''4,5,6'' is the debut studio album by American rapper

Kool G Rap Nathaniel Thomas Wilson (born July 20, 1968), better known by his stage name Kool G Rap (or simply G Rap), is an American rapper from Queens, New York City. He began his career in the mid-1980s as one half of the group Kool G Rap & DJ Polo and as ...

, released on September 26, 1995, on

Cold Chillin' Records Cold Chillin' Records was a record label that released music during the golden age of hip hop from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. A producer-and-crew label founded by manager Tyrone Williams and run by Len Fichtelberg (d. November 4, 2010), m ...

. The release followed his break-up with

DJ Polo The Juice Crew was an American hip hop collective made up largely of Queensbridge, New York-based artists in the mid-to-late 1980s. Founded by radio DJ Mr. Magic, and housed by Tyrone Williams' record label Cold Chillin' Records, the Juice Cre ...

in 1993. The album was mostly received neutrally among critics, but was warmly accepted by underground fans. Despite the album's dark, grimy street sound, it peaked at number one on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and the single "Fast Life" charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The album features guest appearances from B1,

MF Grimm Percy Carey (born June 11, 1970), also known by the stage names MF Grimm, Grimm Reaper, GM Grimm and originally Build and Destroy, is an American underground rapper, music producer, CEO, and Eisner Award-nominated comic book writer from New Yo ...

, and

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

(who also appeared on the front cover), as well as production from Dr. Butcher, Naughty Shorts, T-Ray, and Buckwild of

D.I.T.C. The Diggin' in the Crates Crew, commonly known as D.I.T.C., is an American hip hop collective formed in 1992 in New York City. The collective's name derives from the act of seeking out LP record, records to Sampling (music), sample for Hip hop ...

It would also be Cold Chillin' Records' final release before it went defunct in 1997.

Background and recording

Following the critical acclaim of a three-album run with DJ Polo, ''

Road to the Riches ''Road to the Riches'' is the debut album by Hip hop music, hip hop duo Kool G Rap & DJ Polo, which was released in 1989 on then-prominent hip hop label Cold Chillin' Records. The album is notable in that it set off the mafioso rap trend with the ...

'' (1989), '' Wanted: Dead Or Alive'' (1990) and '' Live and Let Die'' (1992), Kool G Rap chose to concentrate his efforts in a more

underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground (S ...

direction, in continuation with the sound on his albums with DJ Polo. In early 1993, Kool G Rap separated from DJ Polo in the aftermath of the media controversy surrounding the cover art of their previous album ''Live and Let Die''. The cover – which depicted two police officers being hanged – followed the “ Cop Killer" controversy involving

Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

and

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

. Warner Bros. Records ultimately refused to distribute ''Live and Let Die'', resulting in the termination of its contract with

. ''Live and Let Die'' was eventually released and distributed independently by Cold Chillin' in 1992. In 1995, Cold Chillin' signed a distribution deal with

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

, of which ''4,5,6'' was the first to be released under the new deal. For the recording of ''4,5,6'', Kool G Rap retreated to the rural wilds of

Bearsville, New York Bearsville is a hamlet in Ulster County, New York, United States, in the town of Woodstock. It is located along New York State Route 212, within Catskill State Park The Catskill Park is in the Catskill Mountains in New York in the United Sta ...

Composition

Content

The title track "4,5,6" depicts the urban street game of

Cee-lo Cee-lo is a gambling game played with three six-sided dice. There is not one standard set of rules, but there are some constants that hold true to all sets of rules. The name comes from the Chinese ''Sì-Wŭ-Liù'' (四五六), meaning "four-fiv ...

and how the game is played along with rhymes of a braggadocio nature and his success and skill at cee-lo. The song starts with the notes from "Mysterious Traveler" by

Weather Report Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded in 1970 by Austrian virtuoso keyboardist Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš, American drummer and vocali ...

which are used throughout the entire song and give the song a very dark street sound. The second single "It's a Shame" contains a prime example of mafioso themes and self boasting. In the song, Kool G Rap portrays himself as a heroin kingpin from a first person prospective, boasting of his wealth, power and extravagant lifestyle. However, it is implied that he harbors a sense of remorse over his choice of trade, with the chorus (sung by an uncredited Sean Brown) stating: "Now it's a damn shame, what I gotta do just to make a dollar Living in this game, sometimes it makes you wanna holler" The song "For Da Brothaz" details the falling of his friends and the unforgiving struggle on the streets of New York. On the album's lead single " Fast Life", Kool G Rap and Nas (credited under the alias Nas Escobar) rap about their business ventures and mafioso lifestyle. The video for the single revolves around the construction of the mythical "Fast Life Hotel and Casino".

Critical reception

Track listing

;Sample credits *"4,5,6" samples "Mysterious Traveller" by

. *"It's a Shame" samples "Love Is for Fools" by

Southside Movement The Southside Movement was an American Soul music, soul and funk musical group from Chicago, Illinois. Composed of vocalist Melvin Moore, guitarist Bobby Pointer (June 19, 1945 - December 26, 2016), keyboardist Morris Beeks, bassist Ronald Simmons, ...

. *"Take 'Em to War" samples "A Divine Image" by David Axelrod. *"Executioner Style" samples "Leroy the Magician" by

Gary Burton Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz vibraphonist, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be he ...

. *"For Da Brothaz" samples "Soulsides" by

Art Farmer Arthur Stewart Farmer (August 21, 1928 – October 4, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet–flugelhorn combination especially designed for him. He and his identical twin brother, double ...

and "Power of Soul" by

Idris Muhammad Idris Muhammad ( ar, إدريس محمد; born Leo Morris; November 13, 1939 – July 29, 2014) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He had an extensive career performing jazz, funk, R&B, and soul music and recorded with musicians such a ...

. *"Blowin' Up in the World" samples "What You Won't Do For Love" by

Bobby Caldwell Robert Hunter Caldwell (born August 15, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. He released several albums spanning R&B, soul, jazz and adult contemporary. He is known for his soulful and versatile vocals. Caldwell released the ...

. *"Fast Life" samples "Happy" by

Surface A surface, as the term is most generally used, is the outermost or uppermost layer of a physical object or space. It is the portion or region of the object that can first be perceived by an observer using the senses of sight and touch, and is t ...

. *"It's a Shame (Da Butcher's Mix)" samples "Bamboo Child" by

Ryo Kawasaki was a Japanese jazz fusion guitarist, composer and band leader, best known as one of the first musicians to develop and popularise the fusion genre and for helping to develop the guitar synthesizer in collaboration with Roland Corporation and K ...

. *"Money on My Brain" samples "Chameleon" by

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

and "Overnight Sensation" by Avalanche.

Album singles

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control Kool G Rap albums 1995 albums Albums produced by Buckwild Cold Chillin' Records albums Mafioso rap albums