Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life
| Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life | |||||||||||||
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| Jay-Z's studio album | |||||||||||||
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Publication |
September 29, 1998 |
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| Label (s) | Roc-A-Fella , Def Jam | ||||||||||||
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Format (s) |
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Title (number) |
14th |
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running time |
61:43 |
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Vol 2 ... Hard Knock Life. ( English for about: knallhartes life ) is the third studio album of American rapper Jay-Z . It was released on September 29, 1998 on the labels Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam .
Production and samples
Many different music producers were involved in the production of the album . Swizz Beatz contributed the instrumentals to three songs, while Timbaland produced two pieces. Other productions come from DJ Premier , The 45 King, Stevie J. , J-Runnah, Irv Gotti and Lil Rob, Erick Sermon , Darold Trotter and Rockwilder , Kid Capri , Damon Dash and Mahogany Music as well as Jermaine Dupri .
Seven songs contain samples of songs by other artists. Reservoir Dogs samples the tracks Theme from Shaft by Isaac Hayes , 24 Carat Black (Theme) by 24 Carat Black and Know How by Young MC . Intro - Hand It Down contains elements of Are You Man Enough by The Four Tops , while Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem) samples the title It's The Hard Knock Life from the musical Annie . Other samples are in A Week Ago ( Ballad for the Fallen Soldier by The Isley Brothers ), It's Like That ( Beggar's Song by Wet Willie), It's Alright ( The Hall of Mirrors by Kraftwerk and Once in a Lifetime by Talking Heads ) and Money Ain't a Thang ( Weak at the Knees by Steve Arrington ) included.
Cover design
The album cover shows Jay-Z, who looks at the viewer and stands next to a black car, on the hood of which he puts his hand. The background is white and the black lettering Jay-Z and Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life are in the top left of the picture .
Guest Posts
Besides Jay-Z, other artists can be heard on twelve of the 14 tracks on the album. The rapper Memphis Bleek has three guest appearances and the rapper Amil is involved in two songs. One guest contribution each comes from the rappers DMX , Ja Rule , Too Short , Beanie Sigel , Jermaine Dupri , Kid Capri , Big Jaz and Sauce Money. In addition, the rapper Foxy Brown , the hip-hop group The LOX , the rap duo Da Ranjahz and the singer Liz Leite are each represented on one song.
Track list
| # | title | Guest Posts | producer | length |
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| 1 | Intro - Hand It Down | Memphis Bleek | DJ premier | 2:56 |
| 2 | Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem) | The 45 King | 3:58 | |
| 3 | If I Should Die | Da Ranjahz | Swizz Beatz | 4:55 |
| 4th | Ride or Die | Stevie J. for The Hitmen | 4:48 | |
| 5 | Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originator 99) | Amil and Big Jaz | Timbaland | 3:53 |
| 6th | Money, cash, hoes | DMX | Swizz Beatz | 4:46 |
| 7th | A Week Ago | Too short | J-Runnah | 5:00 |
| 8th | Coming of Age (Da Sequel) | Memphis Bleek | Swizz Beatz | 4:21 |
| 9 | Can I Get A ... | Amil and Ja Rule | Irv Gotti and Lil Rob | 5:09 |
| 10 | Paper chase | Foxy Brown | Timbaland | 4:34 |
| 11 | Reservoir Dogs | The LOX , Beanie Sigel and Sauce Money | Erick Sermon , Darold Trotter, Rockwilder | 5:19 |
| 12 | It's like that | Kid Capri and Liz Leite | Kid Capri | 3:45 |
| 13 (*) | It's alright | Memphis Bleek | Damon Dash and Mahogany Music | 4:01 |
| 14 (*) | Money ain't a thang | Jermaine Dupri | Jermaine Dupri | 4:13 |
(*) Bonus songs
Chart successes and singles
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Chart positions Explanation of the data |
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Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life entered the German album charts at number 91 on January 11, 1999, and four weeks later reached the highest position at number 76. In total, it stayed in the top 100 for seven weeks. In the US, the album reached the top of the charts and stayed in the top 200 for 69 weeks, including five weeks at number 1.
Six songs on the album were released as singles . The songs Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem) (DE # 5) and Can I Get A… (DE # 12) were particularly successful internationally. The tracks Money Ain't a Thang , It's Alright and Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originators '99) could only place in the US charts, while Money, Cash, Hoes missed the charts completely.
Sales figures and awards
| Professional reviews | |
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| Reviews | |
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| Rolling Stone |
  
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| allmusic |
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| RapReviews |
 
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Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life sold 5.4 million copies in the United States, earning it five times platinum . It is one of the most commercially successful rap albums in the USA and is still the rapper's best-selling album to this day. In the UK, the album won a Silver Record in 2013 for over 60,000 sales . Worldwide sales are around 10.5 million units.
At the 1999 Grammy Awards , Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life received the award in the Best Rap Album category .
Individual evidence
- ↑ album cover
- ↑ Chart sources: DE, AT, CH, UK, US ( Memento of the original from September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Chart tracking Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life at officialcharts.de
- ↑ Rating: Rolling Stone
- ↑ Rating: allmusic.com
- ↑ Rating: RapReviews
- ↑ US: 5x platinum
- ↑ US Sales Vol. 2 ... Hard Knock Life
- ↑ UK: silver
- ↑ Worldwide album sales on statisticbrain.com, July 11, 2015, English. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
