Wikipedia

All Hail the Queen

All Hail the Queen is the debut studio album by American rapper Queen Latifah. The album was released on November 7, 1989, through Tommy Boy Records. The feminist anthem[1] "Ladies First", featuring Monie Love, remains one of Latifah's signature songs.

All Hail the Queen
Studio album by
Queen Latifah
ReleasedNovember 7, 1989
GenreHip hop
Length49:14
LabelTommy Boy
ProducerDJ Mark the 45 King, Louis 'Louie Louie' Vega, KRS-One, Daddy-O, Prince Paul
Queen Latifah chronology
All Hail the Queen
(1989) 		Nature of a Sista
(1991)
Singles from All Hail the Queen
  1. "Wrath of My Madness"
    Released: 1988
  2. "Dance for Me"
    Released: 1989
  3. "Ladies First"
    Released: 1989
  4. "Come Into My House"
    Released: 1990
  5. "Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children"
    Released: 1990

All Hail the Queen peaked at no. 6 on the Billboard Top Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart and at no. 124 on the Billboard 200 chart. "Wrath of My Madness" was the first single from All Hail the Queen, and was later sampled in Yo-Yo's "You Can't Play With My Yo-Yo". "Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children" peaked at no. 14 in the UK.

In 2023, the album was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[2]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [3]
Chicago Tribune    [4]
Los Angeles Times     [5]
NME7/10[6]
Q     [7]
Record Mirror4/5[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide     [9]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[10]
Tampa Bay Times     [11]
The Village VoiceA−[12]

The New York Times noted that "the backup tracks are sometimes rich enough to carry the album on their own, but they don't have to; some songs have vocal choruses, while in others Queen Latifah's rising and falling speech provides melody enough."[13] Newsday called the album "international ghetto music filtered through hip-hop's strongest feminist sensibility."[14]

In 1998, All Hail the Queen was included in The Source's "100 Best Albums" list.[15] It was later featured in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[16] In 2008, the single "Ladies First" was ranked number 35 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.[citation needed]

Legacy

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In 2023, All Hail the Queen was inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry, based on its "cultural, historical or aesthetic importance in the nation’s recorded sound heritage."[17] In their statement explaining their inclusion of the album, the Library of Congress said, "[Queen Latifah's] album showed rap could cross genres including reggae, hip-hop, house, and jazz – while also opening opportunities for other female rappers."[18]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Dance for Me"James, Owens, Stewart3:41
2."Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children" (with De La Soul)Owens4:25
3."Come into My House" (with Quasar)Owens4:14
4."Latifah's Law"Owens, Vega3:51
5."Wrath of My Madness"James, Owens4:12
6."The Pros" (with Daddy-O)Owens, Bolton5:43
7."Ladies First" (with Monie Love)Owens3:45
8."A King and Queen Creation" (with 45 King)Owens3:34
9."Queen of Royal Badness"James, Welch3:24
10."Evil That Men Do" (with KRS-One)Owens, Parker4:03
11."Princess of the Posse"James, Owens3:51
12."Inside Out"James, Owens4:11
CD bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Dance for Me" (Ultimatum Remix)James, Owens5:04
14."Wrath of My Madness" (Soulshock Remix)James, Owens5:30
15."Princess of the Posse" (DJ Mark the 45 King Remix)James, Owens4:07

Personnel

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  • Daddy O – Producer, Performer, Mixing
  • De La Soul – Performer
  • Dr. Jam – Remixing
  • KRS-One – Producer, Mixing
  • Queen Latifah – Producer, Mixing
  • Monie Love – Performer
  • DJ Mark the 45 King – Producer, Performer, Mixing
  • Paul C. – Engineer, Mixing
  • Prince Paul – Producer, Mixing
  • Soulshock – Remixing
  • Dwayne Sumal – Engineer
  • Rob Sutton – Mixing
  • Ted Jensen – Mastering
  • Mike Teelucksingh – Engineer
  • Little Louie Vega – Producer, Mixing
  • Dr. Shane Faber – Guitar (Bass), Engineer
  • Dan Miller – Engineer, Mixing
  • Bob Coulter – Engineer, Mixing
  • Al Watts – Engineer, Mixing
  • Steven Miglio – Artwork, Design, Layout Design
  • Dante Ross – Production Coordination, Production Consultant
  • Ultimatum – Remixing
  • Dilly d'Mus – Assistant Engineer
  • Louis Vego – Producer, Mixing
  • Howard Zucker – Typography
  • Jane Wexler – Photography
  • Bart Everly – Photography
  • Christopher Shaw – Engineer
  • Gawthaman Gobinath – Make-up Artist

Charts

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Charting singles

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"All Hail The Queen Charting Singles"
Year Single U.S. Rap[22] U.S. R&B U.S. Dance U.S Dance Maxi Singles
1989 "Dance For Me" 14 — — —
1989 "Ladies First" (12/5/1989) 5 64 38 —
1990 "Come Into My House" 21 81 7 10
"Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children" — — 28 —

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Roberts, Robin (Summer 1994). "'Ladies First': Queen Latifah's Afrocentric Feminist Music Video". African American Review. 28 (2) (Black Women's Culture ed.): 245–257. doi:10.2307/3041997. JSTOR 3041997.
  2. ^ "Recording Registry: 2023". National Recording Preservation Board. Library of Congress. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  3. ^ Henderson, Alex. "All Hail the Queen – Queen Latifah". AllMusic. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  4. ^ Tanzilo, Robert (January 18, 1990). "Queen Latifah: All Hail the Queen (Tommy Boy)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  5. ^ Marlowe, Duff (January 28, 1990). "Queen Latifah 'All Hail the Queen' Tommy Boy". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  6. ^ Fadele, Dele (November 11, 1989). "Queen Latifah: All Hail the Queen". NME. p. 42.
  7. ^ Williams, Henry (January 1990). "Queen Latifah: All Hail the Queen". Q. No. 40.
  8. ^ Fitzgerald, Muff (November 4, 1989). "Queen Latifah: Hail the Queen". Record Mirror. p. 18.
  9. ^ Coleman, Mark; Matos, Michaelangelo (2004). "Queen Latifah". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 669. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  10. ^ McDonnell, Evelyn (1995). "Queen Latifah". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 318–319. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  11. ^ Carey, Jean (February 23, 1990). "Women Give a New Dimension to Rap". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  12. ^ Christgau, Robert (November 21, 1989). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  13. ^ Pareles, Jon (Nov 5, 1989). "Female Rappers Strut Their Stuff in a Male Domain". The New York Times. p. A29.
  14. ^ Leland, John (Dec 24, 1989). "Anything Goes—So Long as It's Funky". Part II. Newsday. p. 23.
  15. ^ "100 Best Albums". The Source. No. 100. January 1998.
  16. ^ Harrington, Jim (2006). "Queen Latifah: All Hail the Queen". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Universe Publishing. p. 612. ISBN 978-0-7893-1371-3.
  17. ^ "Recording Registry: 2023". National Recording Preservation Board. Library of Congress. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  18. ^ Ulaby, Neda (2023-04-12). "Queen Latifah and Super Mario Bros. make history in National Recording Registry debut". NPR. Archived from the original on 2023-04-12. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  19. ^ "Queen Latifah Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  20. ^ "Queen Latifah Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1990". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  22. ^ "Queen Latifah". Billboard. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
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