Black America Again

Black America Again
Studio album by Common
Released November 4, 2016
Recorded 2015–16
Genre Hip hop
Length 56:43
Label
Producer
Common chronology
Nobody's Smiling
(2014)		 Black America Again
(2016)
Singles from Black America Again
  1. "Love Star"
    Released: September 2, 2016
  2. "Black America Again"
    Released: September 23, 2016

Black America Again is the eleventh studio album by American hip hop recording artist Common. It was released on November 4, 2016, by ARTium Recordings and Def Jam Recordings.[1][2] The album was supported by two singles: "Love Star" featuring Marsha Ambrosius and PJ, and "Black America Again" featuring Stevie Wonder.

Background

Common felt the need to release the album due the election year.[3]

Singles

The album's first single, called "Love Star" was released on September 2, 2016.[4] The song features guest vocals from American musicians Marsha Ambrosius and PJ, with the production that was provided by Karriem Riggins.

The album's second single, called "Black America Again" was released on September 23, 2016.[5] The song features guest vocals from American R&B legend Stevie Wonder, with Karriem Riggins, who also produced this track, alongside with Robert Glasper. On November 14, 2016, Common shared the remix of "Black America Again" which features Gucci Mane, Pusha T and BJ the Chicago Kid.[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic87/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Chicago Tribune[9]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[10]
The Irish Times[11]
Mojo[12]
The Observer[13]
Pitchfork7.9/10[14]
USA Today[15]
XXL4/5[16]

Black America Again received widespread acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 87 based on 11 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[7]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank
The Independent Best Albums of 2016 2016

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 25 on the Billboard 200, selling 15,923 copies in the United States.[18]

Track listing

No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Joy and Peace" (featuring Bilal)
Karriem Riggins 2:40
2. "Home" (featuring Bilal)
Riggins 3:31
3. "Word from Moe Luv Interlude"  
Glasper 0:40
4. "Black America Again" (featuring Stevie Wonder)
  • Riggins
  • Glasper
 6:09
5. "Love Star" (featuring Marsha Ambrosius and PJ)
Riggins 5:09
6. "On a Whim Interlude"  
  • E. Riggins
Riggins 0:41
7. "Red Wine" (featuring Syd and Elena)
Riggins 4:35
8. "Pyramids"  
  • Riggins
  • Glasper
 3:30
9. "A Moment in the Sun Interlude"  
  • Glasper
Glasper 0:51
10. "Unfamiliar" (featuring PJ)
Riggins 3:58
11. "A Bigger Picture Called Free" (featuring Syd and Bilal)
  • Riggins
 4:38
12. "The Day Women Took Over" (featuring BJ the Chicago Kid)
Riggins 5:16
13. "Rain" (featuring John Legend)
  • Lynn
  • E. Riggins
  • Tanisha Riggins
Riggins 4:08
14. "Little Chicago Boy" (featuring Tasha Cobbs)
  • Riggins
 6:37
15. "Letter to the Free" (featuring Bilal)
  • Lynn
  • E. Riggins
  • Glasper
  • Riggins
  • Glasper
 4:24
Total length:
 56:43
Sample credits

Charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
New Zealand Heatseekers Albums (RMNZ)[19] 9
US Billboard 200[20] 25
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[21] 3

References

  1. ↑ "Black America Again by Common on Apple Music". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  2. ↑ Reed, Ryan (October 17, 2016). "Common Plots Politically Charged 'Black America Again' LP". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  3. ↑ Smith, Trevor (6 November 2016). "Common explains why he released Black America again close to election". Hotnewhiphop. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  4. ↑ "Love Star (feat. Marsha Ambrosius & PJ) – Single by Common on Apple Music". Itunes.apple.com. September 2, 2016. Archived from the original on October 29, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  5. ↑ April Clare Welsh (2016-09-23). "Common teams with Stevie Wonder on 'Black America Again' single". Factmag.com. Retrieved 2016-11-20.
  6. ↑ "Listen to Common's 'Black America Again' Remix Feat. Gucci Mane & Pusha T". Billboard. November 14, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Reviews for Black America Again by Common". Metacritic. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  8. ↑ Kellman, Andy. "Black America Again – Common". AllMusic. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  9. ↑ Kot, Greg (November 4, 2016). "Common regains his hip-hop mojo on 'Black America Again'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ Brown, Eric Renner (November 3, 2016). "Common's Black America Again: EW Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
  11. ↑ Carroll, Jim (November 3, 2016). "Common – Black America Again: a furious, righteous, powerful return to form". The Irish Times. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  12. ↑ Cowan, Andy (November 7, 2016). "Common: Black America Again". Mojo. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  13. ↑ Morris, Damien (November 6, 2016). "Common: Black America Again review – a call to arms for election month". The Observer. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
  14. ↑ Houghton, Edwin "STATS" (November 4, 2016). "Common: Black America Again". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  15. ↑ Ryan, Patrick (November 3, 2016). "Review: Common's vital 'Black America Again' resonates in Trump era". USA Today. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  16. ↑ Glaysher, Scott (November 14, 2016). "Common Aims to Inspire on 'Black America Again'". XXL. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Best Albums of 2016". The Independent. November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  18. ↑ Hernandez, Victoria (2016-11-14). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Rae Sremmurd, Alicia Keys & Common". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2016-11-20.
  19. ↑ "NZ Heatseekers Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. November 14, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Common – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Common. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Common – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Common. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.