Villa Manifesto is the sixth studio album by Detroit hip hop group Slum Village. It was released on July 27, 2010, via E1 Records.[1]
Villa Manifesto | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 27, 2010[1] | |||
Recorded | 2009–2010 | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 46:43 | |||
Label |
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Producer |
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Slum Village chronology | ||||
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Singles from Villa Manifesto | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The A.V. Club | B[3] |
aboveGround Magazine | (13.75/20)[4] |
DJBooth.net | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
HipHopDX | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Pitchfork Media | (7.1/10)[7] |
PopMatters | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Prefix Magazine | (7/10)[9] |
RapReviews | (8/10)[10] |
Spin | (6/10)[11] |
Background
editVilla Manifesto serves as both a reunion and a memorial album. Two late founding members of the group (Baatin and J Dilla) appeared posthumously as main artists of the album alongside T3 and Elzhi. Illa J, J Dilla's younger brother, is also featured on the album, as well as production from Young RJ, making it the first Slum Village LP to feature all six members. Founding member T3 stated: "I wanted to pull the whole squad together. The reason why we call it Villa Manifesto is that it was a statement we want to give our people because we had been away for so long. What we're doing, what's going on, how we're feeling and where we're at today."[1] Before the album's release, T3 stated on Twitter that it was their final studio album.[12] However, in a subsequent interview with Billboard, he clarified: "If this album does phenomenal and the supporters just overwhelm me, I wouldn't have a choice but to do another record – and I believe this record could be phenomenal for us."[12]
Music
editBaatin, who reunited with the group in 2008 prior to his death the year after, worked on nearly twenty songs; unreleased vocals from J Dilla are featured on four songs. Guest appearances includes De La Soul, Little Brother, Colin Munroe, Dwele and Phife Dawg. A bulk of production was handled by Young RJ. The album also features productions by Mr. Porter, Dave West, Khrysis, Hi-Tek, T3, A&R DJ Scrap Dirty Violator Djs and unreleased production from J Dilla.[13]
Singles
editThe album has one single, "Faster". The song, which features Canadian singer Colin Munroe, was released on June 1, 2010.[1][14] A video for the song was made and released on July 12, 2010.[15]
Track listing
editNo. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Bare Witness" (featuring DJ Babu) | Christopher Tyson, Jason Powers, R. L. “T3” Allman III, Titus “Baatin” Glover, Ralph J. “Young RJ” Rice Jr. | Khrysis, Young RJ | 2:30 |
2. | "Lock It Down" | J. Powers, R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, James Yancey | J Dilla | 3:18 |
3. | "Scheming" (featuring Posdnuos, Phife Dawg, J Dilla & Vice Verse) | R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr., J. Yancey, Kevin Perkins Poem by Vice Verse | Young RJ | 4:15 |
4. | "Earl Flinn" | J. Powers, R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr. | Young RJ | 3:04 |
5. | "Faster" (featuring Colin Munroe) | J. Powers, R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr., Craig Lane, Colin Munroe | Young RJ, Craig Lane | 3:36 |
6. | "2000 Beyond" (featuring Questlove & J Dilla) | J. Powers, R. L. Allman III, R. J. Rice Jr., J. Yancey | Young RJ | 2:53 |
7. | "Dance" (featuring AB) | R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, Aaron “AB” Abernathy, Dave West | Supa Dave West | 2:45 |
8. | "Don't Fight the Feeling/Daylight" (featuring Dwele) | R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, A. Abernathy, Denuan Porter | 7:24 | |
9. | "Um Um" (featuring Keys) | J. Powers, R. L. Allman III, R. J. Rice Jr., T. Richardson | Young RJ | 3:33 |
10. | "The Set Up" | J. Powers, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr., Tony Cottrell | Hi-Tek | 3:51 |
11. | "The Reunion, Pt. 2" | R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr., J. Yancey | Young RJ | 3:09 |
12. | "Where Do We Go from Here" (featuring Little Brother) | R. L. Allman III, R. J. Rice Jr., Phonte Coleman, Thomas Jones | Young RJ | 2:52 |
13. | "We'll Show You" (featuring AB) | R. L. Allman III, T. Glover, R. J. Rice Jr., A. Abernathy, J. Yancey | J Dilla, Young RJ | 2:46 |
Total length: | 46:43 |
No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
14. | "Stereo" | Young RJ | 3:15 |
15. | "Dope Man" | Young RJ | 3:51 |
16. | "Nitro" (featuring Young RJ) | Young RJ | 3:13 |
Total length: | 57:02 |
- Sample Credits
- ”Lock It Down” uses a previously unreleased instrumental track by J Dilla[16]
- ”Scheming” uses previously unreleased vocals performed by J Dilla[16]
- ”Earl Flinn” samples ”Johnee Jingo” by Todd Rundgren.
- ”2000 Beyond” samples “Funky Drummer” by James Brown[17]
- ”2000 Beyond” also uses previously unreleased vocals performed by J Dilla[16]
- ”We'll Show You” uses a previously unreleased basic instrumental track by J Dilla[16]
Personnel
edit- DJ Babu - Scratches (1)
- Sam Beaubien - Horn arrangement (1), String arrangement (12)
- DJ Dez - Scratches (12)
- Vernon D. Hill - Additional Keyboards (13)
- Lauren “L. Boogie” Johnson - Percussion (3, 5, 9)
- Craig Lane - Keyboards (5, 12, Additional on 3, 6–7, 9)
- Michael Mindingall - Additional Keyboards (7)
- Colin Munroe - Additional Vocals (Sung by) (5)
- Questlove - Live Drums (6)
- Vice Verse - Poetry performed by (3)
References
edit- ^ a b c d E1 Records: Slum Village
- ^ Lymangrover, Jason. "Villa Manifesto - Slum Village | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Rabin, Nathan (3 Aug 2010). "Slum Village: Villa Manifesto · The A.V. Club". AVClub.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Ledezma, Dominick 'BIG D O' (9 Aug 2010). "Review: Slum Village – Villa Manifesto | aboveGround Magazine". aboveGroundMagazine.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Nathan S. "Slum Village - Villa Manifesto - Hip Hop Album Review". DJBooth.net. Archived from the original on 29 October 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
- ^ Burgess, Omar (28 Jul 2010). "Slum Village - Villa Manifesto | Read Hip Hop Reviews, Rap Reviews & Hip Hop Album Reviews | HipHop DX". HipHopDX.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ "Slum Village: Villa Manifesto | Album Reviews". Pitchfork.com. 28 Jul 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
- ^ Amidon, David (15 Aug 2010). "Slum Village: Villa Manifesto | PopMatters". PopMatters.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Jenkins, Craig (2 Sep 2010). "Album Review: Slum Village - Villa Manifesto". Prefix.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Juon, Steve 'Flash' (27 Jul 2010). "Slum Village :: Villa Manifesto :: Ne'Astra Music/E1 Entertainment". RapReviews.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ Reeves, Mosi (14 Jul 2010). "Slum Village, 'Villa Manifesto' Review". Spin.com. Retrieved 18 Nov 2013.
- ^ a b T3 Confirms "Villa Manifesto" To Be Final Slum Village Album
- ^ Tracklisting For Slum Village's "Villa Manifesto" Revealed
- ^ Dilla On Deck For Slum Village's "Manifesto", First Single "Faster" With Colin Munroe
- ^ Slum Village Feat. Colin Munroe “Faster” [VIDEO][permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c d Graff, Gary. “Slum Village ‘Manifesto’...”. Billboard. 30 June 2010. https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/957564/slum-village-manifesto-reunites-rappers-past-and-present
- ^ Rys, Dan. “22 Rappers who Sampled James Brown’s ‘Funky Drummer’”. XXL. 1 August 2014. http://www.xxlmag.com/news/2014/08/22-rappers-james-brown-funky-drummer/#photogallery-1=19