Where We Come From

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Where We Come From
Studio album by
Released10 June 2014 (2014-06-10)
Genre
LabelMixpak
Producer
  • Dre Skull
  • Dubbel Dutch
  • Jaime YVP
  • Anju Blaxx
  • Adde Instrumentals
Popcaan chronology
Where We Come From
(2014)
Forever
(2018)

Where We Come From is the debut studio album by Jamaican dancehall artist Popcaan, released on 10 June 2014 by Mixpak Records. A prolific dancehall artist from Jamaica,[2] Popcaan collaborated with several producers on the album: Dre Skull (who also served as the album's Executive Producer), Dubbel Dutch, Anju Blaxx, Jaime YVP and Adde Instrumentals.

"Where We Come From" received critical acclaim upon release, and placed on several year-end critics' lists for 2014.[3][4][5][6] Upon release of the album, Popcaan was featured as the cover star on The Fader,[7] garnered an 8.0 rating at Pitchfork,[1] and received positive reviews from NPR,[3] The Guardian,[8] The Washington Post,[9] Billboard,[10] Dazed,[6] Jamaican Observer,[11] Complex,[4] FACT,[5] and more.[12]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
Exclaim!8/10[15]
Pitchfork8.0/10[16]
Wondering Sound[17]

Where We Come From received acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 81, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 5 reviews.

Popcaan was praised for making his own mark on the dancehall genre. The Jamaican artist veers away from male posturing and bravado, instead producing an album that tackles important themes and demonstrates an emotional vulnerability on some of the more romantic numbers.[18]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) [19]Length
1."Hold On"
Dre Skull3:59
2."Everything Nice"
  • Sutherland
  • Marc Glasser
Dubbel Dutch4:17
3."Number One Freak"
  • Sutherland
  • Jamie Roberts
Jaime YVP3:15
4."Love Yuh Bad"
  • Sutherland
  • Hershey
Dre Skull3:41
5."The System"
  • Sutherland
  • Hershey
Dre Skull3:02
6."Hustle" (featuring Pusha T)
Dre Skull2:54
7."Waiting So Long"
  • Sutherland
  • Andreas Nilsson
Adde Instrumentals3:07
8."Cool It"
  • Sutherland
  • Glasser
Dubbel Dutch2:59
9."Ghetto (Tired of Crying)"
  • Sutherland
  • Hershey
Dre Skull3:22
10."Evil"
  • Sutherland
  • Glasser
Dubbel Dutch3:19
11."Addicted"
  • Sutherland
  • Glasser
Dubbel Dutch3:54
12."Give Thanks"
  • Sutherland
  • Glasser
Dubbel Dutch3:37
13."Where We Come From"
  • Sutherland
  • Andrew Myrie
Anjublaxx4:02

Charts[edit]

Chart (2014) Peak
position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[20] 21
US Reggae Albums (Billboard)[20] 2

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Raymer, Miles (10 June 2014). "Popcaan - Where We Come From". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  2. ^ Pareles, Jon (4 July 2014). "A Dancehall Debut and Love Songs From a Philosopher". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  3. ^ a b Hart, Otis (8 December 2014). "The playlist: Otis Hart, december 8, NPR Music's 50 Favorite Albums Of 2014". National Public Radio. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  4. ^ a b Gardner, Alex (23 June 2014). "The Best Albums of 2014". Complex. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  5. ^ a b Morpurgo, Joseph (9 December 2014). "The 50 best albums of 2014". FACT. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  6. ^ a b Cliff, Aimee (9 January 2015). "The top 100 tracks of 2014 playlist". Dazed. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  7. ^ Records, Mixpak (3 June 2014). "Cover Story: Popcaan Is Making Dancehall Nice Again". Fader. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  8. ^ McLeod, Erin (28 December 2014). "The playlist: the best reggae, dancehall and soca of 2014, with Popcaan and Bunji Garlin". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  9. ^ Richards, Chris (25 June 2014). "The month's best music: Miranda Lambert, Popcaan, Priests and more". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  10. ^ Kenner, Rob (13 June 2014). "Dancehall's New King Popcaan Takes His Shot". Billboard. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  11. ^ Jackson, Kevin (29 June 2014). "A new day for Popcaan". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  12. ^ Records, Mixpak (28 December 2014). "Popcaan News". Popcaan. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  13. ^ "Reviews for Where We Come From by Popcaan". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  14. ^ Jeffries, David. "Where We Come From – Popcaan". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  15. ^ Dacks, David (10 June 2014). "Popcaan: Where We Come From". Exclaim!. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  16. ^ Raymer, Miles (10 June 2014). "Popcaan: Where We Come From". Pitchfork. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  17. ^ Mistry, Anupa (10 June 2014). "Popcaan, Where We Come From". Wondering Sound. Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  18. ^ Wiser, Danny (7 January 2022). "JAMAICA: Where We Come From - Popcaan". 200worldalbums.com. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  19. ^ "Popcaan – Where We Come From". Discogs. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  20. ^ a b "Popcaan - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-08.