Ear to the Street is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo the Conscious Daughters.[1] It was released in 1993 via Scarface Records and Priority Records.[2] The album peaked at No. 126 on the Billboard 200, at No. 25 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and at No. 7 on the Heatseekers Albums. It spawned two singles, "Somethin' to Ride To (Fonky Expedition)" and "We Roll Deep", both of which made it to the Billboard charts.
| Ear to the Street | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 30, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | 1992–1993 | |||
| Genre | Gangsta rap, West Coast hip hop | |||
| Label |
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| Producer | Paris | |||
| The Conscious Daughters chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Ear to the Street | ||||
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Production
editThe album was produced by Paris, who also wrote the tracks and contributed instrumentation. It was engineered by Eric Valentine.[3] The album came out two years after the duo had given Paris their demo tape.[4]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [4] |
Trouser Press deemed the album a "busy-beat debut," calling the group "a young Oakland tag team possessing average skills, big attitudes and no pretense of political awareness."[6] The East Bay Express wrote that the album's two singles "are recognized as classics in the hip-hop canon."[7] Complex listed "Fonky Expedition" at No. 46 on its list of "The 50 Greatest Bay Area Rap Songs."[8]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Princess of Poetry" | |
| 2. | "Shitty Situation" | |
| 3. | "TCD in da Front" | |
| 4. | "Somethin' to Ride To (Fonky Expedition)" | |
| 5. | "We Roll Deep" | |
| 6. | "Showdown (feat. Paris)" | |
| 7. | "Wife of a Gangsta" | |
| 8. | "Dex Dog" | |
| 9. | "Crazybitchmadness" | |
| 10. | "Da Mac Flow" | |
| 11. | "What's a Girl to Do?" |
Personnel
edit- Carla "CMG" Green – vocals
- Karryl "Special One" Smith – vocals
- DJ Yon – scratches
- Oscar Jerome Jackson, Jr. – producer
- Eric Dodd – engineering
- Todd D. Smith – design
- Victor Hall – photography
Charts
edit| Chart (1994) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[9] | 126 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[10] | 25 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[11] | 7 |
References
edit- ^ "R.I.P. Rapper Special One, of Oakland Duo Conscious Daughters". SF Weekly. December 12, 2011.
- ^ Hunt, Dennis (May 28, 1994). "Making It in the Macho Rap World". Los Angeles Times. p. F1.
- ^ "The Conscious Daughters Biography & History". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 521.
- ^ Henderson, Alex. "Ear to the Street The Conscious Daughters". AllMusic. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
- ^ "Paris". Trouser Press. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ Swan, Rachel. "Rest in Peace, Special One". East Bay Express.
- ^ "The 50 Greatest Bay Area Rap Songs". Complex.
- ^ "The Conscious Daughters Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
- ^ "The Conscious Daughters Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "The Conscious Daughters Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard.
External links
edit- Ear To The Street at Discogs (list of releases)