Everything about The Predator totally explained
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The Predator is a 1992 and third solo album by
Ice Cube. Released within months after the
1992 Los Angeles riots, many of the songs comment on the racial tensions during that period. The title is a partial reference to the movie
Predator 2, and the album itself includes samples from the film. It's the most successful of all of Ice Cube's albums, selling 3 million copies and going triple
platinum. The success of
The Predator is due in part to the major success of the single "
It Was A Good Day".
Overview
In the opening song, "When Will They Shoot", Ice Cube addresses criticisms of
antisemitism he received for his last effort,
Death Certificate:
» White man is something I tried to study
But I got my hands bloody, yeah.
» They say I can sing like a jaybird
But nigga, don’t say the
j-word
Elsewhere "We Had to Tear This Mothafucka Up" is directed at the
LA Police officers acquitted in the
Rodney King trial; an event which ignited the
1992 LA Riots. The similarly-themed "Who Got the Camera?" imagines a scenario where a black man is subjected to
police brutality. The songs are broken up by interludes involving interviews with Ice Cube, and what appears to be a debate between members of a congregation.
Although it's sometimes mistakenly classified as a
G-Funk album, the album derives its sound from the
Public Enemy/
Bomb Squad production template, in contrast to
Dr. Dre's definitive G-Funk album
The Chronic which is largely based upon
Parliament/
Funkadelic-derived rhythms, slow-rolling basslines, and layers of whiny
synthesizers, mixed with snips of live guitar and flutes.
Reception
Although not as lauded as his previous efforts,
The Predator was a well-received album.
Entertainment Weekly called it "...Ice Cube's strongest, most cohesive work yet..." (11/20/92, p.88).
Q Magazine included it in their "90 Best Albums Of The 1990s" (12/99, p.74).
Spin Magazine called it a record that "demands to be heard" (1/93, p.61).
It spawned three hit singles: the famous "It Was A Good Day", which was a big hit in March 1993, "Check Yo Self" and "Wicked". Both the album and single version of "Check Yo Self" include an appearance from
Das EFX, with the latter utilising a sample of
Grandmaster Flash's "
The Message". "Check Yo Self" received continious radio and
MTV play. The song certainly got a boost from the
old school resurgence that was happening at the time and it also further popularized the trend.
Track listing
Original release
"The First Day of School (Intro)" – 1:20
"When Will They Shoot?" – 4:36
"I'm Scared (Insert)" – 1:32
"Wicked" – 3:55
"Now I Gotta Wet 'Cha" – 4:03
"The Predator" – 4:03
"It Was a Good Day" – 4:20
"We Had to Tear This Mothafucka Up" – 4:23
"Fuck 'Em [Insert]" – 2:02
"Dirty Mack" – 4:34
"Don't Trust 'Em" – 4:06
"Gangsta's Fairytale, Pt. 2" – 3:19
"Check Yo Self" (feat. Das EFX) – 3:42
"Who Got the Camera?" – 4:37
"Integration (Insert)" – 2:31
"Say Hi to the Bad Guy" – 3:19
2003 Re-release with bonus tracks(*)
"The First Day of School (Intro)" – 1:20
"When Will They Shoot?" – 4:36
"I'm Scared (Insert)" – 1:32
"Wicked" – 3:55
"Now I Gotta Wet 'Cha" – 4:03
"The Predator" – 4:03
"It Was A Good Day" – 4:20
"We Had to Tear This Mothafucka Up" – 4:23
"Fuck 'Em [Insert]" – 2:02
"Dirty Mack" – 4:34
"Don't Trust 'Em" – 4:06
"Gangsta's Fairytale, Pt. 2" – 3:19
"Check Yo Self" (feat. Das EFX) – 3:42
"Who Got the Camera?" – 4:37
"Integration (Insert)" – 2:31
"Say Hi to the Bad Guy" – 3:22
"Check Yo Self (The Message Remix)" - 3.54*
"It Was A Good Day (Remix)" - 4.28*
"24 Wit An L" - 3.25*
"U Aint Gonna Take My Life" - 4.09*
Partial list of samples
The following lists some of the songs and sounds sampled on The Predator.
The First Day of School (Intro)
Contains a sample from the motion picture "American Me"
When Will They Shoot?
"Oh Honey" by Delegation
"No Vaseline" by Ice Cube
"We Will Rock You" by Queen
"Treat Her Like a Prostitute" by Slick Rick
"Take Me to the Mardis Gras" by Bob James
"Grand Verbalizer, What Time is It" by X-Clan
"Giggin' Down 103rd" by Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band
Wicked
"Looseys" by Das EFX
"Funky Worm" by The Ohio Players
"You Can Make It If You Try" by Sly & The Family Stone
"Can't Truss It", & "Welcome to the Terrordome" by Public Enemy
Now I Gotta Wet'Cha
"Get Out of My Life, Woman" by Solomon Burke
"Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop)" by Parliament
Song playing during the intro is "Guerillas in tha Mist" by Da Lench Mob
The Predator
"East Coast" by Das EFX
"Superman Lover" by Johnny "Guitar" Watson
Dialogue from Predator 2
It Was a Good Day
"Let's Do It Again" by Staple Singers
"Come On Sexy Mama" by The Moments
"Footsteps In the Dark" by The Isley Brothers
"Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk (Pay Attention- B3M)" by Parliament
We Had to Tear This Mothafucka Up
"The Funeral" by Ice Cube
"Get Down" by Gene Russel
"Subway Inn" by Duke Jordan
"Blind Alley" by The Emotions
Dirty Mack
"Aqua Boogie", "P-Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up)", & "Unfunky UFO" by Parliament
Don't Trust 'Em"
Scarface
"Poison" by Bel Biv Devoe
"A Bitch Iz A Bitch" by N.W.A
"Green Earrings" by Steely Dan
"Don't Believe the Hype" by Public Enemy
Gangsta's Fairytale Pt. 2
"Distant" by A Taste of Honey
"Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk" by Parliament
"Impeach the President" by The Honey Drippers
"Sing A Simple Song" by Sly & The Family Stone
Check Yo Self
"Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett
"The New Style" by The Beastie Boys
"Memphis Underground" by Herbie Mann
The Message by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
Who Got the Camera?
"All We Need is Another Chance" by The Escorts
"Just a Friendly Game of Baseball" by Main Source
"I Gotta Thang, You Gotta Thang, Everybody Gotta Thang" by Funkadelic
Say Hi to the Bad Guy
"P-Funk" by Parliament
"I Ain't Got Nobody" by Sly Stone
U Aint Gonna Take My Life
"Sir Psycho Sexy" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Album singles
"Wicked"
Released: December 9, 1992
B-side: "U Ain't Gonna Take My Life"
"It Was A Good Day"
Released: February 23, 1993
B-side:
"Check Yo Self" ["The Message" Remix Version]
Released: 1993
B-side: "It Was A Good Day (Remix)", "24 With A L"
Trivia
The singles "It Was A Good Day" and "Check Yo Self" (Remix-Radio Edit) were used in the videogame .
Nu-metal band Korn covered the song "Wicked" on their album Life Is Peachy.
In late 1993, Ice Cube made a cameo appearance in Dr. Dre's "Let Me Ride" video. Walking out of a bathroom with a group of girls in L.A., he turns to the camera and says "Damn right it was a good day" referring to the single.
At the beginning of "Who Got The Camera?", a quote from the 1988 classic film, Die Hard can be heard, "See if there's a black and white that can do a drive by."
Chart positions
Album
| Year |
Album |
Chart positions |
| Billboard 200 |
Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums |
| 1992 |
The Predator |
#1 |
#1 |
Singles
Further Information
Get more info on 'The Predator'.
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