R U Still Down? (Remember Me)

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R U Still Down? (Remember Me)
File:R u still downcov.jpg
Studio album by 2Pac
Released November 25, 1997
Recorded 1992–1994
(2Pac's vocals)
1992
("I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto" Original Version and Instrumental)
1996–1997
(Production, guest vocals, and mixing)
Genre West Coast hip hop, Gangsta rap, g-funk, R&B
Length 102:40
Label Amaru Entertainment, Jive Records, Interscope Records
Producer Afeni Shakur (exec.), Lisa Smith-Putnam (exec.), Tony Pizarro, Akshun, Choo, Def Jef, DJ Daryl, Warren G, Khalid A. Hafiz, Johnny "J", Laylaw, Live Squad, Levant Marcus, Michael Mosley, QDIII, Quimmy Quim, Chris Rosser, Conrad Rosser, Ricky Rouse, Soulshock & Karlin, 2Pac
2Pac chronology
The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory
(1996)The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory1996		 R U Still Down? (Remember Me)
(1997)		 Greatest Hits
(1998)Greatest Hits1998
Singles from R U Still Down? (Remember Me)
  1. "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto"
    Released: August 26, 1997
  2. "Do for Love"
    Released: February 24, 1998
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 2.5/5 stars[1]
The Daily Vault B[2]
Entertainment Weekly B[3]
Spin 8/10[4]
Rolling Stone 2/5 stars[5]

R U Still Down? (Remember Me) is the sixth album by 2Pac, released in 1997, and the first to be finished without his creative input. Her son having left a large body of work behind, this was the first release from his mother's imprint Amaru Entertainment, set up to control 2Pac's posthumous releases.

Background

Shortly after 2Pac died, there were rumors that hundreds of unreleased songs remained in the vaults; a mere two months after his death, the first posthumous record, The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, appeared. Death Row released the record, and shortly afterward, 2Pac's mother, Afeni Shakur, gained the rights to all of his unreleased recordings from both the Interscope and Death Row labels. She founded the Amaru label and released the double-disc R U Still Down? (Remember Me) in late 1997.

Album information

This album contains previously unreleased material from the time period of his albums Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., Thug Life: Volume 1 and Me Against the World.

The first release on Amaru Records, R U Still Down? (Remember Me) was overseen by 2Pac's mother, Afeni Shakur. This album airs his views on life from a time before he became involved in the controversial east coast/west coast rivalry. His lyrics foreshadow his death in songs like "Open Fire" and "Thug Style."

Tupac mentions his life in the streets of Oakland, California in songs such as "Nothin' But Love" and how he started his career "Thug Life" mentality in those streets. As more of the original songs are leaked, it has become evident that many of the album's tracks were true to the originals, simply mastering and perfecting the original instrumentals and vocals. Songs like: "Hold On Be Strong", "Nothin' But Love", "Nothing To Lose", "Only Fear Of Death", "When I Get Free II", "Open Fire" are true to the originals. Those with fundamentally similar compositions include "Lie 2 Kick It", "I'm Gettin' Money" and "Thug Style". Tracks with completely new instrumentation include "Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto", "Hellrazor" and "Enemies With Me".

"Definition of a Thug Nigga" also appears on the soundtrack of the 1993 film, Poetic Justice.

Artwork

The artwork includes a note from 2Pac: "Keep the faith in me. I will not let u down! love 2Pac". The album cover was previously used on Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.

Reception

"As always, there's ample self-destructive bullshit," noted Spin, "but as a whole the album's eerie and undeniable."[6] Rap idol 2Pac might find yet another life after death with his second posthumous release, an improvement on his first. That’s not to say this collection of unreleased material from 1991 to 1994 shows him at his best: Many of the 26 tracks are barely demo-worthy gangsta pap, and none rival "Dear Mama" for tragic grandeur. Still, 2Pac’s raw talent burns through when his voice goes hoarse with rage on "Hellrazor." And on "I’m Losin’ It," his blend of charismatic confidence and Travis Bickle paranoia is a bittersweet reminder of a gifted yet contradictory artist lost in the rap wars.[3]

Commercial Success

It spawned two hits, "Do for Love" and "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto", of which "Do for Love" was certified Gold by the RIAA. R U Still Down? sold 549,000 copies in its first week.[7] The album reached multi-platinum status (4 million sold) under a month on December 15, 1997, a trend followed by some of his subsequent posthumous albums.[7] It topped the R&B charts in the United States for 3 weeks.[8]

Track listing

Disc One

# Title Featured Guest(s) Producer Time
1 "Redemption" We Got Kidz & Ricky Rouse 1:48
2 "Open Fire" Akshun Akshun 2:52
3 "R U Still Down? (Remember Me)" Tony Pizarro 4:07
4 "Hellrazor" Stretch & Val Young QDIII 4:15
5 "Thug Style" We Got Kidz 4:16
6 "Where Do We Go From Here (Interlude)" Tony Pizarro & 2Pac 4:31
7 "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto" Soulshock & Karlin 4:21
8 "Nothing to Lose" Y?N-Vee 2Pac & Live Squad 3:39
9 "I'm Gettin' Money" Mike Mosley 3:32
10 "Lie to Kick It" Richie Rich Warren G 3:39
11 "Fuck All Y'all" We Got Kidz 4:32
12 "Let Them Thangs Go" We Got Kidz 3:33
13 "Definition of a Thug Nigga" Warren G 4:09

Disc Two

# Title Featured Guest(s) Producer Time
1 "Ready 4 Whatever" Big Syke Johnny "J" 4:05
2 "When I Get Free" We Got Kidz 4:46
3 "Hold On, Be Strong" Stretch Choo 4:11
4 "I'm Losin' It" Big Syke & Spice 1 Tony Pizarro 3:55
5 "Fake Ass Bitches" Johnny "J" 3:10
6 "Do for Love" Eric Williams of Blackstreet J Dilla 4:42
7 "Enemies with Me" Dramacydal We Got Kidz 4:15
8 "Nothin but Love" Dave Hollister 2Pac & DJ Daryl 4:28
9 "16 on Death Row" 2Pac 5:42
10 "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto (Hip-Hop Version)" Maxee Soulshock & Karlin 4:40
11 "When I Get Free II" Yaki Kadafi Chris Rosser 3:22
12 "Black Starry Night (Interlude)" DJ Daryl 0:48
13 "Only Fear of Death" Live Squad 5:09

Samples

Definition of a Thug Nigga

Ready 4 Whatever

R U Still Down (Remember Me)

Hellrazor

Do for Love

F*** All Y'all

I Wonder if Heaven Got a Ghetto

Let Them Thangs Go

Nothin' but Love

  • "Something About That Woman" by Lakeside

Nothing to Lose

When I Get Free II

  • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss
  • "Concerto for Jazz/Rock Orchestra, Part I" by Stanley Clarke

Where Do We Go From Here

Black Starry Night (Interlude)

I Wonder if Heaven Got a Ghetto (Original Version)

Lie to Kick It

Only Fear of Death

Chart positions & Certifications

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
United States (RIAA)[9] 4x Platinum 4,000,000[10]
United Kingdom (BPI)[11] Gold 100,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone
Chart Peak position
Australian Charts[12] 50
Austrian Charts[13] 23
Canadian Charts[14] 12
German Charts[15] 25
Dutch Charts[16] 29
French Charts[17] 52
New Zealand Charts[18] 20
Swedish Chart[19] 41
UK Albums Chart[20][21] 44
US Billboard 200[14] 2
US Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums[14] 1

Album singles

Single information
"I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto"
  • Released: 1997
  • B-side: N/A
"Do For Love"
  • Released: 1997
  • B-side: N/A

Samples later used

  • "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto"

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/r329284
  2. ↑ http://dailyvault.com/toc.php5?review=697
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,63484,00.html
  4. ↑ Spin (3/98, pp. 130-131) - 8 (out of 10) - "... As always, there's ample self-destructive bullshit, but as a whole, the album's eerie and undeniable.... Even after death, 2Pac isn't going gentle into that good night; if this album is any gauge, he's not letting us go either, at least not anytime soon."
  5. ↑ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/r-u-still-down-remember-me-19980122
  6. ↑ Spin May 1998
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%222+Pac%22
  8. ↑ List of number-one R&B albums of 1998 (U.S.)
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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