Nine Livez is the debut studio album by American rapper Nine. It was released on March 7, 1995, through Profile Records. The recording sessions took place at D&D Studios, Rob's Crib and Platinum Island Studios in New York in 1994. The album was produced by Rob Lewis and Tony Stoute, with Chris Landry serving as executive producer. It features a lone guest appearances from A.R.L. Da X'Rsis. The album debuted at number 90 on the Billboard 200 and number 16 on the Top R&B Albums chart in the United States.

Nine Livez
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 7, 1995 (1995-03-07)
Recorded1994
Studio
GenreHip hop
Length1:00:11
LabelProfile
Producer
Nine chronology
Nine Livez
(1995)
Cloud 9
(1996)
Singles from Nine Livez
  1. "Whutcha Want?"
    Released: December 6, 1994
  2. "Any Emcee"
    Released: March 28, 1995
  3. "Ova Confident"
    Released: 1995

Its lead single, "Whutcha Want?", became the rapper's most successful song, reaching No. 50 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 32 on the Hot R&B Singles chart. March 28, 1995 saw the release of the album's second single, "Any Emcee", which peaked at No. 15 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 and No. 82 on the R&B Singles charts. "Ova Confident", the third and final single off of the album did not made it to the Billboard charts. All three singles had promotional music videos shot and released.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [1]
RapReviews8/10[2]
The Source     [3]

Nine Livez was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. Nicholas Polunoff of The Source gave the album 4 out of 5 mics, resuming: "...overall, Nine Livez is a strong debut by an MC with an original style whose beats are 90% on point".[3] Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews gave the album 8 out of a possible 10, stating: "one of the best albums of 1995, if not the entire decade".[2] AllMusic's M.F. DiBella gave the album a solid 3 out of a possible 5 stars calling the album "far from a classic, Nine Livez is an under-appreciated album from an underrated artist".[1]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro (Death of a Demo)" / "Ova Confident"
Tony Stoute5:12
2."Redrum"
  • Keyes
  • Stoute
Tony Stoute4:42
3."Da Fundamentalz"Rob Lewis4:07
4."Hit em Like Dis"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis4:47
5."Who U Won Test"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis3:31
6."Whutcha Want?"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis4:34
7."Fo'eva Blunted"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis3:43
8."Peel"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis3:37
9."Retaliate" (featuring A.R.L. Da X'Rsis)
  • Keyes
  • A. Lawson
  • Stoute
Tony Stoute4:15
10."Tha Cypha"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis3:46
11."Ahh Shit"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis3:53
12."Everybody Won Heaven (Redrum the Remix)"
  • Keyes
  • Stoute
Tony Stoute5:03
13."Any Emcee"Rob Lewis4:02
14."Ta Rasss"
  • Keyes
  • Lewis
Rob Lewis4:50
Total length:1:00:11
2014 re-issue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
15."Me, Myself and My Microphone" 
16."Whutcha Want? (Remix)" 
Sample credits

Personnel

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  • Derrick "Nine" Keyes – vocals
  • A. "A.R.L. Da X'rsis" Lawson – vocals (track 9)
  • Rob Lewis – producer, recording, mixing
  • Tony Stoute – producer
  • Joe Quinde – recording, mixing
  • Kevin Crouse – recording
  • Tony Dawsey – mastering
  • Chris Landry – executive producer
  • Rebecca Meek – art direction, design
  • Klaus Schönwiese – photography

Charts

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Chart performance for Nine Livez
Chart (1995) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[4] 90
US Top R&B Albums (Billboard)[5] 16

References

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  1. ^ a b DiBella, M.F. "Nine - Nine Livez Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Juon, Steve 'Flash' (June 28, 2001). "Nine Nine Livez Profile Records". www.rapreviews.com. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Poluhoff, Nicholas (April 1995). "Record Report: NINE – Nine Livez". The Source.
  4. ^ "The Billboard 200". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 12. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. March 25, 1995. p. 92. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  5. ^ "Top R&B Albums". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 12. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. March 25, 1995. p. 24. ISSN 0006-2510.
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