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To the Sky

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This article is about the album by Kevin Rudolf. For the song by Tijana Dapčević, see To the Sky (Tijana Dapčević song). For the song by Owl City, see Owl City.
To the Sky
Studio album by
Kevin Rudolf
ReleasedJune 11, 2010 (2010-06-11)
Recorded2009-2010
GenrePop rock, rap rock
Length36:59
LabelCash Money, Universal Republic, Island[1]
ProducerBryan "Baby" Williams (exec.), Ronald "Slim" Williams (exec.), Kevin Rudolf, Dr. Luke, Rivers Cuomo, Cool & Dre
Kevin Rudolf chronology
In the City
(2008) 		To the Sky
(2010)
Singles from To the Sky
  1. "I Made It (Cash Money Heroes)"
    Released: February 2, 2010
  2. "You Make the Rain Fall"
    Released: September 14, 2010

To the Sky is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter and producer Kevin Rudolf. It was released on June 15, 2010 in the United States by Cash Money Records, Island Records and Universal Republic Records.[2][3]

Background

Rudolf has said that he embraced dance music saying, "it's like most of it up-tempo, most of it electropop rock hip-hop stuff".[2] The album features mostly guitar heavy beats.[4]

Guests

Kevin Rudolf confirmed collaborations from Birdman, Lil Wayne, Jay Sean, Rivers Cuomo from Weezer, and Three 6 Mafia in an interview with Rap-Up.[5] Kevin has stated that he wanted to do a duet with Jay-Z and Kanye West on the album.[5] Lil Wayne appears on the tracks "I Made It" and "Spit in Your Face," a reworked version of a Lil Wayne song which had leaked about a year prior to the album's release. That song was original slated to be on Lil Wayne's album Rebirth. Wayne raps on all of the verses. He wanted Natasha Bedingfield to be on the album, but was unable to find a suitable song.[5] He also wanted to work with Sade on the album.[5] In an interview, Vibe listed Flo Rida as a feature on the album.[6]

Production and songwriting

Kevin Rudolf was the primary producer and songwriter for all tracks except "Spit In Your Face," which was produced by Cool & Dre with co-production by Rudolf. Tracks "You Make the Rain Fall," "Whatchu Waiting For," "Must Be Dreamin'", and "Late Night Automatic" were co-produced by Dr. Luke. Rivers Cuomo of Weezer appeared on the track "Must Be Dreamin'" and provided additional production and songwriting. Three 6 Mafia co-wrote both tracks which they are featured on, "Watchu' Waiting For" and "Late Night Automatic," while Flo Rida co-wrote the track "You Make the Rain Fall", which features additional production by Kool Kojak.

Reception

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[7]
RapReviews[8]

To the Sky was met with mixed reviews from music critics. David Jeffries of Allmusic gave the album two and a half stars out of five, saying "A mixed bag for fans to sort through, but without a worthy “Let It Rock” successor, this is hard to recommend over his debut." He described the songs as "generally good".[7] Steve Juon of RapReviews gave the album a seven out of ten, saying "The swagger's been good to him, because not every R&B or rock album would meet with a hardcore hip-hop head's approval, but even without the numerous rap cameos I think "To the Sky" would have been a win to a hip-hop audience - they don't hurt either though. This is "In the City" evolved, with no pun intended, to a higher level."[8]

Commercial performance

To the Sky debuted on the Billboard 200 at #78. The album has sold 20,000 copies in the US.[9]

Singles

The first single released is "I Made It (Cash Money Heroes)". The song features Lil Wayne, Birdman and Jay Sean. The song received chart success in Australia, Canada and the United States.[10][11] The second single is "You Make the Rain Fall". It is the theme song for the third season of "NXT". It was released to Mainstream radio September 14, 2010 and features Flo Rida.[12]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."I Made It (Cash Money Heroes)" (featuring Birdman, Jay Sean & Lil Wayne)Kevin Rudolf, Dwayne Carter, Jacob Kasher, Bryan Williams, Kamaljit Jhooti, Robert Larow, Jerome SkallerKevin Rudolf4:10
2."You Make the Rain Fall" (featuring Flo Rida)Kevin Rudolf, Lukasz Gottwald, Allan Grigg, Tramar Dillard, Jacob Kasher, Jeff Halavacs, Eric EstradaKevin Rudolf, Dr. Luke, Kool Kojak2:54
3."Don't Cry"Kevin Rudolf, Jacob KasherKevin Rudolf2:52
4."Whatchu Waitin' For" (featuring Three 6 Mafia)Kevin Rudolf, Lukasz Gottwald, Jacob Kasher, Paul Beauregard, Jordan HoustonKevin Rudolf, Dr. Luke3:16
5."Big Timer"Kevin Rudolf, Jacob Kasher, Eric EstradaKevin Rudolf3:19
6."I Belong to You (LANY)"Kevin Rudolf, Jacob Kasher, Jeff HalavacsKevin Rudolf3:14
7."Must Be Dreamin'" (featuring Rivers Cuomo of Weezer)Kevin Rudolf, Lukasz Gottwald, Jacob Kasher, Rivers CuomoKevin Rudolf, Dr. Luke, Rivers Cuomo3:03
8."Spit in Your Face" (featuring Lil Wayne)Kevin Rudolf, Dwayne Carter, Jacob Kasher, Marcello Valenzano, Andre LyonCool & Dre4:36
9."What Do U Got"Kevin Rudolf, Jacob Kasher, Jeff HalavacsKevin Rudolf3:30
10."Late Night Automatic" (featuring Three 6 Mafia)Kevin Rudolf, Lukasz Gottwald, Jacob Kasher, Paul Beauregard, Jordan HoustonKevin Rudolf, Dr. Luke2:47
11."Crashing Down"Kevin Rudolf, Jacob Kasher, Jeff HalavacsKevin Rudolf3:26

Release history

List of release dates, with country released and format
Country Date Format(s)
Australia[1] June 11, 2010 CD, LP
United Kingdom[1] June 14, 2010
United States[1] June 15, 2010

References

  1. ^ a b c d "To the Sky at UK Amazon store". Retrieved 19 June 2010.
  2. ^ a b "Exclusive Interview: Kevin Rudolf Embracing Dance Music in 'To the Sky'". Ace Show Biz. 2010-04-19. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  3. ^ Hanna, Mitchell (2010-04-27). "Tuesday Rap Release Dates: 8Ball & MJG, PackFM, Plies". Hip-hop DX. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  4. ^ "Kevin Rudolf: To the Sky (New Album)". prefixmag. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  5. ^ a b c d "Kevin Rudolf Reaches 'To the Sky' with June Album Release". Rap-Up. 2010-04-25. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  6. ^ "A Short Convo With... Kevin Rudolf". Vibe. 2010-04-25. Retrieved 2010-05-17.
  7. ^ a b Jeffries, David. "Review: To The Sky". Allmusic. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  8. ^ a b Juon, Steve. "Review: To The Sky". RapReviews. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  9. ^ "Kevin Rudolf Music News & Info". Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  10. ^ "I Made It (Cash Money Heroes) - Kevin Rudolf". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  11. ^ "Australia Singles Top 50". aCharts. 2010-04-05. Retrieved 2010-05-14.
  12. ^ http://www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=16691
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