Dope Boys" Travis Barker 1500 or Nothin', additional production by DJ Quik 4:00
17 "Game's Pain" Keyshia Cole Knobody & Dahoud Darien, Additional production by Ervin "EP" Pope
  • Keyboards by 1500 Or Nothin
  • Cuts by DJ Vick One
  • Additional vocals by Grenique Harper
 4:21
18 "Letter to the King" Nas Hi-Tek
  • Contains a sample from "Memoirs of the Traveler" by The Jaggerz
 5:45
19 "Outro" Ervin "EP" Pope
  • Prayer by DMX
 1:28
* "Ain't Fuckin With You" (iTunes bonus track) Trackmasters 3:37

Deluxe Edition Bonus CD

# Title Featured guest(s) Producer(s) Note(s) Time
1 "Big Dreams" Cool & Dre 4:49
2 "Camera Phone" Ne-Yo Cool & Dre 4:29
3 "Nice" Newz Irv Gotti
  • Vocals by Newz
 4:40
4 "Spanglish" Tre Beatz 4:14

Chart positions

Album

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart[22] 12
Austrian Albums Chart[23] 29
Belgian Album Chart[24] 22
Canadian Albums Chart[25] 2
Danish Album Chart[26] 18
Dutch Album Chart[27] 21
European Top 100 Albums[28] 14
French Albums Chart[29] 19
German Albums Chart[30] 33
Irish Albums Chart[31] 8
Italian Albums Chart[32] 69
New Zealand Albums Chart[33] 11
Norwegian Albums Chart[34] 18
Swedish Albums Chart[35] 51
Swiss Albums Chart[36] 8
UK Albums Chart[37] 9
U.S. Billboard 200[38] 2
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[39] 1
U.S. Billboard Top Rap Albums[39] 1

References

  1. ^ a b Trafficking Media - The Game on KUBE 93's Sound Session
  2. ^ a b The Game Takes Shots at Jay-Z on Phoenix’s 104.7 Kiss FM Accessed August 25, 2008.
  3. ^ Game Speaks On New Album, Jay-Z Beef. Accessed August 25, 2008.
  4. ^ a b Omar Burgess (January 4, 2008). Black Wall Street Confirms The Game's Retirement Rumor. HipHopDX. Accessed January 4, 2008.
  5. ^ (March 11, 2008) Not so fast, The Game's still in jail Accessed March 13, 2008.
  6. ^ a b Game Headed to the Studio After Leaving Jail. MTV. Accessed March 20, 2008.
  7. ^ Thomas A. Harden (April 20, 2008). SOHH Exclusive: The Game Vs. G-Unit, Rappers Prepare For A SoundScan Showdown. SOHH.com. Accessed April 20, 2008.
  8. ^ http://www.rap-up.com/2008/06/08/the-game-moves-lax-to-july-15/
  9. ^ LAX Pushed Back To August 26, Game Previews Album | Hip Hop News > HipHopDX.com
  10. ^ a b YouTube - The Game in studio of Power 106 FM ''www.Compton-Game.de''
  11. ^ The Game says "LAX" will not be his last album. Accessed June 13, 2008.
  12. ^ Friday Night Flavas Interview The Game
  13. ^ a b c Tim "Styles" Sanchez (January 18, 2008). Nu Jerzey Devil: Heaven Sent. XXL. Accessed January 19, 2008.
  14. ^ Shaheem Reid and Jayson Rodriguez, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes. Mixtape Monday: Game Gets A Special Delivery From Dr. Dre; Prodigy Takes A Tip From 50 Cent. MTV News. Accessed February 24, 2008.
  15. ^ Slav Kandyba (June 24, 2008). LAX Pushed Back To August 26, Game Previews Album. HipHopDX. Accessed June 24, 2008
  16. ^ a b c SOHH Exclusive: The Game Follows 50 Cent's Lead W/ New Site, Plans Retirement | Daily Hip-Hop News | SOHH.com /
  17. ^ THE GAME INTERVIEW WITH Incognito ‘Da Yungsta’
  18. ^ Preview: The Game's New Album : VIBE.com
  19. ^ Jokesta (July 9, 2007). Game Preps Final Album, Collabs With Nas & Akon. Def Sounds. Accessed July 26, 2007.
  20. ^ Features : The Game: The AllHipHop Interview Part 1
  21. ^ http://www.bravewords.com/news/96047
  22. ^ Top 50 Album Charts - Australian Record Industry Association
  23. ^ http://acharts.us/austria_albums_top_75
  24. ^ http://acharts.us/belgium_albums_top_50
  25. ^ HMV Canada: "All Hope is Gone" by Slipknot tops CD sales list
  26. ^ http://acharts.us/denmark_albums_top_40
  27. ^ http://www.dutchcharts.nl/weekchart.asp?cat=a
  28. ^ http://fatherandy2.proboards35.com/index.cgi?board=intcha&action=display&thread=47253
  29. ^ http://www.ifop.com/europe/sondages/topalb/alb0835.stm
  30. ^ http://acharts.us/germany_albums_top_50
  31. ^ http://www.irma.ie/aucharts.asp
  32. ^ http://www.fimi.it/classifiche_result_artisti.php?anno=2008&mese=09&id=197
  33. ^ http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart.asp
  34. ^ http://acharts.us/norway_albums_top_40
  35. ^ http://acharts.us/sweden_albums_top_60
  36. ^ http://swisscharts.com/weekchart.asp?cat=a
  37. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/albums.shtml
  38. ^ Slipknot Edges The Game Atop Billboard 200
  39. ^ a b http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1593987/20080903/slipknot.jhtml
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