''Heroes for Sale'' is the debut studio album by American

Christian hip hop Christian hip hop (originally gospel rap, also known as Christian rap, gospel hip hop or holy hip hop) is a subgenre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United S ...

artist

Andy Mineo Andrew Aaron Mineo (born April 17, 1988), is an American Christian hip hop artist, producer, music executive, and video director based in New York City. He is signed to Reach Records and his creative initiative Miner League. In addition to ...

, released on April 16, 2013. It follows up Mineo's 2011 mixtape ''

Formerly Known ''Formerly Known'' is the second mixtape by American Christian hip hop artist Andy Mineo, and his first under the Reach Records label. It was released as a free digital download on September 9, 2011. Formerly known as C-Lite, Mineo dropped this s ...

''. Considered one of the most anticipated Christian hip hop albums of 2013, ''Heroes for Sale'' includes features from

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the ind ...

Trip Lee William Lee Barefield III (born December 17, 1987), better known by his stage name Trip Lee, is an American Christian rapper and singer. Signed to Reach Records, he has recorded both as a solo artist and as a founding member of the 116 Clique. ...

, KB,

Christon Gray Christon Michael Gray (born July 18, 1986), is an American R&B singer and rapper born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He calls his music "about being human". It is this approach that has allowed him a successful transition from Christian music to ...

Krizz Kaliko Samuel William Christopher Watson IV (born March 7, 1974), better known by his stage name Krizz Kaliko, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and voice actor. He is a longtime collaborator with fellow hometown native Tech N9ne and was signe ...

, and for KING & COUNTRY among others. Three singles were released for the album, "AYO!" on January 28, 2013, "Bitter" on March 5, 2013, and "You Will" on April 2, 2013. A music video for "AYO!" came out on January 31, a three-part webseries was launched on February 6, and a documentary entitled "Everything Must Go" was released on April 9. Lyrically, Mineo based the album concept around the brokenness of human heroes, and the album has a very transparent and personal tone. Stylistically, it mixes

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

-influenced hip hop music with a variety of other genres, including

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American Hip hop m ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

, R&B, heavy metal, classical,

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

, second line, acid jazz,

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, and

jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

swing. The album debuted at No. 11 on the ''Billboard'' 200, No. 4 on

Top Rap 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 Jan ...

chart, No. 1 on the US

Top Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

and No. 2 on the UK Top Christianhart.

Promotion and marketing

Mineo announced the album cover and release date, April 16, 2013, as well as releasing a short promo with footage from the photo-shoot, on January 8, 2013 On January 28, 2013, Mineo released the lead single, "AYO!", and a music video followed three days later. On February 6, 2013,

Reach Records Reach Records is an American independent record label specializing in Christian hip hop. The label was founded in 2004 by Ben Washer and the hip-hop artist Lecrae. In addition to Lecrae, the Reach Records roster contains artists like Tedashii, ...

released the first episode of a three-part

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

promotional

webseries A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single i ...

"Heroes For Sale", starring Andy Mineo. The second episode followed on February 20. On March fifth, he dropped the single "Bitter", a re-working of the original version that Mineo released in 2010 under his former stage name C-Lite. Reach Records released another promotional film, this time a live recording of a spontaneous dance party initiated by Mineo on a subway to the song "Uno Uno Seis" from ''Heroes for Sale'', on March 20. The final episode of the "Heroes for Sale" webseries came out on March 29, and a third single from the album dropped on April 2. On April 9, Reach Records released a documentary, entitled "Everything Must Go", about Mineo's experiences of recording his album while touring with

116 Clique The 116, formerly 116 Clique (pronounced one-one-six click), is an American Southern Christian hip hop collective originally from Dallas, Texas signed to the Atlanta-based Reach Records. The group performs a wide variety of contemporary hip hop ...

on the Unashamed 2012: Come Alive tour.

Lyrics and style

Andy Mineo stated that the concept behind the album is that "we make heroes out of a lot of things. We make heroes out of people. We believe ourselves to be greater than we really are. We make ourselves look like heroes to other people. What I really wanted to do is show the brokenness of the heroes that we create and the heroes that we try to be in order to show that there is ultimately only one great hero." Andrea Williams of Breathcast called the album "an autobiographical work that reveals an in-depth look into the heart and soul of a true Christ-lover who has faced the challenges of a fallen world head-on." Mark Rice of Jesus Freak Hideout stated that Mineo's rapping delivers "transparent, witty, and at times confrontational lyrics thematically centered around making sinful humans your heroes." Nyon Smith of

Rapzilla Rapzilla is a Christian hip hop online magazine. The website contains many sections such as latest news, album reviews, articles, interviews, music downloads, videos, release dates, and columns. Rapzilla is known for its up-to-date news. The we ...

said that the

"Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy" in the first track "Superhuman" sets the stage "for an extremely personable album, blended seamlessly with a distorted guitar that lends to the idea of evangelism even in the darkest of places." The songs "Bitter" and "Shallow" continue this transparency, with the former featuring a thirty-second sample of a

voice mail A voicemail system (also known as voice message or voice bank) is a computer-based system that allows users and subscribers to exchange personal voice messages; to select and deliver voice information; and to process transactions relating to ind ...

from Mineo's estranged father. "Wild Things" deals with the

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

divide and addresses Christian maturity a topic very rarely touched in Christian hip hop, according to Nyon. Nyon called the final trilogy of songs, "Still Bleeding", "Tug of War", and "Death Has Died", an emotional roller-coaster. "Still Bleeding" deals with hurtful words, "Tug of War" with the difficulties of surrendering one's "final god," and "Death Has Died" with the insurmountable realization of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

's return. On "Tug of War",

expresses that he is in the midst of a war for his soul. Nyon explained that "the ministry from an artist to artist standpoint that may get overlooked, is that the Strange Music artist has made songs expressing a desire to want to believe and live for God and this could begin the pouring into what Tech & Krizz have longed for so many years." Near the end of his review, Nyon expressed that the transparency of Mineo "makes it feel as though we should be all be interceding for him," and commented that "if we are truthful, we realize we are no better than our brothers and sisters. We are all in need of grace." During the album's recording, Mineo described that album as having a "bright"

feel and an

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when ...

and progressive sound.

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

stated that the album "showcases the rapper's spiritual-themed lyrics and often progressive, electronic-influenced hip hop tracks." Angela Lu of ''

World In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

'' described the album as a mix of hip hop with

and

. Andrea Williams described the style of the album as "a funky concoction of all of his musical influences, including

s, heavy metal, hip-hop and classical." Jamie Lee Rake of '' HM'' detailed that musically, ''Heroes for Sale'' "runs the gamut of styles to complement the differing couplets. Reggaeton,

, New Orleans second line marching band rhythms, acid jazz,

, and

swing collide and coalesce behind the mic Mineo and his several guests hold." Mark Rice described the album as experimenting with a wide and eclectic variety of styles ranging from reggae to R&B to heavy metal. Rice called the song "AYO!"

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

-inspired

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

and described "Still Bleeding" as featuring a classical

symphonic A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

sound. According to Rice, "Caught Dreaming" displays an

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

pop styling, while "Wild Things" is "an almost straight-up heavy metal song, complete with screaming." Nyon Smith called the track "Wild Things" as Mineo's step into heavy metal and described the tracks "Uno Uno Seis", featuring

, and "The Saints", featuring KB and

, as Christian anthems. Nyon considered "Uno Uno Seis" to be "reminiscent of eighties

Wild Style ''Wild Style'' is a 1983 American hip hop film directed and produced by Charlie Ahearn. Regarded as the first hip hop motion picture, it includes appearances by seminal figures such as Fab Five Freddy, Lee Quiñones, Lady Pink, The Rock Stea ...

" park parties – a feel-good track to tour with that expresses the diversity of the church." According to Nyon, the album contains two songs which play "straight New York," "AYO!" and "Cocky". "AYO!", the album's lead single, Nyon described as the most radio-ready track, and in regard to "Cocky" Nyon stated that "the boom-bap track produced by Skrip has an echoing vocal sample and a monotonous,

Terminator Terminator may refer to: Science and technology Genetics * Terminator (genetics), the end of a gene for transcription * Terminator technology, proposed methods for restricting the use of genetically modified plants by causing second generation s ...

-style bass stab that indiscriminately leads to broken necks." The song "Still Bleeding" Nyon called a "chilling track over cinematic orchestration." Anthony Peronto of Christian Music Zine said that "You Will" and "Uno Uno Sies" "unexpectedly have a dance-influence" and that on "Wild Things", the "black sheep" of the album, Mineo's screaming "beats John Cooper's metal-influenced screaming on "

Monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

" by a long shot markryan1976 of New Release Tuesday noted the opening

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

drum beat to "Wild Things" before the

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

line comes in.

Artwork and packaging

The album artwork was handled by

Invisible Creature Invisible Creature is an illustration and graphic design studio based in Seattle, Washington. It is run by brothers Don and Ryan Clark and was formed in 2006. Don and Ryan are also the co-founders of Asterik Studio (2000-2005). Clients include: N ...

, a graphic design studio founded by

Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vill ...

and Ryan Clark of the

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of ...

band

Demon Hunter Demon Hunter is an American Christian metal band from Seattle, Washington, started in 2000 by brothers Don Clark and Ryan Clark. Although the brothers created the band together, only Ryan remains, since Don left the band to take care of his ...

. According to Rapzilla, the album cover was created mostly through practical effects without photo manipulation software.

Critical reception

''Heroes for Sale'' garnered high praise from music critics. Upon release of Andy Mineo's first single from the album, "AYO!", Rapzilla called ''Heroes for Sale'' "definitely the most anticipated album of 2013 Nyon Smith rated the album four out of five, stating that "on his first official retail album, the self-proclaimed nerd-in-glasses rises to the occasion like

Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...

in the Final Four." He said that the intimacy of the album threw him off for a moment, as Mineo's mixtape ''Formerly Known'' was not nearly as dark and personal. Nyon finished his review by saying "although well produced, the production at times feels a bit forced or overproduced. And as with most albums, there are a couple of songs that could have been trimmed. Regardless, ''Heroes For Sale'' is one of, if not the best album released in 2013 so far." Both reviewers for Jesus Freak Hideout gave the album four stars out of five. Mark Rice said that "there isn't one dull song or misfire in the entire 65 minute runtime of ''Heroes For Sale''," but stated that the darkness, transparency, and bluntness of the album might throw many listeners off, and the heavy content "leaves little room to breathe". Rice also felt that the album lyrically and music-wise was not "anything vastly different from what many are noticing to be the 'Reach Records formula'... ...but Mineo's album is so vastly unique in other aspects that it is hardly a knock against it." Kevin Hoskins felt that the songs "Curious," " Ex Nihilo," and "You Will" served only as filler, but praised the album overall, stating that "all in all, any fan of the rap/hip hop world will want to pick up and will enjoy it thoroughly, despite the handful of minor missteps." markryan1976 of New Release Tuesday rate the album a full five stars, listing the songs "Superhuman", "Ex Nihilo", "AYO!", "Bitter", "Wild Things", and "Uno Uno Seis" as the highlight tracks on the album. He mentioned in his review that "when I first received this to listen to the track order was not yet finalized and I wasn't overly impressed. When the track order was announced and I listened to the album the way the artist intended it to be listened to, the album took on a life." Anthony Peronto for Christian Music Zine rated the album four-point-seventy-five out of five, stating that "I have to be honest and say that Heroes For Sale is the best debut album in

history." At ''

CCM Magazine ''CCM Magazine'' is a twice-monthly online magazine focusing on contemporary Christian music, published by Salem Publishing, a division of Salem Communications. History ''CCM'' was first published in July 1978, as a printed magazine. It has bee ...

'', Matt Conner felt that "''Heroes for Sale'' reveal personal intimate details of a life left open, while the varied sounds and styles show Mineo reaching into his big bag of musical tricks." Matt Collar of

found that the album "showcases the rapper's spiritual-themed lyrics and often progressive, electronic-influenced hip-hop tracks." At '' HM'', Jamie Lee Rake rated the album three-point-five out of five, aiming some criticism at the abundance of sung choruses but nevertheless calling the album "a solid debut" in which Mineo is "transparent to a fault, which is probably his point."

Cross Rhythms Cross Rhythms is a Christian media organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It operates an FM and online radio station, produces radio shows sent internationally, and its website has resources about contemporary Christian music. Hi ...

' Steve Hayes gave the album a full ten squares, proclaiming the album to be "an essential set." At Louder Than the Music, Rich Smith felt that this was "a brilliant debut album and well worth checking out" because the release features "production quality

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

is top notch and really blends and cuts the different styles of hip-hop, R&B and rock well, along with great lyrics and slick raps". Founder Bryce Cooley of ChristCore saying that the release was "Spirit-Filled" on which contains "interesting, and challenging lyrics, set to well produced beats".

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 11 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, with first-week sales of 28,000 copies in the United States. In its second week the album sold 4,700 more copies bringing its total to 32,000.

Track listing

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2013 debut albums Andy Mineo albums Reach Records albums Albums produced by Street Symphony Albums produced by Andy Mineo Albums produced by Beam Albums produced by Gawvi