''Got to Be Tough'' is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer MC Shy-D. It was released on August 12, 1987, via Luke Skyywalker Records. The album peaked at number 197 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and number 41 on the

Top R&B 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 ...

chart.

Track listing

Sample credits *Track 1 contains elements from "Brazilian Rhyme (Beijo Interlude)" 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 re ...

(1977) *Track 2 contains elements from "Ike's Mood I" by

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

(1970) and "

(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was recorded by Redding twice in 1967, including once just three days before his death in a plane crash on December 10, 1967. Th ...

" by

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

(1968) *Track 3 contains elements from "Rock Steady" by

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

(1971), "Pump Me Up" by

Trouble Funk Trouble Funk is an American R&B and funk band from Washington, D.C. The group helped to popularize funk and the subgenre go-go in the Washington metropolitan area. Among the band's well-known songs are the go-go anthem "Hey, Fellas". They rele ...

(1982) and " (Nothing Serious) Just Buggin' by

Whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a larg ...

(1986) *Track 4 contains elements from "I'll Be There" by

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

(1970), "Christmas Rappin by

Kurtis Blow Kurtis Walker (born August 9, 1959), professionally known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record/film producer, b-boy, DJ, public speaker and minister. He is the first commercially successful rapper a ...

(1979) and "

La Di Da Di "La Di Da Di" is a song performed by Doug E. Fresh, who provides the beatboxed instrumental, and MC Ricky D (later known as Slick Rick), who performs the vocals. It was originally released in 1985 as the B-side to " The Show". The song has since ...

" by

Doug E. Fresh Doug E. Fresh (born September 17, 1966) is a Barbados-born American rapper, record producer, and beatboxer, also known as the "Human Beat Box". The pioneer of 20th-century American beatboxing, Fresh is able to accurately imitate drum machines an ...

Slick Rick Richard Martin Lloyd Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence with Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs " The Show" and " ...

(1985) *Track 5 contains elements from "Brazilian Rhyme (Beijo Interlude)" by

(1977) and "Catch a Groove" by Juice (1976) *Track 6 contains elements from "

I Can't Live Without My Radio "I Can't Live Without My Radio" is the lead single from LL Cool J's debut album, ''Radio''. It was released in 1985 for Def Jam Recordings and was both written and produced by LL Cool J and Rick Rubin. It is a love song to the boombox. The song ...

" 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 ...

(1985) and "Change the Beat (Female Version)" by Beside (1982) *Track 8 contains elements from "Celebrate the Good Things" by Pleasure (1978) *Track 9 contains elements from "I Don't Wanna Lose Your Love" by

The Emotions ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

(1976), "Set It Off" by

Strafe Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such ...

(1984) and "Dance to the Drummer's Beat" by

Herman Kelly & Life Herman may refer to: People * Herman (name), list of people with this name * Saint Herman (disambiguation) * Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman Places in the United States * Herman, Arkansas * Herman, Michigan * Herman, Minnes ...

(1978) *Track 10 contains elements from "Got to Be Real" by

Cheryl Lynn Cheryl Lynn (born Lynda Cheryl Smith; March 11, 1957) is an American singer. She is best known for her songs during the late 1970s through the mid-1980s, including the 1978 R&B/disco song "Got to Be Real". Lynn's singing career began with her ...

(1978), "It's a Shame" by The Spinners (1970) and "

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...

" by

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Pronounced Chick. Etymology ''Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictiona ...

(1979) *Track 12 contains elements from "Good Times" by

(1979), "Bang Zoom (Let's Go-Go)" by

The Real Roxanne Elease Jack (born July 24, 1968), better known by her stage name the Real Roxanne, is an American hip hop MC who recorded for Select Records. Elease was born in New York City, New York. In the 1980s, she, the producer of Roxanne Shante, and ...

Howie Tee Hitman Howie Tee (born Howard Thompson) is an English-born hip-hop DJ and producer of West Indian origin, but raised in Brooklyn NY. Howie Tee is best known for his work with U.T.F.O, Chubb Rock, Special Ed and The Real Roxanne. Howie got his ...

(1986) and "Tough" by

(1982)

Personnel

* Peter T. Jones – main artist, vocals, scratches, producer, mixing, arranging * DJ Man – scratches, co-producer * Rodney Cedric Terry – design, mixing, co-producer *

Luther Campbell Luther Roderick Campbell (born December 22, 1960), also known as Luke Skyywalker, Uncle Luke and simply Luke, is an American rapper, promoter, record executive, actor, and former leader of the rap group 2 Live Crew. He also starred in a short- ...

– executive producer * Norm Titcomb – mixing, recording * Michael Fuller – mastering * Rose Campbell – artwork * Ed Robinson – photography

Charts

References

External links

* 1987 debut albums MC Shy D albums Luke Records albums {{1980s-hiphop-album-stub