''NY's Finest'' is the third studio album by hip hop producer and emcee Pete Rock. The album was Rock's first studio album since 2004's '' Soul Survivor II'', and was released on February 26, 2008 through the

Nature Sounds Nature Sounds is a record label based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in hip hop and reggae music. The label is independently owned and operated. It was founded by Devin Horwitz in 2003. History Nature Sounds was founded in 2003 by Devin ...

record label. The album's cover art was created by Fuse Green and inspired by the cover of James Brown's '' Hell''. The instrumental version of the album was released on May 13, 2008 and includes two additional songs not available on the ordinary release; "It's So G" (which appeared with lyrics by Roc Marciano on the deluxe edition) and "When I Need It" (which later was released with lyrics by Pete Rock on the '' NBA Live 10'' soundtrack).

Collaborations

''NY's Finest'', as the name suggests, features many of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

's most respected and successful rap artists. As with previous Pete Rock albums, the album features an array of guest artists, and prior to its completion, Rock expressed interest in collaborating with rappers such as

Papoose Papoose (from the Algonquian ''papoose'', meaning "child") is an American English word whose present meaning is "a Native American child" (regardless of tribe) or, even more generally, any child, usually used as a term of endearment, often in t ...

, Redman,

D-Block A block of the periodic table is a set of elements unified by the atomic orbitals their valence electrons or vacancies lie in. The term appears to have been first used by Charles Janet. Each block is named after its characteristic orbital: s-blo ...

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide ...

Raekwon Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success ...

Masta Killa Jamel Irief (born Elgin Turner; August 18, 1969), better known by his stage name Masta Killa, is an American rapper and member of the Wu-Tang Clan. Though one of the lesser-known members of the group (he was featured on only one track on their 19 ...

. The album also sees Rock rapping on 7 songs. In December 2007, an

EPK A press kit, often referred to as a media kit in business environments, is a pre-packaged set of promotional materials that provide information about a person, company, organization or cause and which is distributed to members of the media for pr ...

was released featuring Rock and other musicians talking about the album and in the studio. The album was to also feature Detroit hip hop act Slum Village, in a song called "Gangsta Boogie", but was taken off the album, probably to keep with theme of the title (however, the North Carolina group Little Brother appears on the song "Bring Y'all Back").

Use in film

The album track "Best Believe" was used in the 2008

Paul Rudd Paul Stephen Rudd (born April 6, 1969) is an American actor. He studied theater at the University of Kansas and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, before making his acting debut in 1991. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame i ...

and

Seann William Scott Seann William Scott (born October 3, 1976) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Steve Stifler in the '' American Pie'' franchise, and also for his role as Doug Glatt in both '' Goon'' and '' Goon: Last of the Enforcers''. He has al ...

comedy '' Role Models''.

Reception

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 193 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 3,900 copies in its first week. The first single is "914", featuring

LOX Liquid oxygen—abbreviated LOx, LOX or Lox in the aerospace, submarine and gas industries—is the liquid form of molecular oxygen. It was used as the oxidizer in the first liquid-fueled rocket invented in 1926 by Robert H. Goddard, an appli ...

members

Styles P David R. Styles (born November 28, 1974), better known by his stage name Styles P (also known mononymously as Styles), is an American rapper, best known as a member of hip hop group the Lox, alongside childhood friends Sheek Louch and Jadakiss ...

and

Sheek Louch Sean Divine Jacobs (born September 30, 1976), better known as Sheek Louch, is an American rapper best known as a member of The LOX and founder of D-Block Records, along with Styles P and Jadakiss. Personal life and career At around the age o ...

, backed with B-side "The PJs", featuring

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close aff ...

members

and

. A third track, "Gangsta Boogie" featuring Slum Village, was also leaked onto the internet but will be an iTunes exclusive only.

Track listing

:''All tracks produced by Pete Rock unless noted otherwise.'' #"Pete Intro" #"We Roll" #*Featuring

Max B Charley Wingate (born May 21, 1978), better known by his stage name Max B (short for Max Biggaveli), is an American rapper and singer. He is best known for his solo ''Public Domain'' and ''Million Dollar Baby'' series of mixtapes, and introduc ...

#*Samples: "You Don't Have To Change" by

Kool & The Gang Kool & the Gang is an American R&B/soul/funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964 by brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell, with Dennis "Dee Tee" Thomas, Robert "Spike" Mickens, Charles Smith, George Brown, and Ricky West. ...

#"Till I Retire" #"914" #*Featuring

#"Questions" #*Featuring Royal Flush #*Samples: "Exercise Run" by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson #"Best Believe" #*Featuring Redman & LD #"Ready Fe War" #*Featuring

Chip Fu Fu-Schnickens were an American hip-hop trio from 1988 to 1995, based in Brooklyn, New York. History Fu-Schnickens was composed of Chip Fu (Roderick Roachford), Moc Fu (Joe Jones), and Poc Fu (Lennox Maturine). ''Fu'' stood for unity and '' ...

& Renee Neufville (Formerly of Zhane) #"Don't Be Mad" #*Produced by

DJ Green Lantern James Christopher D'Agostino (born July 7, 1975), professionally known as DJ Green Lantern, is an American hip hop DJ and producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by American rapper Eminem, to become the official DJ for S ...

#"Bring Y'all Back" #*Featuring Joe Scudda (uncredited) & Little Brother #"The Best Secret" #*Featuring

Lords of the Underground The Lords of the Underground (L.O.T.U.G.) is an American hip-hop trio based in Newark, New Jersey. The group is composed of Dupré Kelly (professionally known as DoItAll) (born January 14, 1971), Al'Terik Wardrick (professionally known as Mr. F ...

#"That's What I Am Talking About" #*Featuring Rell #"The PJ's" #*Featuring

#"Made Man" #*Featuring Tarrey Torae #*Samples: "Take The Time To Tell Her" by

Jerry Butler Jerry Butler Jr. (born December 8, 1939) is an American soul singer-songwriter, producer, musician, and retired politician. He was the original lead singer of the R&B vocal group the Impressions, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame i ...

#"Let's Go" #*Featuring Doo Wop #"Comprehend" #*Featuring

#*Samples: I'm Not In Love by 10cc #"Gangsta Boogie" #*Featuring Slum Village (iTunes Bonus) #*Samples: "They Long To Be Close To You" by Isaac Hayes #"It's So G" #*Featuring Roc Marciano (Deluxe Edition Bonus)

Album singles

Charts

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ny's Finest 2008 albums Pete Rock albums Albums produced by Pete Rock Albums produced by DJ Green Lantern Nature Sounds albums