''El Niño'' is the only studio album by American hip hop group

Def Squad Def Squad is an American rap supergroup consisting of Erick Sermon, Redman, Keith Murray, Hurricane G, and Jamal. Before officially forming as a group to release an album in 1998, they had each been featured on tracks by each other. The Def ...

, composed of rappers Redman,

Erick Sermon Erick Sermon (born November 25, 1968) is an American rapper, musician, and record producer. He is best known as one-third—alongside PMD & DJ Scratch—of 1980s/1990s hip hop group EPMD and for his production work. Career Sermon started prof ...

and

Keith Murray Keith Omar Murray (born May 29, 1974) is an American rapper from New York. Murray grew up on Carleton Ave, in Central Islip, which is located on the South Shore of Long Island in Suffolk County. Murray was a known member of a local rap collec ...

. It was released on June 30, 1998 via

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...

. Recording sessions took place at Mirror Image Recordings in

Dix Hills, New York Dix Hills is an affluent hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) on Long Island in the town of Huntington in Suffolk County, New York. The population was 26,892 at the 2010 census. In the past, Dix Hills and some of its neighbors have propos ...

Production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

was handled by Erick Sermon and Redman. It features

guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other p ...

s from

Biz Markie Marcel Theo Hall (April 8, 1964 – July 16, 2021), known professionally as Biz Markie, was an American rapper, singer, songwriter, DJ, and record producer. Markie was best known for his 1989 single "Just a Friend", which became a Top 40 hit in ...

, Mally G,

Too $hort Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by the stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper and record producer. He became famous in the West Coast hip hop scene in the late 1980s, with lyrics often based on ...

and the Drama Squad. The album reached number two on the ''Billboard'' 200 and number-one spot on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

in the United States. It was certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

on July 29, 1998. Its

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

, " Full Cooperation", peaked at #51 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

, at #11 on the Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales, at #63 on the

R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay (previously known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay) is a chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the top R&B and hip hop songs in the United States, based on audience impressions from a panel of radio stations monitored ...

. The song "Countdown" was released as

promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

. The song "Ride Wit Us" later appeared on Keith Murray's third album '' It's a Beautiful Thing''.

Track listing

Personnel

– vocals, producer (tracks: 2-5, 7-8, 10, 12-14, 16), executive producer *

Reginald Noble Reginald Noble (born April 17, 1970), better known by his stage name Redman, is an American rapper, DJ, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame in the early 1990s as an artist on the Def Jam label. He is well known for his collaborations w ...

– vocals, producer (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 11, 15), executive producer * Keith Omar Murray – vocals, executive producer * Jamal C. Phillips – vocals (track 3) * Todd Anthony Shaw – vocals (track 5) * Marcel Theo Hall – vocals (track 7) *Nasty Nadj – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *TE TE – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *Dave Rockin' Reel – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *Moe Green – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *Miguel – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *Nikki D. – vocals (tracks: 1, 6, 9, 15) *

Kevin Liles Kevin Liles (born February 27, 1968) is an American record executive and co-founder and CEO of 300 Entertainment. In 2020, Kevin was recognized by Billboard Magazine as R&B/Hip-Hop Executive of the Year for both his efforts in activism and the c ...

– A&R, co-executive producer *Bernard Alexander – co-executive producer *

Tony Dawsey Tony Dawsey is an American mastering engineer at Masterdisk in New York City. He has been active since 1980.Jonathan Mannion Jonathan Mannion (born December 3, 1970) is a photographer and film director. Mannion has shot over 300 album covers working with hip hop and R&B performers including Jay Z, Dr. Dre, Aaliyah, Outkast, Nas, Nicki Minaj, Brandy Norwood and Kendri ...

– photography *The Drawing Board – art direction, design

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Niño (Def Squad album), El 1998 debut albums Erick Sermon albums Redman (rapper) albums Keith Murray (rapper) albums Def Jam Recordings albums Albums produced by Erick Sermon