''Forever'' is the second studio album of American hip hop recording artist

Puff Daddy Puff may refer to: Science and technology * Puff, a small quantity of gas or smoke in the air ** Puff, a light gust of wind ** Exhalation ** Inhalation * Puff model, volcanic ash tracking model developed at the University of Alaska Fairbanks ...

, released on August 24, 1999 by

Bad Boy Records Bad Boy Records (or Bad Boy Entertainment) is an American record label founded in 1993 by rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs. It operates as an imprint of Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. It has been home to many artists, includin ...

and

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertain ...

. The album rose to No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart. ''Forever'' has also been certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Pla ...

in the US by the

RIAA 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/ ...

. The album was a commercial success, selling 205,343 copies in its first week and debuting at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, despite receiving generally mixed reviews from critics.

Overview

This was the first

Sean Combs Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

album released under the name of "Puff Daddy", as his debut album was released under "Puff Daddy & the Bad Boy Family". ''Forever'' received mixed reviews from most music critics, with criticism directed at the commercialization of hip-hop music, specifically this albums more pop dance sound and lacklustre lyrics compared to its predecessor, which caused controversy at the time. In 2006, ''Q'' magazine included ''Forever'' in their list of the 50 worst albums of all time.

Background and production

Nearly two years following the release of his first collaboration album, '' No Way Out'', which debuted on the US ''Billboard'' 200 at number one and won the

Grammy Award for Best Rap Album The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories ...

in February 1998, whereas Combs (under the name "Puff Daddy"), was nominated for

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...

, which he lost. He also collaborated with

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page is prolific in creating guitar riffs. His style involves various ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are c ...

, for the single " Come with Me" for the 1998 film ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film '' Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produ ...

''. The song reached #2 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 ...

and #4 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. During the summer of 1998, the recording for Combs' debut album began, continuing the following year.

Critical reception

Commercial performance

''Forever'' debuted at number 2 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 205,343 copies behind

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice o ...

's self-titled album with first week sales of 252,800 copies. The album opened at the top spot of the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine that ranks contemporary R&B, R&B and hip hop music, hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. Th ...

chart. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, the album peaked at number nine on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

. *For ''Black Panties'': The album debuted at number one on the

UK R&B Chart The UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart and the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart (also known as The Official UK Hip Hop and R&B Charts, the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Singles and the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Albums, or simply the UK Urban Chart) are 40-posi ...

. In Canada, the album opened at number four on the Canadian Albums Chart, becoming Combs' highest charting album in the country. As of September 24, 1999, ''Forever'' has been certified

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/ ...

(RIAA), for selling 1,000,000 copies.

Track listing

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. Sample credits * "Journey Through the Life" contains a sample of "For the Good Times" written by

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the Ni ...

as performed by

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

. * "I'll Do This for You" contains a sample of "Get Off" written by Carl Driggs and Ish Ledesma as performed by Foxy. * "Do You Want It... Do You Like It..." contains an interpolation of "Wanna Get Paid" as performed by

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...

and the Lost Boyz. * "I Hear Voices" contains a sample of "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 ...

. * "Fake Thugs Dedication" samples " Paper Thin" written by Lana Michelle Moorer and Freddie Byrd as performed by MC Lyte and "Shining Star" written by

Maurice White Maurice White (December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016) was an American singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. He was best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter, and producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, and served as the ...

, Larry Dunn and

Philip Bailey Philip James Bailey (born May 8, 1951) is an American R&B, soul, gospel and funk singer, songwriter and percussionist, best known as an early member and one of the two lead singers (along with group founder Maurice White) of the band Earth, Wi ...

as performed by

Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million r ...

. * "Angels With Dirty Faces" samples "

Fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and drama ...

" written by

Verdine White Verdine Adams White (born July 25, 1951) is an American musician, best known as a founding member and bassist for the band Earth, Wind & Fire. White was placed at No. 19 on Rolling Stone's list of The 50 Greatest Bassists of All Time. Early lif ...

and Eddie del Barrio as performed by

. * "Satisfy You" samples "I Got 5 On It" written by Jerold Dwight Ellis III and Garrick Husbands as performed by Luniz, "Why You Treat Me So Bad" written by

Denzil Foster Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy are an American R&B record production and songwriting duo, releasing recordings under the names Foster & McElroy and Fmob. They have written and produced songs for musicians such as Club Nouveau, Tony! Toni! Ton ...

, Jay King and Thomas McElroy as performed by

Club Nouveau Club Nouveau is an American R&B group formed by record producer/performer Jay King in 1986 in Sacramento, California, following the breakup of the Timex Social Club. The group's name (French for "New Club") was changed from its original incar ...

and "Sexual Healing" written by

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown (music style), Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player ...

and Odell Brown as performed by Gaye. * "P.E. 2000" contains a sample of "Public Enemy No.1" written by Carlton Douglas Ridenhour and Hank Shocklee as performed by

Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...

and "Blow Your Head" written by

Fred Wesley Fred Wesley (born July 4, 1943) is an American trombonist who worked with James Brown in the 1960s and 1970s and Parliament-Funkadelic in the second half of the 1970s. Biography Wesley was born the son of a high school teacher and big band le ...

and James Brown as performed by Wesley and

the J.B.'s The J.B.'s (sometimes punctuated The JB's or The J.B.s) was the name of James Brown's band from 1970 through the early 1980s. On records the band was sometimes billed under alternate names such as Fred Wesley and the JBs, The James Brown Soul T ...

. * "Best Friend" contains a sample of "Sailing" written and performed by

Christopher Cross Christopher Cross (born Christopher Charles Geppert; May 3, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter from San Antonio, Texas. He won five Grammy Awards for his eponymous debut album released in 1979. The singles "Sailing" (1980), and "Arthur's ...

. * "Pain (Forever)" contains a sample of "Benjamin" written and performed by

Les McCann Leslie Coleman McCann (born September 23, 1935) is an American jazz pianist and vocalist. Feather, Leonard, and Ira Gitler (2007), ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz'', p. 448. Oxford University Press. Early life Les McCann was born in ...

and "Children's Story" * "Reverse" contains a sample of "Romeo" by

the Dynamic Superiors The Dynamic Superiors are an American, Motown group from Washington, D.C., United States. The group formed in 1963 with members Tony Washington (lead), George Spann (first tenor), George Peterback, Jr. (second tenor), Michael McCalpin (baritone), a ...

. * "Real Niggas" contains a sample of "Real Niggaz" written by Christopher Wallace as performed by the Notorious B.I.G.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Singles

References

{{Authority control 1999 albums Sean Combs albums Bad Boy Records albums Albums produced by Sean Combs