''Free at Last'' is the second studio album by rapper Freeway. It was released on November 20, 2007, in the United States by Roc-A-Fella Records.

Background

In a recent interview, Freeway stated why he took such a lengthy hiatus. He had this to say:

Production

''Free at Last'' features production from Bink!, J. R. Rotem, Needlz, and Cool & Dre, amongst others. Guest appearances include Marsha Ambrosius,

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

, Scarface,

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

, Jadakiss, and

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Sean Combs, D ...

Commercial performance

''Free at Last'' debuted at number 42 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling about 36,000 units during its first week. As of April 2, 2008, the album has sold 100,206 copies in the United States.Hip Hop Album Sales: Week Ending 3/30/08 , Hip Hop News > HipHopDX.com
/ref>

Critical reception

''Free at Last'' was called "The Album of the Month" by the German hip hop magazine ''Juice'', aiming 5 of 6 "Crowns". In the 01-02 / 2008 Issue (# 104).

Track listing

Singles

"Roc-A-Fella Billionaires" is the lead single. The song,

produced Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

Dame Grease Damon J. Blackman (born August 9, 1974), better known by his stage name Dame Grease or simply Grease, is an American record producer from New York City. In 1996, he gained recognition in the hip hop industry through his production work with Bad ...

, features a guest appearance from Roc-A-Fella label-boss and fellow American rapper

. Grease's production contains a

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

of a version of "

Big Spender "Big Spender" is a song written by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields for the musical ''Sweet Charity'', first performed in 1966. Peggy Lee was the first artist to record the song for her album of the same name also that year. It is sung, in the musi ...

", originally written for the 1966 musical ''

Sweet Charity ''Sweet Charity'' is a musical with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and book by Neil Simon. It was directed and choreographed for Broadway by Bob Fosse starring his wife and muse Gwen Verdon alongside John McMartin. It is based on ...

'', by

Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, United States, to Eastern European Jewish parents ...

and Dorothy Fields, as performed by Chita Rivera and Paula Kelly.

Sample credits

This Can't Be Real *"Did You Hear What They Said?" by

Gil Scott-Heron Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American Jazz poetry, jazz poet, singer, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician ...

It's Over *"The Masquerade Is Over" by David Porter *vocals by Sean Michael from "Encore" Still Got Love *"Keep On Keeping On" by Curtis Mayfield Roc-A-Fella Billionaires *"Hey Big Spender" by

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists ...

When They Remember *"The Way We Were" by Gladys Knight and The Pips Reppin' The Streets *"Ill Be the Other Woman" by

Soul Children The Soul Children was an American vocal group who recorded soul music for Stax Records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They had three top 10 hits on the U.S. ''Billboard'' R&B chart – "The Sweeter He Is" (1969), "Hearsay" (1972), and "I ...

Free At Last *"I Want To Write You a Love Song" by David Oliver Baby Don't Do It *"Overture of Foxy Brown" by Willie Hutch I Cry *"I Cry" by Millie Jackson

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 2007 albums Def Jam Recordings albums Freeway (rapper) albums Roc-A-Fella Records albums Albums produced by Cool & Dre Albums produced by Dame Grease Albums produced by J. R. Rotem Albums produced by Needlz Albums produced by Don Cannon Albums produced by Bink (record producer) Albums produced by Jake One Albums produced by Double-O