Welcome to Strangeland is the twelfth studio album, and the fourth in the "Collabos" series, by rapper Tech N9ne. It was released on November 8, 2011, the rapper's 40th birthday.
| Welcome to Strangeland | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 8, 2011[1] | |||
| Recorded | 2011 | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 65:43 | |||
| Label | Strange Music | |||
| Producer | Seven, Jomeezius the Genius, David Sanders II, Plex Luthor, Beats 4 Days LLC | |||
| Tech N9ne chronology | ||||
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| Tech N9ne Collabos chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Welcome to Strangeland | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| RapReviews | (7.5/10)[3] |
Background
editIn April 2011, Tech N9ne spoke about the album in an interview with 411mania.com. In the interview he said that the album would strictly feature everyone on the Strange Music label, only expanding to closely affiliated artists such as Irv Da Phenom and Ces Cru.[4] Then in August 2011, Tech announced through Twitter that he was about to begin work on Strangeland and that producers would include Seven, Jomeezius The Genius, David Sanders II and ¡Mayday!. He also said that the album would most likely feature 18 tracks.[5]
On August 11, 2011, Tech N9ne posted an image on Twitter revealing a track called "Kocky" and featuring Kutt Calhoun and Jay Rock.[6] On August 31, 2011, it was confirmed through a blog post that the album would be titled "Welcome to Strangeland" and that the release date was scheduled for November 8, 2011.[7]
It was also confirmed that there would be a collaboration between Tech and Prozak, who is a current member of Strange Music and collaborated with Tech on 2009's K.O.D.[8]
The album was made available for pre-order from Strange Music's online store on September 9, 2011. The cover was revealed with the pre-order. When pre-ordered, the album came with a download of "Beautiful Music." It also confirmed several features on the album including Stevie Stone, ¡Mayday!, Brotha Lynch Hung, Young Bleed, Krizz Kaliko and Kutt Calhoun. [9]
On September 14, 2011, Tech mentioned on Twitter a collaboration between Prozak and Brotha Lynch Hung on a track called "My Favorite" as well as a song with Young Bleed titled "Come Dirty". He also confirmed earlier in the day that he had completed recording music for the album.
In an interview with Jomeezius The Genius, he confirmed that he produced a total of 6 tracks for the album and that 4 of them will definitely be on it.[10]
On October 13, Tech released the song "The Noose" featuring ¡Mayday!. Then on October 24, he released the song "Unfair". A Behind the Scenes film was also released on October 24 for the music video "Who Do I Catch." Several days later, Tech premiered the track "Slave."
The first music video for the album, "Who Do I Catch" which was directed by Dan Gedman of Liquid 9, premiered on XXLMag.com on November 5, 2011.
A deluxe edition of the album was made available from Best Buy that contained 3 bonus tracks ("I Need A Drink", "The Real Thing" and "EMJ") and a new Strangeland pendant. A deluxe edition was also made available through iTunes which contained the three bonus tracks available from Best Buy, and an additional bonus track ("Road Rage").
Commercial Performance
editThe album debuted at number 21 on the Billboard 200 with 26,000 copies sold in its first week.[11]
Track listing
editConfirmed by HipHopDX[12]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Stars" | Aaron D. Yates, Samuel Watson, Michael Summers | Seven | 3:46 |
| 2. | "Welcome to Strangeland" (featuring Krizz Kaliko) | Yates, Watson, Jomar Dogué | Jomeezius The Genius | 2:58 |
| 3. | "Unfair" (featuring Ces Cru & Krizz Kaliko) | Yates, Watson, Mike S. Viglione, Donnie H. King, Summers | Seven | 5:14 |
| 4. | "Kocky" (featuring Krizz Kaliko, Kutt Calhoun & Jay Rock) | Yates, Melvin Calhoun, Jr., Johnny McKinzie, Watson, David Sanders II | David Sanders II | 4:15 |
| 5. | "Who Do I Catch" | Yates, Summers | Seven | 4:18 |
| 6. | "My Favorite" (featuring Brotha Lynch Hung, Prozak & Krizz Kaliko) | Yates, Steven T. Shippy, Kevin Mann, Watson, Dogué | Jomeezius The Genius | 4:20 |
| 7. | "Retrogression" (featuring ¡Mayday!) | Yates, Benardo Garcia, Benjamin Miller, Aaron Eckhart | Plex Luthor | 4:14 |
| 8. | "Bang Out" (performed by 816 Boyz) | Yates, Watson, Calhoun, Jr., Makzilla Marquis Queen, Summers | Seven | 4:39 |
| 9. | "Beautiful Music" (featuring Krizz Kaliko) | Yates, Watson, Dogué | Jomeezius The Genius | 4:13 |
| 10. | "Won't You Come Dirty" (featuring Stevie Stone & Young Bleed) | Yates, Glenn R. Clifton, Jr., Stephen Williams, Watson, Dogué | Jomeezius The Genius | 3:48 |
| 11. | "Sad Circus" (featuring Brotha Lynch Hung & Courtney Kuhnz) | Yates, Mann, Summers | Seven | 3:47 |
| 12. | "The Noose" (featuring ¡Mayday!) | Yates, Garcia, Miller, Eckhart | Plex Luthor | 4:59 |
| 13. | "Slave" (featuring Krizz Kaliko & Kutt Calhoun) | Yates, Watson, Calhoun, Jr., Summers | Seven | 4:35 |
| 14. | "Overwhelming" (featuring Jay Da 3rd) | Yates, Joe Foutain, Steven Brown | Beats 4 Days LLC | 5:41 |
| 15. | "Gods" (featuring Krizz Kaliko & Kutt Calhoun) | Yates, Watson, Calhoun, Jr., Summers | Seven | 5:02 |
| Total length: | 65:43 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16. | "I Need A Drink" | Yates, Summers | Seven | 2:18 |
| 17. | "The Real Thing" (featuring Liz Suwandi) | Yates, Liz Suwandi, Summers | Seven | 3:06 |
| 18. | "EMJ (Emotional Musical Journey)" (featuring Krizz Kaliko, Irv Da Phenom, Kutt Calhoun, Bernz, Wrekonize, Stevie Stone, Jay Rock & Magnum PI) | Yates, Mitchell Irving, Jr., Calhoun, Jr., Garcia, Miller, Williams, McKinzie, King Harris, Watson, Summers | Seven | 6:41 |
| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19. | "Road Rage" (featuring Irv Da Phenom) | Seven | 3:01 |
References
edit- ^ Welcome to Strangeland Release Date http://blog.therealtechn9ne.com/2011/08/interview-tech-n9ne/tech-n9ne-talks-welcome-strangeland-lil-wayne-eminem-interview/
- ^ Allmusic link
- ^ RapReviews link
- ^ 411mania.com Interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqsSFTn3Clw
- ^ Strangeland producers http://blog.therealtechn9ne.com/2011/08/social/tech-n9ne-confirms-producers-strangeland-klusterfuk-social/
- ^ Tech N9ne Reveals New Song Over Twitter [Social] | Tech N9ne
- ^ Name Change and Release Date http://blog.therealtechn9ne.com/2011/08/interview-tech-n9ne/tech-n9ne-talks-welcome-strangeland-lil-wayne-eminem-interview/
- ^ Prozak Confirms New Collaboration With Tech N9ne [Social] | Tech N9ne
- ^ Tech N9ne Collabos - Welcome to Strangeland CD - Pre Sale Ship 11/08/2011 Strange Music, Inc Store
- ^ Jomeezius The Genius Speaks On Producing ‘Beautiful Music’ [SM Exclusive] | Tech N9ne
- ^ Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 11/13/2011 | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales | HipHop DX
- ^ Tech N9ne Reveals Tracklist For "Welcome To Strangeland" | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales | HipHop DX