Word of Mouf is the third studio album by American rapper Ludacris. It was released through Disturbing tha Peace and Def Jam South on November 27, 2001.[1] It contains four singles: "Rollout (My Business)", "Area Codes", "Move Bitch", and "Saturday (Oooh! Ooooh!)".
| Word of Mouf | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 27, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000–2001 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 78:54 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer |
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| Ludacris chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Word of Mouf | ||||
| ||||
Critical reception edit
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 67/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Robert Christgau | B−[4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (B)[5] |
| Los Angeles Times | [6] |
| HipHopDX | [7] |
| RapReviews | (8/10)[8] |
| Rolling Stone | [9][10] |
| USA Today | [11] |
Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic called Word of Mouf a "superstar affair that aims for mass appeal with a broad array of different styles" and enjoyed "witty puns and sly innuendoes" displayed in songs such as "Area Codes".[3] However, he felt that "amid all of these various team-ups you do lose a little bit of the sincere, personal edge that had characterized much of Ludacris' debut."[3] Soren Baker of the Chicago Tribune also praised the album's comedic nature, commenting that "Whether he's delivering a punchy one-liner, exaggerating his rhyme flow to a silly extreme or cleverly deploying pop culture references, Ludacris keeps the mood light and festive. Even his skits are funny enough that they could serve as the foundation for a top-tier comedy album."[12]
Robert Christgau stated: "[Ludacris] raps and rhymes with gusto, and I like his Timbaland beat so much I don't want to know how real its Glocks are. Nevertheless, he is or impersonates a no-class pimp motherfucker, and if he never reached one of the nine-year-olds O'Reilly yammers about, he would still be coarsening public discourse. Song after song pumps the pimp theory that all women are whores. Rotate good-humored dance songs in which the best thing you say about female persons is that they crave your tallywhacker and the worst is that you'll murder them if they bother, and you'll change how real human beings of both sexes think and behave. Anyone who claims different is certainly a liar and probably a bully.[13]
Ludacris took part in the second edition of the Anger Management Tour in the summer of 2002. Headlined by Eminem along with support from Papa Roach, Xzibit, X-Ecutioners and Bionic Jive. It was his sole Tour where he toured alongside Rap acts and rock acts in the same package.
Commercial performance edit
The album debuted at number 3 on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 281,000 copies in the United States,[14] The album was certified 3x Multi-Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 31, 2002. As of July 2014, the album has sold over 3,674,000 copies in the United States to date.[15] This is Ludacris' best selling album. It was nominated at the 45th Grammy Awards for Best Rap Album, but lost to The Eminem Show.
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Coming 2 America" | Bangladesh | 4:21 | |
| 2. | "Rollout (My Business)" |
| Timbaland | 4:56 |
| 3. | "Go 2 Sleep" (featuring Three 6 Mafia, I-20, and Fate Wilson) |
| Shondrae | 5:10 |
| 4. | "Cry Babies (Oh No)" |
| Swizz Beatz | 5:56 |
| 5. | "She Said" |
| Organized Noize | 4:33 |
| 6. | "Howhere (Skit)" ([note 1]) | Bridges | Bridges | 1:11 |
| 7. | "Area Codes" (featuring Nate Dogg) | Jazze Pha | 5:03 | |
| 8. | "Growing Pains" (featuring Keon Bryce and Fate Wilson) |
| P. King "The Specialist" | 4:49 |
| 9. | "Greatest Hits (Skit)" ([note 1]) | Bridges | Mike Johnson | 1:16 |
| 10. | "Move Bitch" (featuring Mystikal and I-20) |
| KLC | 4:30 |
| 11. | "Stop Lying (Skit)" ([note 1]) | Bridges | Bridges | 1:36 |
| 12. | "Saturday (Oooh Oooh!)" (featuring Sleepy Brown) |
| Organized Noize | 3:50 |
| 13. | "Keep It on the Hush" (featuring Jazze Pha) |
| Jazze Pha | 4:46 |
| 14. | "Word of Mouf (Freestyle)" (featuring 4-Ize) |
| Bridges | 2:11 |
| 15. | "Get the Fuck Back" (featuring Fate Wilson, Shawnna, and I-20) |
| Bangladesh | 5:21 |
| 16. | "Freaky Thangs" (featuring Twista and Jagged Edge) |
| Shondrae | 5:32 |
| 17. | "Cold Outside" (featuring Chimere) |
| Jooka | 6:03 |
| 18. | "Block Lockdown" (Bonus track[16] featuring I-20) |
| Bangladesh | 4:53 |
| 19. | "Welcome to Atlanta" (Jermaine Dupri featuring Ludacris; unlisted track[17]) |
| Dupri | 3:16 |
Notes
- ^ a b c "Howhere", "Greatest Hits", and "Stop Lying" are not included on the censored version.
- Samples and interpolations
- "Coming 2 America" samples "Requiem, 3rd movement (Dies irae)" as performed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and "Symphony No. 9, 'From the New World', 4th movement (Allegro con fuoco)" as performed by Antonín Dvořák (Conductor and orchestra unknown for both)
- "Rollout (My Business)" contains an interpolation of "Yay Boy" as performed by Africando
- "She Said" contains an interpolation of "Love in Ya Mouth" as performed by Kilo Ali featuring Big Boi
- "Area Codes" contains interpolations of "Bitch Betta Have My Money" as performed by AMG, and Cha Cha Slide as performed by DJ Casper
- "Growing Pains" contains a sample of "I Forgot To Be Your Lover" as performed by William Bell
- "Saturday (Oooh! Oooh!)" contains a sample of "Off" as performed by Hodges, James, and Smith
- "Get the Fuck Back" contains an interpolation of "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos" as performed by Public Enemy
- "Welcome to Atlanta" contains an interpolation of "Trans-Europe Express" as performed by Kraftwerk, "Do It Baby" as performed by the Miracles, and "Five Minutes of Funk" as performed by Whodini
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
|
Year-end charts edit
|
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[30] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[31] | Gold | 100,000* |
| United States (RIAA)[32] | 4× Platinum | 3,674,000[15] |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ "Amazon.com: Ludacris: Word Of Mouf: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ "Reviews and Tracks for Word of Mouf by Ludacris". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
- ^ a b c Birchmeier, Jason. "Word of Mouf - Review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved February 3, 2011.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (April 22, 2003). "Not Hop, Stomp". The Village Voice. New York. Archived from the original on December 20, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
- ^ "Word of Mouf". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ "Record Rack". Los Angeles Times. 25 November 2001. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ HipHopDX (5 December 2001). "Ludacris - Word Of Mouf". HipHopDX. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ "RapReviews.com Feature for November 27, 2001 - Ludacris' "Word of Mouf"". Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ "Rolling Stone review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Ludacris - Word of Mouf CD". Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ "Google News". Retrieved 6 March 2015.
- ^ Soren, Baker (February 3, 2002). "Ludacris "Word of Mouf" (Def Jam South) - Review". The Chicago Tribune. Tony W. Hunter. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
- ^ Robert Christgau: CG: Ludacris
- ^ D'Angelo, Joe (December 5, 2001). "Creed Won't 'Sacrifice' Pole Position On Billboard Chart". MTV.com. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
- ^ a b Grein, Paul (June 24, 2014). "USA: Top 20 New Acts Since 2000". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
- ^ https://www.discogs.com/release/718204-Ludacris-Word-Of-Mouf/image/SW1hZ2U6OTIyNjM1MDI=
- ^ https://www.discogs.com/release/718204-Ludacris-Word-Of-Mouf/image/SW1hZ2U6OTIyNjM1MDI=
- ^ "Albums : Top 100". Jam!. December 20, 2001. Archived from the original on December 10, 2004. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ "R&B : Top 50". Jam!. December 20, 2001. Archived from the original on December 23, 2001. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
- ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
- ^ "Ludacris | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
- ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Ludacris Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
- ^ "Ludacris Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
- ^ "Top 200 Albums of 2002 (based on sales)". Jam!. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
- ^ "Canada's Top 200 R&B; albums of 2002". Jam!. Archived from the original on October 12, 2003. Retrieved March 27, 2022.
- ^ "Top 100 rap albums of 2002 in Canada". Jam!. Archived from the original on October 12, 2003. Retrieved March 27, 2022.
- ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2002". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2002". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – Ludacris – Word of Mouf". Music Canada.
- ^ "British album certifications – Ludacris – Word of Mouf". British Phonographic Industry.
- ^ "American album certifications – Ludacris – Word of Mouf". Recording Industry Association of America.