The Slickness is the first solo studio album by Prince Po, one half of American hip hop duo Organized Konfusion. It was released on Lex Records in 2004. It peaked at number 53 on the CMJ Top 200 chart.[2]

The Slickness
Promo edition cover
Studio album by
ReleasedJuly 27, 2004 (2004-07-27)[1]
GenreHip hop
Length42:43
LabelLex Records
Producer
Prince Po chronology
The Slickness
(2004)
Prettyblack
(2006)
Singles from The Slickness
  1. "Hold Dat"
    Released: 2004
  2. "Bump Bump"
    Released: 2004

Production

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80 percent of the album was written at Danger Mouse's house in California.[3] The album's production was handled by Jel, Madlib, Danger Mouse, Richard X, J-Zone, and Prince Po himself.[4]

In a 2005 interview, Prince Po stated that his favorite song on the album was "Be Easy".[5] The song was dedicated to the late Matt Doo, who drew the cover art for Organized Konfusion's Stress: The Extinction Agenda and committed suicide years afterwards.[5]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [1]
Dusted Magazinefavorable[6]
Exclaim!favorable[7]
HipHopDX7.5/10[8]
The Irish Times     [9]
MusicOMHfavorable[10]
The Observer     [11]
Pitchfork7.9/10[12]
Stylus MagazineC+[13]
XLR8Rfavorable[14]

David Jeffries of AllMusic called the album "a victory for all involved."[1] He added: "It's rough and rugged, real and approachable, and you'll have to make plenty of room on your mixtapes for all the highlights within."[1] Jamin Warren of Pitchfork wrote: "Despite a handful of occasional blunders, Po helms an excellent release."[12] DJ Anna of XLR8R commented that "Madlib, Danger Mouse and J-Zone create the background for Po's mesmerizing delivery here, and each track drips with heart and soul as a classic voice collaborates with the best of today's talent."[14] Meanwhile, Dom Passantino of Stylus Magazine wrote: "You just can't help but wonder what it'd be like if he put everything of himself into it."[13]

A single from the album, "Hold Dat", received a favorable review from DJ Shadow.[15] Writing for The New York Times, DJ Shadow said: "Underground rap is finally emerging from its own conservatism and embracing the present, evidenced by the adventurous production on this single from Richard X."[15]

CMJ New Music Monthly placed the album at number 19 on the "20 for 04" list.[16] Tom Dunmore of The Guardian placed it at number 7 on the "Most Beautiful Sleeves of 2004" list.[17]

Track listing

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No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Hello"Jel2:16
2."Too Much"Madlib2:55
3."Love Thang"Danger Mouse3:24
4."Hold Dat" (featuring Jemini and Rell)Richard X4:08
5."It's Goin' Down" (featuring Stone)J-Zone2:59
6."Social Distortion" (featuring MF Doom)Danger Mouse3:08
7."The Slickness"Madlib2:53
8."Grown Ass Man"Prince Po3:58
9."Bump Bump" (featuring Raekwon)Madlib3:23
10."Meet Me at the Bar" (featuring J-Ro and J-Zone)J-Zone5:09
11."Fall Back" (featuring Jemini and Cairo)Danger Mouse4:45
12."Be Easy"Prince Po3:44
Total length:42:43
CD edition bonus track
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
13."Hold Dat (Club Remix)" (featuring Jemini and Rell)Richard X3:17
Total length:46:04

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the CD edition's liner notes.

  • Prince Po – vocals, production (8, 12), mixing (8, 12)
  • Jel – production (1)
  • Marty Delafongio – mixing (1–3, 7, 9–11), guitar (3)
  • Madlib – production (2, 7, 9)
  • Carla Holden – extra vocals (3)
  • Danger Mouse – production (3, 6, 11), mixing (6), executive production
  • Jemini – vocals (4, 11, 13), co-executive production
  • Rell – vocals (4, 13)
  • Richard X – production (4, 13), mixing (4, 13), remix (13)
  • Stone – vocals (5)
  • J-Zone – production (5, 10), mixing (5), vocals (10)
  • MF Doom – vocals (6)
  • Raekwon – vocals (9)
  • J-Ro – vocals (10)
  • Cairo – vocals (11)
  • Ehquestionmark – artwork
  • Maya Hayuk – photography

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Jeffries, David. "The Slickness - Prince Po". AllMusic. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  2. ^ "CMJ Top 200". CMJ New Music Report (878): 9. August 23, 2004.
  3. ^ Jones, Todd E. (November 2005). "The Pedagogical Slickness Of Prince Po (page 4 of 5)". MVRemix. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  4. ^ Betz, Chet (November 8, 2007). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Cokemachineglow. Archived from the original on August 8, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  5. ^ a b Jones, Todd E. (November 2005). "The Pedagogical Slickness Of Prince Po (page 1 of 5)". MVRemix. Archived from the original on February 19, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  6. ^ Ho, Brian (September 20, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". Dusted Magazine. Archived from the original on June 11, 2012. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  7. ^ Cowie, Del F. (August 1, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  8. ^ J-23 (July 19, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on May 21, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Carroll, Jim (July 30, 2004). "Hip-Hop". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  10. ^ Welsh, David (July 5, 2004). "Prince Po – The Slickness". MusicOMH. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  11. ^ Jamieson, Ruth (July 18, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". The Observer. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  12. ^ a b Warren, Jamin (August 17, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  13. ^ a b Passantino, Dom (August 6, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  14. ^ a b DJ Anna (July 20, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". XLR8R. Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  15. ^ a b DJ Shadow (June 13, 2004). "Music: Playlist; The Roots Get a Case of the Mumbles". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
  16. ^ "20 for 04". CMJ New Music Monthly (129): 31. 2004.
  17. ^ Dunmore, Tom (December 17, 2004). "The most beautiful sleeves of 2004". The Guardian. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
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