''Catch 22'' is the second full-length solo

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by recording artist

Tinchy Stryder Kwasi Esono Danquah III ( ; born 14 September 1986), known by the stage name Tinchy Stryder, is a Ghanaian British, Ghanaian-British rapper, singer, songwriter, entrepreneur and investor. Stryder has released three solo (music), solo studio al ...

. After three successful

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

leading up to the album. The album was then released on 17 August 2009. The album is produced and co-written by award-winning producer and songwriter

Fraser T Smith Fraser Thorneycroft-Smith (born 8 February 1971), known professionally as Fraser T. Smith, is an English record producer, songwriter and musician. Some of the singles he collaborated on include Adele's "Set Fire to the Rain", James Morrison (sin ...

, whose previous credits include James Morrison,

Craig David Craig Ashley David (born 5 May 1981) is a British singer and songwriter who rose to fame in 1999, featuring on the single "Re-Rewind (The Crowd Say Bo Selecta), Re-Rewind" by Artful Dodger (UK band), Artful Dodger. David's debut studio album, ' ...

and

Kano Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria * Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State **Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries **Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...

. The album was preceded by a

collaborative Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. Most ...

album with

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust * Grime (music genre), a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game * "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Wood ...

producer

Maniac Maniac (from Greek μανιακός, ''maniakos'') is a pejorative for an individual who experiences the mood known as mania. In common usage, it is also an insult for someone involved in reckless behavior. Maniac may also refer to: Film * ' ...

and a two-part free downloadable

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

s (EP), '' Star in the Hood EP Vol. 1'' & '' Star in the Hood EP Vol. 2''. Tinchy Stryder toured his album, ''Catch 22'', in October 2009, and again in February/March 2010.

Critical reception

'' The Mirror'' gave the album a positive review: "...keen learner with an eye on the crossover market, Stryder shows infectious energy and determination to cover his core market on this second album. Check the auto-tuned pop thrills of Take Me Back and Shake Me. Stryder cuts an impressive sway as the hardworking pupil of the Grime Crossover Contingent."Tinchy Stryder Album Review
The Mirror. ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...

'' gave the album 3/5 stars and said: "American rappers have their guns. Tinchy Stryder has his mum. The witty domesticity of Stryder’s raps are part of the charm of this decidedly British hip hop album. Coming from the grime world, but not in the least grimy, the hook laden, techno-pop tracks are so relentlessly catchy, his unpretentious, snotty-nosed lyricism is like aural icing on a sugary pop cake."''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' gave the album 3/5 stars and said: "With a second No 1 single under his belt, Kwasi Danquah III, 22, is being hailed by wishful thinkers as the second coming of grime. Catch 22 is an uneasy balancing act between these two Stryder sides; but it makes for compelling spectacle."''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' however was much less favourable of the album giving it 2/5 stars: "Tinchy Stryder may be the second-biggest name in grime, but Catch 22 suggests he's more in the mould of

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P) ...

than

Dizzee Rascal Dylan Kwabena Mills (born 18 September 1984), better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a British MC and rapper. A pioneer of grime music, his work has also incorporated elements of UK garage, bassline, British hip hop, and R&B. Dizze ...

: there's little of Dizzee's bonkers charm about these tracks, and plenty of Akon's reliance on auto-tuned hooks and romantic themes. Indeed, when not reflecting on his success, Tinchy's time seems mostly taken up with oiling his way into girls' affections, trying to extricate himself from their clinging attentions, or apologising for mistreating them."

Commercial performance

At the beginning of the week commencing Monday 17 August 2009 ''Catch 22'' was duelling with

Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris, is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter who has released six studio albums. His debut studio album, ''I Created Disco'', was released in June ...

's '' Ready for the Weekend'' for the top spot in the UK, with only 1,000 copies between them.Good News For David And Akon Boots Calvin

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...

. By the last mid-week update there was only a few copies between them.Tinchy Stryder UK Music Blog – The Sound

.Tinchy Stryder – Twitter status
Twitter. ''Catch 22'' reached No. 2 in the UK by the end of the week, with Harris outselling Stryder by 8000 copies.

. Tinchy Stryder used his official Twitter to convey his gratitude to his fans for the high charting of the album.Tinchy Stryder Thanks Fans For Number Two

. In its second week the album fell to No. 5 in the UKArctic Monkeys Score Chart Hat-Trick

. and was certified Gold in the UK.Catch 22 – British Phonographic Industry, certifiedawards
. BPI. In Ireland, the album debuted and peaked at No. 9.The Script Album Stays On Top In Ireland

Singles

* The first single "

Stryderman "Stryderman" is the lead single from recording artist Tinchy Stryder's second studio album, Catch 22. The single was released on 20 July 2008. The single was included on BBC Radio 1's C Playlist and eventually debuted at number 73 on the UK Sing ...

",Tinchy Stryder – first major label single
. urbanworld.co.uk.Stryderman by Tinchy Stryder Songfacts
songfacts.com was released as a digital download on 20 July 2008 with the CD single released on 8 August 2008. The song was added to

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

's C Playlist in July 2008 and debuted on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at number 73;Tinchy Stryder – acharts
acharts.us. Stryder's first single to chart in the UK. * The second single " Take Me Back", which also featured fellow Universal Island Records-signed act

Taio Cruz Jacob Taio Cruz (; born Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere, 23 April 1980), better known professionally as Taio Cruz (stylized TΛIO CRUZ), is an English singer, songwriter and record producer from London, England, currently based in Los Angeles. In 200 ...

was released on 19 January 2009. The single received high amount of praise and received placement on Radio 1's A Playlist. The single eventually peaked at number 3 in the UK; marking Stryder's first Top 10 single in the UK. * The third single " Number 1" which featured UK trio

N-Dubz N-Dubz are an English hip hop trio from Camden Town, London, consisting of cousins Dappy and Tulisa, and Fazer. After winning a MOBO Award for Best Newcomer in 2007, N-Dubz briefly signed to Polydor Records before joining All Around the Wor ...

became Stryder's second Top 10 single and first number-one single in the UK when it debuted at the top spot on the UK Singles Chart on 27 April 2009. * The fourth single "

Never Leave You "Never Leave You" is a song by Tinchy Stryder, released as the fourth single from his second studio album, '' Catch 22'' as a digital download on 2 August 2009 and then as a CD single on 3 August 2009. The song was written by Stryder with lyric ...

" featured vocals from

Amelle Berrabah Amelle Berrabah (born 22 April 1984), also known as Amelle, is a British singer, best known for being a former member of the girl group the Sugababes, replacing founding member Mutya Buena, who left the group in December 2005. She achieved a so ...

of the

Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...

and was released on 9 August 2009; where it peaked at number-one in the UK, Stryder's third consecutive Top 10 single on the UK Singles Chart. * The fifth and final single " You're Not Alone" was released on 26 October 2009,Stryder Announces New Single Details

. where it reached number 14 in the UK; marking the fourth UK Top 15 hit from Stryder.

Track listing

;Notes * "Spotlight" samples elements of "

Dooms Night "Dooms Night" is the debut single by German DJ and producer Azzido Da Bass, first released in 1999 in Germany. In the UK, the song missed the top 40 until a remix of the song by Timo Maas was released on 9 October 2000; it was this version wh ...

" by

Azzido Da Bass Azzido Da Bass (born Ingo Martens, 29 August 1971) is a German DJ and record producer based in Hamburg, Germany. Early life Over the years, Martens was influenced by a wide range of music genres: as a youth, he first became interested in hip ho ...

. * "You're Not Alone" contains an interpolation of " You're Not Alone" by

Olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

. * "Express Urself" contains an interpolation of " Express Yourself" by

Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band is an American soul and funk band. Formed in the early 1960s, they had the most visibility from 1967 to 1973 when the band had 9 singles reach Billboard's pop and/or rhythm and blues charts, s ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

Star in the Hood EP, Volume 1
(free download)
Star in the Hood EP, Volume 2
(free download) {{DEFAULTSORT:Catch 22 (Tinchy Stryder Album) 2009 albums Tinchy Stryder albums Albums produced by Tinchy Stryder Albums produced by Fraser T. Smith Takeover Entertainment albums Albums produced by Labrinth Albums produced by Chase & Status Albums produced by TMS (production team)