Black Reign
Studio album by
Queen Latifah
ReleasedNovember 16, 1993
RecordedNovember 1992 – September 1993
Studio
Genre
Length55:53
LabelMotown[2]
Producer
  • Sidney "S.I.D." Reynolds
  • Tony Dofat
  • Kay Gee
  • Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah chronology
Nature of a Sista
(1991)		 Black Reign
(1993)		 Order in the Court
(1998)
Singles from Black Reign
  1. "U.N.I.T.Y."
    Released: November 9, 1993
  2. "Just Another Day..."
    Released: December 23, 1993
  3. "Black Hand Side / Weekend Love"
    Released: 1994
  4. "Rough... / I Can't Understand"
    Released: September 27, 1994
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert Christgau(3-star Honorable Mention)(3-star Honorable Mention)(3-star Honorable Mention)[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
NME7/10[5]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide[6]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[7]

Black Reign is the third studio album by American rapper Queen Latifah, released in 1993.[8] Black Reign was her most successful album up to that point, peaking at number 60 on the Billboard 200.[9] The album also peaked at number fifteen on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album sold in excess of 500,000 copies, achieving gold status.[10]

Critical reception

Trouser Press wrote that Latifah "rhymes over bottom-booming jeep beats and sings to sweet soul, dancehall and, in the case of 'Winki’s Theme,' a song for her late brother, a live jazz quartet."[11] The New York Times wrote: "As one of hip-hop's true vocal virtuosos, Queen Latifah tosses off articulate, quick-changing syncopations when she raps, slipping in and out of a Jamaican accent and singing melodic choruses in a sweet, strong voice."[12]

Track listing

Black Reign
No.TitleProducerLength
1."Black Hand Side"S.I.D.3:22
2."Listen 2 Me"Tony Dofat4:43
3."I Can't Understand"Tony Dofat3:50
4."Rough... (featuring Treach, Heavy D, and KRS-One)"Tony Dofat5:04
5."4 The D.J.'s (Interlude)"S.I.D.1:38
6."Bring The Flavor"Tony Dofat3:25
7."Coochie Bang..."S.I.D.3:46
8."Superstar"S.I.D.3:56
9."No Work"Kay Gee2:51
10."Just a Flow (Interlude)"S.I.D.1:30
11."Just Another Day..."S.I.D.4:29
12."U.N.I.T.Y."Kay Gee & Mufi4:11
13."Weekend Love (featuring Tony Rebel)"Kay Gee4:09
14."Mood Is Right"S.I.D.3:30
15."Winki's Theme"Queen Latifah5:29
Total length:55:53

Music videos

Influence

The album was a major influence for young adult novelist Jason Reynolds,[13] who was inspired to start writing poetry when he discovered Black Reign at nine years old.[14]

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[10] Gold 503,000[15]

References

  1. 1 2 "Black Reign – Queen Latifah | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  2. ↑ "Queen Latifah, Black Reign (Motown): The recording..." OrlandoSentinel.com.
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert (February 1994). "Consumer Guide Album". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  4. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 6. MUZE. p. 711.
  5. ↑ Batey, Angus (February 12, 1994). "Long Play". NME. p. 41. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  6. ↑ The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 669.
  7. ↑ Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 318–319.
  8. ↑ "Queen Latifah | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  9. ↑ "Queen Latifah". Billboard.
  10. 1 2 "American album certifications – Queen Latifah – Black Reign". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Queen Latifah". Trouser Press. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  12. ↑ Pareles, Jon (February 22, 1994). "Review/Pop; Queen Latifah, Tough but Kind (Published 1994)" – via NYTimes.com.
  13. ↑ Brown, Lesley-Ann (August 22, 2015). "The Graceful Power of Novelist Jason Reynolds". NBC News. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  14. ↑ Foster, Jordan (April 17, 2017). "Jason Reynolds: From Kid Poet to Award-Winning Author". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  15. ↑ Concepcion, Mariel (June 9, 2007). "A bad rap?". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 23. pp. 24–25. Retrieved February 3, 2022 – via Internet Archive.
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