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2008 studio album by Skillz
The Million Dollar Backpack is the fourth solo studio album by American rapper and record producer Skillz . It was released on July 22, 2008 via Big Kidz Music and Koch Records . Recording sessions took place at Homecookin Studios, Larry Gold's The Studio and The Boom Room in Philadelphia , at Portside Sound, at Donland Studios, at Chung King Studios in New York , at K1 Laboratories, at The House That Quest Built. Production was handled by Bink! , Fusion Unlimited, Khari Ferrari, Carvin & Ivan , DJ Jazzy Jeff , Jake One , James Poyser , Jimmy "Slim" Rose, Kwamé , ?uestlove , Usef Dinero, and Skillz himself. It features guest appearances from Black Thought , Common and Freeway .
The first single off the album was "So Far So Good" featuring Common on the album version and Talib Kweli on the video version. It is the follow-up to Skillz 2005 album Confessions of a Ghostwriter .
Title Writer(s) Producer(s) 1. "The Million Dollar Backpack (Intro)" 2:38 2. "Where I Been" Jake One 3:39 3. "Don't Act Like You Don't Know" (featuring Freeway ) Carvin & Ivan 3:38 4. "So Far So Good" (featuring Common ) Usef Dinero 4:06 5. "Sick" Kwamé 3:05 6. "(For Real) He Don't Owe Me" Bink! 3:21 7. "My Phone" Lewis Tyrone Tellington Leonard Stephens Fusion Unlimited E-Flat (co. ) 4:37 8. "Yeah Ya Know It" 3:50 9. "Hold Tight" (featuring Black Thought ) 4:05 10. "Crazy World" 3:25 11. "I'm Gon Make It" Lewis Durrell Scott Harrell III Bink! 3:31 12. "Be Alright" Fusion Unlimited E-Flat (co. ) 4:10 13. "Hip Hop Died" Khari Ferrari Skillz (co. ) Dice Raw (voc. ) 4:51 14. "Preachin to the Choir" Jimmy "Slim" Rose 3:57 Total length: 52:53
Donnie "Mad Skillz " Lewis – vocals, producer & recording (track 10) , co-producer (tracks: 8, 13) , executive producer
Duane Fowlkes – additional vocals (track 2)
Leslie "Freeway " Pridgen – rap vocals (track 3)
Lonnie "Common " Lynn – rap vocals (track 4)
Kwamé "K1 Mil " Holland – additional vocals & producer (track 5)
Jamal "Truck North" Miller – additional vocals (track 8)
Tariq "Black Thought " Trotter – rap vocals (track 9)
Maimouna Youssef – additional vocals (track 10)
Durrell "Bishop" Scott – vocals (track 11)
Kenny Wray – vocals (track 11)
Aaries – vocals (track 12)
Cornbread – vocals (track 12)
Maurice "DJ Aktive" Deloach – scratches (track 4)
Leonard "E-Flat" Stephens – guitar (track 7) , co-producer (tracks: 7, 12)
James Poyser – keyboards (track 13) , producer (track 9)
Jeffrey "DJ Jazzy Jeff " Townes – producer & recording (track 1)
Jacob "Jake One " Dutton – producer (track 2)
Carvin "Ransum" Haggins – producer (track 3) , recording (track 4) , co-executive producer
Ivan "Orthodox " Barias – producer (track 3) , mixing (tracks: 1-4, 6, 7, 12) , recording (tracks: 2-4, ) , co-executive producer
Joseph "Usef Dinero"/"Joe Money" Pritchard – producer (track 4)
Roosevelt "Bink! " Harrell III – producer (tracks: 6, 11)
Tyrone D. Tellington – producer (tracks: 7, 12)
Khari Abdul Mateen – producer & recording (tracks: 8, 10, 13)
Ahmir "?uestlove " Thompson – producer (track 9)
Jimmy "Slim" Rose – producer & recording (track 14)
Johnnie "Smurf" Smith – co-producer (track 1)
Karl "Dice Raw " Jenkins – vocal producer (track 13) , co-executive producer
Andre Dandridge – recording (tracks: 1, 7, 12)
Gary Herd – recording (tracks: 2, 6, 9, 11)
Chris "Tek" O'Ryan – mixing (track 4) , recording (track 11)
A Kid Called Cus – recording & mixing (track 5)
Kristal Oliver – recording (track 6)
Jon Smeltz – mixing (tracks: 8-10, 13, 14)
Steven Mandel – recording (track 9)
Montez Roberts – recording (track 9)
Jerome Hipps – executive producer
Michael McArthur – executive producer
Mahfuzur "Shomi" Patwary – design, layout
Paul Grosso – design
Laurel Dann – A&R
^ Pitts, Brandon (July 23, 2008). "Skillz - Million Dollar Backpack" . HipHopDX . Retrieved June 22, 2023 .
^ Henriques, Anthony (September 18, 2008). "Skillz: The Million Dollar Backpack, PopMatters" . PopMatters . Retrieved June 22, 2023 .
^ Juon, Steve 'Flash' (July 29, 2008). "Skillz :: The Million Dollar Backpack – RapReviews" . www.rapreviews.com . Retrieved June 22, 2023 .