The Hard Way (213 album)

2004 studio album by 213
The Hard Way
Studio album by
213
ReleasedAugust 17, 2004 (2004-08-17)
Recorded2002–2004
Studio
  • DSR (Los Angeles)
  • Battery (New York City)
  • Larrabee Studios East (Los Angeles)
  • Larrabee Studios North (Los Angeles)
  • Planet (Los Angeles)
  • The G-Spot (Los Angeles)
Genre
Length71:59
Label
  • Doggystyle
  • G-Funk
  • Dogg Foundation
  • TVT
Producer
  • Fredwreck
  • Hi-Tek
  • Quaze
  • B Sharp
  • Tha Chill
  • Kanye West
  • DJ Pooh
  • Nottz
  • Josef
  • Lil ½ Dead
  • Niggarochi
  • Terrace Martin
  • Marlon Williams
  • Michael Angelo
  • Tha Bizness
  • Missy Elliott
  • Jelly Roll
Snoop Dogg chronology
Welcome to tha Chuuuch, Vol. 5 (The Revival)
(2004) 		The Hard Way
(2004) 		R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece
(2004)
Nate Dogg chronology
Nate Dogg
(2003) 		The Hard Way
(2004)
Warren G chronology
The Return of the Regulator
(2001) 		The Hard Way
(2004) 		In the Mid-Nite Hour
(2005)
Singles from The Hard Way
  1. "So Fly"
    Released: July 26, 2004
  2. "Groupie Luv"
    Released: August 4, 2004

The Hard Way is the only album from American hip hop trio 213, which consisted of Snoop Dogg, Warren G and Nate Dogg. It was released on August 17, 2004, under Doggystyle Records, G-Funk Entertainment, Dogg Foundation, TVT Records.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blender[2]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[3]
HipHopDX[4]
RapReviews5.5/10[5]
Rolling Stone[6]
Stylus6/10[7]
Vibe[8]

The Hard Way received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic especially praised Warren G for "rapping tougher and more gangsta than usual."[1] For HipHopDX, K.B. Tindal described the album as containing "[c]risp beats, sharp hooks, and straight lyrics."[4] Rating the album three out of four stars, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone called 213 an "excellent G-funk-era-revival supergroup."[6]

Grading the album with a C-plus, Michael Endelman of Entertainment Weekly compared the group to the 2003–04 Los Angeles Lakers, because the album "boasts marquee talent but doesn’t quite deliver the championship trophy."[3] Matt Barone of RapReviews scored the album 5.5 out of 10 points for "overly generic left coast production and uninspired verses."[5] Scott McKeating of Stylus rated the album six points out of 10, in part due to lackluster lyrics: "Snoop and Nate seem to have a problem going longer than a few bars without dropping some lines about 'dirty ass hoes.'"[7] Rondell Conway of Vibe rated the album with 2.5 out of five due to 213 offering what he called "obsolete subject matter" despite "nostalgically offer[ing] its signature G-funk sound."[8]

Commercial performance

The Hard Way debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200, selling 95,000 copies in its first week.[9] The album debuted at top on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[10]

"So Fly" was released on July 6, 2004 at first single from the album. The song reached at number 2 on US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles.

The official debut retail single was "Groupie Luv", which was also accompanied by a promo video. It was directed by Chris Robinson and was filmed in Snoop Dogg's own house (see also Still a G Thang). It is also the video debut for dancer Criscilla Crossland. "Groupie Luv" topped at number 26 on Billboard Hot 100 Airplay.

Track listing

The Hard Way track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"Fredwreck1:49
2."Twist Yo' Body"
Hi-Tek3:28
3."Absolutely"
Quaze4:00
4."Keep It Gangsta"
B Sharp4:36
5."Run On Up"
Tha Chill3:33
6."Groupie Luv"
DJ Pooh3:52
7."Lonely Girl"
Nottz4:04
8."Another Summer" (featuring LaToiya Williams)West4:12
9."213 tha Gangsta Clicc"
Leimberg3:52
10."Gotta Find a Way"
3:25
11."Ups & Downs" (featuring Boki)
  • Broadus
  • Hale
  • Griffin III
  • A Edwards
  • Gilliam
  • Johnson
  • B Sharp
  • Tha Chill
3:53
12."Joysticc"
  • Martin
  • Williams
4:48
13."Rick James" (Interlude)
  • Broadus
  • Hale
  • Griffin III
  • Nassar
Fredwreck0:36
14."Mary Jane"
Quaze3:48
15."MLK"
B Sharp3:44
16."Lil Girl"
  • Broadus
  • Hale
  • Griffin III
  • Michael Angelo Saulsberry
Michael Angelo3:19
17."My Dirty Ho"
  • Broadus
  • Hale
  • Griffin III
  • Christopher Whitacre
  • Justin Henderson
  • Vincent Bell
Tha Bizness4:12
18."Appreciation"
  • Broadus
  • Hale
  • Griffin III
  • Whitacre
  • Henderson
Tha Bizness4:06
19."So Fly"
Missy Elliott4:07
European edition bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
20."Whistle While You Hustle" (featuring Daz Dillinger and Soopafly)
Jelly Roll2:35

Notes

  • "Twist Yo' Body" features backing vocals performed by Dion.
  • "Rick James" (Interlude) features vocals performed by Dave Chappelle.

Sample credits

  • "Keep It Gangsta" contains an interpolation of "Black Cow" performed by Steely Dan.
  • "Groupie Luv" contains an interpolation of "Chameleon" performed by Herbie Hancock, Paul Jackson, Harvey Mason and Bennie Maupin.
  • "Another Summer" contains excerpts of "Intimate Friends" performed by Eddie Kendricks.
  • "Gotta Find a Way" contains excerpts of "Rejoice" performed by the Emotions.
  • "Joysticc" contains an interpolation of "Juicy Fruit" performed by James Mtume.
  • "Mary Jane" contains excerpts of "It's Time" performed by the Jungle Brothers.
  • "MLK" contains an interpolation of "Riding High" performed by Faze-O.
  • "My Dirty Ho" contains an interpolation of "The Rain" performed by Oran "Juice" Jones. It also samples Lacrimosa (Requiem) in Requiem (Mozart).
  • "So Fly" contains excerpts of the recording "So Gone" performed by Monica and excerpts of "You Are Number 1" performed by The Whispers.

Personnel

Artists

  • 213 – primary artist (all tracks)
  • Snoop Dogg – primary artist (all tracks)
  • Nate Dogg – primary artist (all tracks)
  • Warren G – primary artist (all tracks)
  • LaToiya Williams – featured artist (track 8)
  • Boki – featured artist (track 11)
  • Dion – background artist (track 2)
  • Dave Chappelle – skit (track 13)

Technical personnel

  • Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering
  • Nate Oberman – engineer (tracks 3, 5, 7, 10, 11, 14–17, 19)
  • Shon Don – engineer (tracks 2, 4, 6–9, 16–18, 20), mixing (track 8, 12, 14, 20)
  • Geoff Gibb – engineer (track 12)
  • Dave Aron – mixing (tracks 3–5, 7, 9–11, 15–18)
  • Steve Baughman – mixing (track 2)
  • DJ Pooh – mixing (track 6)
  • Nomad – mixing (track 19)

Record producers

  • Fredwreck – production (tracks 1, 13)
  • Hi-Tek – production (track 2)
  • Quazedelic – production (tracks 3, 14)
  • B Sharp – production (tracks 4, 11, 15)
  • Tha Chill – production (track 5, 11)
  • DJ Pooh – production (track 6)
  • Nottz – production (track 7)
  • Kanye West – production (track 8)
  • Josef Leimberg – production (track 9)
  • Lil ½ Dead – production (track 10)
  • Niggarochi – production (track 10)
  • Terrace Martin – production (track 12)
  • Marlon Williams – production (track 12)
  • Michael Angelo – production (track 16)
  • J-Hen – production (tracks 17, 18)
  • Missy Elliott – production (track 19)
  • Jelly Roll – production (track 20)
  • Soopafly – additional strings (track 7)

Additional personnel

  • Benjamin Wheelock – design
  • Anthony Mandler – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for The Hard Way
Chart (2004) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] 50
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 57
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[13] 3
Canadian R&B Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)[14] 9
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] 57
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[16] 34
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[17] 21
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] 33
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[19] 35
US Billboard 200[20] 4
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[21] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[22] 1


Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for The Hard Way
Chart (2004) Position
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[23] 85

Certifications

Certifications for The Hard Way
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[24] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Birchmeier, Jason (August 10, 2004). "213: The Hard Way". All Music Guide. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  2. ^ Beato, G. (August 17, 2004). "Snoop Dogg and his childhood pals strut through a reunion set". Blender. Archived from the original on March 24, 2005. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Endelman, Michael (September 10, 2004). "The Hard Way (2004)". Entertainment Weekly. No. 782–783. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  4. ^ a b Tindal, K.B. (August 31, 2004). "213 - The Hard Way". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Barone, Matt (August 17, 2004). "213's The Hard Way". RapReviews.com. Archived from the original on August 25, 2004.
  6. ^ a b "213: The Hard Way". Rolling Stone. September 2, 2004. Archived from the original on September 30, 2004. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  7. ^ a b McKeating, Scott (September 15, 2004). "213: The Hard Way". Stylus. Archived from the original on November 8, 2004. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Conway, Rondell (September 2004), "213 – The Hard Way (TVT)", Vibe, vol. 12, no. 9, p. 236, archived from the original on March 9, 2005, retrieved August 10, 2018
  9. ^ Whitmire, Margo (2004-08-25). "'NOW 16' Is No. 1 Again". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-02-15.
  10. ^ "Now Takes Down Ashlee; 213 Stomps in at #4 on Albums Chart". MTV. Archived from the original on September 12, 2014.
  11. ^ "Australiancharts.com – 213 – The Hard Way". Hung Medien.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – 213 – The Hard Way" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  13. ^ "213 Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  14. ^ "R&B : Top 50". Jam!. October 7, 2004. Archived from the original on October 10, 2004. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  15. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – 213 – The Hard Way" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  16. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – 213 – The Hard Way" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 10, 2019.
  17. ^ "Charts.nz – 213 – The Hard Way". Hung Medien.
  18. ^ "Swisscharts.com – 213 – The Hard Way". Hung Medien.
  19. ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  20. ^ "213 Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  21. ^ "213 Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  22. ^ "213 Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard.
  23. ^ "Best of 2004 – R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  24. ^ "Canadian album certifications – 213 – Hard Way". Music Canada.
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