Hold It Down (Das EFX album)

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Hold It Down
Studio album by
Das EFX
ReleasedSeptember 26, 1995 (1995-09-26)
Studio
Genre
Length1:13:39
LabelEastWest
Producer
Das EFX chronology
Straight Up Sewaside
(1993) 		Hold It Down
(1995) 		Generation EFX
(1998)
Singles from Hold It Down
  1. "Real Hip-Hop"
    Released: September 12, 1995
  2. "Microphone Master"
    Released: January 30, 1996
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Muzik[2]
Rap Pages7/10[3]
RapReviews7/10[4]
The Austin Chronicle2/5[5]
The Source[6]
Trouser Press(Negative)[7]

Hold It Down is the third studio album by American Brooklyn-based hip hop duo Das EFX. It was released on September 26, 1995 via East West Records. Recording sessions took place at Ian London Studios in East Islip, at Northshore Soundworks, D&D Studios, The Music Palace and Chung King Studios in New York, and at The Sewa. Production was handled by Easy Mo Bee, Solid Scheme, DJ Premier, DJ Scratch, DJ Clark Kent, Kevin Geeda, Peter Lewis, Showbiz, Soul G., Pete Rock and Das EFX themselves, with PMD serving as an executive producer. It features guest appearances from KRS-One and PMD.

The album peaked at number 22 on the Billboard 200 and number 4 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums in the United States. Its singles "Real Hip-Hop" and "Microphone Master" made it to the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 61 and No. 86, respectively. The song "Represent the Real" first appeared under the title "Represent the Real Hip Hop" as the B-side to KRS-One's "MC's Act Like They Don't Know" single, which was released during the summer of 1995, taken off of his eponymous album KRS-One.[8]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro (Once Again)"
  • Andre Weston
  • William Hines
Peter Lewis1:08
2."No Diggedy"
DJ Premier4:03
3."Knockin' Niggaz Off"
Easy Mo Bee3:24
4."Here We Go"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Chris Charity
  • Derek Lynch
Solid Scheme4:05
5."Real Hip-Hop" (Original Version)
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Martin
DJ Premier4:09
6."Here It Is"
Kevin Geeda4:59
7."Microphone Master"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Harvey Jr.
Easy Mo Bee4:30
8."40 & a Blunt"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Harvey Jr.
Easy Mo Bee3:17
9."Buck-Buck"
  • Weston
  • Hines
Das EFX3:12
10."Intro"  0:09
11."Can't Have Nuttin'"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Gerald Stevens
Soul G.5:34
12."Alright"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Harvey Jr.
Easy Mo Bee4:23
13."Hold It Down"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Harvey Jr.
Easy Mo Bee4:47
14."Dedicated"
DJ Clark Kent3:46
15."Ready to Rock Rough Rhymes"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Charity
  • Lynch
Solid Scheme4:34
16."Represent the Real" (featuring KRS-One)
Showbiz3:19
17."Comin' Thru"
DJ Scratch3:32
18."Hardcore Rap Act"
  • Weston
  • Hines
  • Charity
  • Lynch
Solid Scheme4:30
19."Bad News" (featuring PMD)
DJ Scratch2:20
20."Real Hip-Hop" (Pete Rock Remix)
  • Weston
  • Hines
Pete Rock3:58
Total length:1:13:39
Sample credits[9]
  • Track 6 contains elements from "Blue Prelude" written by Joe Bishop and Gordon Jenkins and performed by Nina Simone.
  • Track 12 contains elements from "Different Strokes" written by John Andrew Cameron and John Zachary and performed by Syl Johnson.
  • Track 13 contains elements from "Slum Creeper" by Quincy Jones.
  • Track 14 contains elements from "Lock It in the Pocket" written by Richard Steacker and performed by Grover Washington Jr.

Personnel[edit]

  • Andre "Krazy Drayz" Weston – vocals, producer (track 9)
  • Willie "Skoob" Hines – vocals, producer (track 9)
  • Lawrence "KRS-One" Parker – vocals (track 16)
  • Parrish "PMD" Smith – vocals (track 19), executive producer
  • Rodney "DJ Dice" Battle – scratches
  • Peter Lewis – producer (track 1)
  • Chris "DJ Premier" Martin – producer (tracks: 2, 5)
  • Osten "Easy Mo Bee" Harvey, Jr. – producer (tracks: 3, 7, 8, 12, 13)
  • Chris Charity – producer (tracks: 4, 15, 18)
  • Derek Lynch – producer (tracks: 4, 15, 18)
  • Kevin Geeda – producer (track 6)
  • Gerald "Soul G." Stevens – producer (track 11)
  • Rodolfo "DJ Clark Kent" Franklin – producer (track 14)
  • Rodney "Showbiz" LeMay – producer (track 16)
  • George "DJ Scratch" Spivey – producer (tracks: 17, 19)
  • Peter "Pete Rock" Phillips – producer & mixing (track 20)
  • Charlie Marotta – engineering (track 1), mixing (tracks: 1, 18)
  • Eddie Sancho – engineering (tracks: 2, 5)
  • Norty Cotto – engineering (tracks: 2, 5)
  • Luis Tineo – engineering assistant (tracks: 2, 5)
  • Ken Wallace – engineering (tracks: 3, 6-8, 11-15)
  • Ivan 'Doc' Rodriguez – mixing (tracks: 3, 4, 6-8, 12, 13, 17)
  • Mike Tuosto – mixing (track 3)
  • Rick St. Hilaire – engineering (tracks: 9, 19), mixing (tracks: 9, 11, 15, 19)
  • Kenny Ortiz – mixing (track 14)
  • Gordon "Commissioner Gordon" Williams – engineering (track 16)
  • Jamie Staub – engineering (track 20)
  • Alli Truch – art direction
  • Romon Kimin "Ro-Starr" Yang – design
  • Butch Belair – photography

Charts[edit]

Chart (1995) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[10] 22
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[11] 4

References[edit]

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Hold It Down - Das EFX | Album | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  2. ^ Ashon, Will (November 1995). "Das EFX: Hold It Down" (PDF). Muzik. No. 6. p. 90. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Red (October 1995). "Flippin Da Traxx: Das EFX – Hold It Down". Rap Pages. Vol. 4, no. 9. Los Angeles. p. 32.
  4. ^ Juon, Steve 'Flash' (December 5, 2017). "Das EFX :: Hold It Down :: East/West Records". www.rapreviews.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2017. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  5. ^ Gabriel, Rashied (November 3, 1995). "Music Reviews". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  6. ^ Hinds, Selwyn Seyfu (November 1995). "Record Report". The Source. No. 74. New York. pp. 91, 94. Retrieved January 5, 2015 – via archive.today.
  7. ^ Robbins, Ira. "Das Efx". Trouser Press. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  8. ^ Ducker, Jesse (September 25, 2020). "Revisiting Das EFX's 'Hold It Down' (1995) | Retrospective Tribute". Albumism. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  9. ^ Das EFX – Hold It Down (CD). EastWest Records America. 1995. 61829-2.
  10. ^ "The Billboard 200". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 41. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. October 14, 1995. p. 88. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  11. ^ "Top R&B Albums". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 41. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. October 14, 1995. p. 26. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 20, 2024.

External links[edit]

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