Back on My B.S. is the eighth studio album by American rapper Busta Rhymes. It was released on May 19, 2009, through Flipmode and Universal Motown.[4][5] The production on the album was handled by multiple producers including Pharrell Williams, DJ Scratch, Danja and Cool & Dre among others. The album also features guest appearances by T-Pain, Jamie Foxx, Akon, Lil Wayne, Mary J. Blige, T.I. and many more.

Back on My B.S.
Studio album by
ReleasedMay 19, 2009 (2009-05-19)
Recorded2007–2009
Genre
Length54:04
Label
Producer
Busta Rhymes chronology
The Big Bang
(2006)
Back on My B.S.
(2009)
Year of the Dragon
(2012)
Singles from Back on My B.S.
  1. "Arab Money"
    Released: November 11, 2008
  2. "Hustler's Anthem '09"
    Released: February 10, 2009
  3. "Respect My Conglomerate"
    Released: April 4, 2009
  4. "World Go Round"
    Released: July 7, 2009[3]

Back on My B.S. was supported by four singles: "Arab Money", "Hustler's Anthem '09", "Respect My Conglomerate" and "World Go Round". The album received mixed reviews from music critics and moderate commercial success. The album debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 59,000 copies in its first week.[6]

Background

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The album was originally going to be called Before Hell Freezes Over, but went through several name changes (including Back on My Bullshit, Blessed and B.O.M.B.) before being finalized as Back on My B.S.. The release date changed many times, mostly due to Busta Rhymes' release from Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album was originally supposed to come out as early as December 4, 2007 but went through many projected release dates before an official release date of May 19, 2009.

Release and promotion

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During an interview with MTV News, Busta Rhymes mentioned that he will be working with longtime collaborators as well as some people he's never had the chance to work with before. He said:

You're gonna get your traditional Busta Rhymes and Pharrell collabo. My man Focus from the Aftermath crew; Dr. Dre; the late, great J Dilla got work on the album. It's gonna be great — look forward to the new bang-out.[7]

In May 2008, news spread of a tracklisting confirming these tracks, stating the album would be titled Blessed and would feature a holographic cover.[8][9]

During an interview with FLOW 93.5 in Toronto, Kardinal Offishall stated that he would appear on a track which would also feature Akon.[10] Kardinal Offishall did not appear on the album, but Akon did. At a private listening session in Manhattan, Busta announced that guest appearances on the album would include Mary J. Blige, Jamie Foxx, Common, Nicole Scherzinger, Akon, T.I., Lil Wayne, Ludacris, The Game, American rock band Linkin Park, T-Pain, and Swizz Beatz.

The first single was originally going to be "Watch Ya Mouth" featuring Swizz Beatz, but then it was changed and will not appear on the album and was dubbed as a street single. "Don't Touch Me (Throw da Water on 'em)" then became the first single, but was changed and simply became a promo single.[11] Although not confirmed to be on the final release of the album, Rhymes teamed up with Travis Barker for one of the latter's underground hit "rock remixes", with the homemade YouTube video having more views than the official single video. Linkin Park also collaborated on the second promo single, "We Made It". The video was shot April 15, 2008. The video for "We Made It" premiered on BET and Yahoo! Music on April 29, 2008.[12] Pharrell did 3 tracks with Busta Rhymes for his new album, one including "G-Stro"[13] "G-Stro" did not appear on the album, but was included on the Fast & Furious soundtrack. Only one made the final cut.

Busta Rhymes premiered the video for "I Got Bass" on November 24 and has cameos from DJ Scratch, Bangladesh, Fabolous, Alfamega, Swizz Beatz and the Flipmode Squad. Hip Hop producer/singer Ron Browz collaborated on the song "Arab Money". The music video debuted on BET's 106 & Park on December 2. It features cameos from Rick Ross, Spliff Star, DJ Drama, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana, DJ Khaled, Akon, Sean Paul, Soulja Boy Tell 'Em, Kardinal Offishall, Ace Hood, Shawty Lo, Paul Wall among many others. The first part of the official remix of "Arab Money" was leaked on November 27. It features Diddy, Ron Browz, Swizz Beatz, T-Pain, Akon and Lil Wayne. The second part was leaked on December 13 and features Ron Browz, Rick Ross, Reek Da Villian, Spliff Star, N.O.R.E. and Red Cafe. The third part was leaked on December 20 features Ron Browz, Juelz Santana, Jim Jones and Jadakiss. All three are the official remix of "Arab Money."

A video for "Respect My Conglomerate" has been shot and the song has been released as a promo CD single. The song is also rumored to be the official third single. However, the video version features Lil Wayne in place of Young Jeezy.[14] The track is featured as an iTunes bonus track on Jadakiss' The Last Kiss. Upon release, both "We Made It" with Linkin Park and "Don't Touch Me (Throw da Water on 'em)" were not included on the final version of the album. Due to its graphic nature, the track "Kill Dem", which features Pharrell and Tosh, is not speculated to be a single. However, the song has received airplay on New York radio stations. The fourth single is "World Go Round", featuring Estelle. The video of the song has been shot and released. The album is notable for being Busta Rhymes' first solo album in 11 years not to feature production from J Dilla, who died in 2006.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(60/100)[15]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic     [16]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[17]
IGN(7.2/10)[18]
Los Angeles Times    [19]
NME     )[20]
RapReviews(7.5/10)[21]
Robert Christgau  [22]
Slant     [23]
Spin(5/10)[15][24]
Vibemixed[25]

Critical response to the album was mixed. According to Metacritic, the album scored a 60 out of 100, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[15] Entertainment Weekly wrote an unfavorable review, saying, "All things considered, Busta should probably try including a little less B.S. the next time he comes back."[17] Slant Magazine also wrote a negative review, stating that, "More often than not, Busta is content to recycle well-worn material, hoping that enough polish and guest-star participation will wick away the album's dusty content. They don't, leaving B.S. as nothing more than filler."[23] The album was named the most "disappointing album" of 2009 by Hip-Hop news website HipHopDX.[26] However XXL, a hip-hop magazine, gave the album a high rating of XL (4 out of five stars), stating that, "Bussa-Bus stays true to form, meshing the same witty concepts and dope production he has been known for his entire career."[27]

Commercial performance

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Back on My B.S. debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 59,000 copies in its first week.[6] This became Busta Rhymes' sixth US top-ten album.[6]

Track listing

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The track listing was confirmed by two major retail sites.[28][29]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Wheel of Fortune"DJ Scratch3:24
2."Give Em What They Askin For"Ron Browz3:24
3."Respect My Conglomerate" (featuring Lil Wayne and Jadakiss)Focus...3:34
4."Shoot for the Moon"Danja3:20
5."Hustler's Anthem '09" (featuring T-Pain)Ty Fyffe4:29
6."Kill Dem" (featuring Pharrell Williams and Tosh)Pharrell Williams3:48
7."Arab Money" (featuring Ron Browz)
  • Smith
  • Turner
Ron Browz2:45
8."I'm a Go and Get My..." (featuring Mike Epps)
  • Smith
  • Spivey
DJ Scratch4:54
9."We Want In" (featuring Ron Browz, Spliff Star and Show Money)
King Karnov3:11
10."We Miss You" (featuring DeMarco and Jelly Roll)Needlz5:02
11."Sugar" (featuring Jelly Roll)
  • Smith
  • David Drew
  • Carlton Johnson
Jelly Roll4:05
12."Don't Believe Em" (featuring Akon and T.I.)Cool & Dre3:49
13."Decision" (featuring Jamie Foxx, Mary J. Blige, John Legend and Common)Mr. Porter4:28
14."World Go Round" (featuring Estelle)
  • Smith
  • Drew
  • Chasity Nwagbara
Jelly Roll3:51
Total length:54:04
iTunes bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
15."How You Really Want It" (featuring Jesse West)Dready Beats4:57
16."If You Don't Know Now You Know" (featuring Big Tigger)Focus...4:59
Total length:1:04:00
Japan bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
15."G-Stro"The Neptunes3:42
Total length:1:02:48
Bonus DVD[30]
No.TitleLength
1."A Day in the Life of Busta Rhymes" 
2."The Days of Our Rhymes" 
3."News Flash" 
4."Busted!" 
5."The Many Styles of Busta Rhymes" 
6."Ruffneck Soulja trailer" 
7."Music video: Hustler's Anthem 09" 
8."Music video: Arab Money Remix" 
9."Music video: Arab Money live at the Knitting Factory" 

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart (2009) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[31] 66
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[32] 88
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[33] 18
French Albums (SNEP)[34] 20
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[35] 94
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[36] 15
UK Albums (OCC)[37] 92
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[38] 12
US Billboard 200[39] 5
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[40] 2

Release history

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Region Date
United Kingdom May 18, 2009
United States May 19, 2009

References

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  1. ^ Jeffries, David. "Back on My B.S. - Busta Rhymes". Allmusic.
  2. ^ "Exclusive: Busta Rhymes Signs with Universal Motown". Rap-Up. 17 September 2008. Retrieved 17 September 2008.
  3. ^ "World go round : Busta Rhymes en CD single : tous les disques à la Fnac". Musique.fnac.com. 2009-06-17. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  4. ^ "Busta Rhymes' 'B.O.M.B.' Keeps Ticking". Rap-Up.com. 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  5. ^ "Back On My B.S.: Busta Rhymes: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  6. ^ a b c Keith Caulfield (May 27, 2009). "Eminem's 'Relapse' Tops Billboard 200". Billboard.
  7. ^ Reid, Shaheem (29 November 2006). "Busta Rhymes Already Revving Up Next LP; Dre, Pharrell On Board". MTV. Archived from the original on December 16, 2006. Retrieved 25 August 2007.
  8. ^ Shake. "Busta Rhymes – Blessed (Artwork x Tracklist)". 2DOPEBOYZ.
  9. ^ UK, The Hip Hop Chronicle (28 May 2008). "Busta Rhymes - Blessed (Cover + Tracklist) - The Hip Hop Chronicle UK".
  10. ^ Akon, Kardinal Offishall to appear on new Busta Rhymes album on YouTube[dead link]. YouTube. Accessed August 2007.
  11. ^ "Busta Rhymes Enlists T.I., Common & Mary J. Blige For New LP | Daily Hip-Hop News | SOHH.com /". 2008-04-11. Archived from the original on 2008-06-16. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  12. ^ "Premieres on Yahoo! Music". New.music.yahoo.com. 2011-04-20. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  13. ^ "Video: Pharell Does His Busta Rhymes Impersonation! Plus Talks To Dj Premiere About Classics". Worldstarhiphop.com. 2008-09-04. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  14. ^ Video: Busta Rhymes ft. Jadakiss & Lil Wayne - Respect My Conglomerate (Behind the Scenes). Nah Right. Accessed March 30, 2009.
  15. ^ a b c "Critic Reviews for Back On My B.S." Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  16. ^ Jeffries, David (2009-05-19). "Back on My B.S. - Busta Rhymes". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  17. ^ a b Simon Vozick-Levinson (2009-05-13). "Back on My B.S. Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  18. ^ White, Finn (2009-05-22). "Busta Rhymes - Back On My B.S. Review". IGN. Archived from the original on 2012-04-06. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  19. ^ Weiss, Jeff (2009-05-21). "Album Review: Busta Rhymes' latest". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  20. ^ Haynes, Gavin (2009-07-15). "Album review: Busta Rhymes - 'Back On My BS'". NME. Retrieved 2012-09-08.
  21. ^ Padania, Jesal "Jay Soul" (2009-05-19). "Busta Rhymes :: Back On My B.S. :: Universal Motown". RapReviews. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  22. ^ Christgau, Robert. "CG: Busta Rhymes". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved 2012-09-08.
  23. ^ a b Liedel, Kevin (2009-05-20). "Busta Rhymes: Back on My B.S. - Music Review". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  24. ^ Boylan, J Gabriel (2009-05-16). "Busta Rhymes, 'Back on My B.S.' (Universal Motown)". Spin. Retrieved 2012-09-08.
  25. ^ Vibe review Archived July 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ "2009 HipHopDX Awards | Discussing Lil' Wayne, Drake & Many More Hip Hop Artists". HipHop DX. 2009-12-22. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  27. ^ Sean A. Malcolm (2009-04-13). "Busta Rhymes, The Jump Off". XXL. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  28. ^ "Busta Rhymes - Back On My BS". Play.com. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  29. ^ "HMV.com". HMV.com. 2005-12-15. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  30. ^ "flipmodefans.com". flipmodefans.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-20. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  31. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Busta Rhymes – Back on My B.S." (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  32. ^ "Ultratop.be – Busta Rhymes – Back on My B.S." (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  33. ^ "Busta Rhymes Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  34. ^ "Lescharts.com – Busta Rhymes – Back on My B.S.". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  35. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Busta Rhymes – Back on My B.S." (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  36. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Busta Rhymes – Back on My B.S.". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  37. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  38. ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  39. ^ "Busta Rhymes Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  40. ^ "Busta Rhymes Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
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