''The Solution'' is the fourth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by rapper

Beanie Sigel Dwight Equan Grant (born March 6, 1974), better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became known for his association with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut ...

. It was released on December 11, 2007. The album features production from

Dre & Vidal Dre & Vidal is a songwriting and production duo consisting of Andre Harris and Vidal Davis, who are best known as the main producers for Jill Scott and Glenn Lewis. Alumni of DJ Jazzy Jeff's A Touch of Jazz production team, Dre & Vidal were also ...

Reefa Sharif "Reefa" Slater is a music producer who has produced for notable artists. He was raised in Brownsville, Brooklyn, and currently heads a production company for emerging artists and producers. Production work/involvement Sharif "Reefa" Slate ...

, and The Runners, among others. Guest appearances include

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 ...

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwid ...

Ghostface Killah Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 C ...

, and other notable musicians.William E. Ketchum III (November 21, 2007)
Beanie Sigel Talks Album, Tracklist
HipHopDX. Accessed November 21, 2007. the album gained a

metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

score of 72 out of 100 based on 10 reviews.

Background

''The Solution'' is Sigel's first album after re-signing with

Roc-A-Fella Records Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...

. After his 2005 album, '' The B. Coming'', he took a one-year hiatus from music and returned to recording in 2006. Speaking on the album Beanie Sigel said :Bill Heinzelman (April 23, 2007)
Beanie Sigel Streets On Lock
'' XXL''. Accessed November 21, 2007.

Music

Guests

is featured on the first single "All the Above", while rapper

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. ...

is featured on "U Ain't Ready 4 Me".

makes an appearance on the track "Gutted", while Diddy,

, and

Peedi Crakk Pedro Louis Zayas (born September 25, 1977), known as Peedi Crakk and Peedi Peedi, is an American rapper of Puerto Rican descent. He is a member of State Property and is currently signed to Amalgam Digital and G-Unit Philly. Career The North ...

hook up with Beanie on "Shake It For Me". Scarface is also featured on the song "Rain (Bridge)" with R&B artist Raheem DeVaughn, who also appears on "Prayer". Beanie Sigel jumps into unfamiliar territory by featuring an

sample on the track "The Day" and a

James Blunt James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount; 22 February 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. A former reconnaissance officer in the Life Guards regiment of the British Army, he served under NATO during the 1999 Kosovo War. After l ...

sample on "Dear Self (Can I Talk To You)".

Production

Production originally included producers like

Scott Storch Scott Spencer Storch (born December 16, 1973) is an American record producer and songwriter. He started off as a keyboardist for the group the Roots. Early life Storch was born on Long Island, New York. He was raised in South Florida and Phila ...

and

Sha Money XL Sha or SHA may refer to: Places * Sha County, Fujian, China * Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, (IATA code) * Sia, Cyprus, also spelled ''Sha'' * Sagamihara Housing Area, an army installation in Japan * Vehicle registration plates in th ...

, but those tracks were cut for songs produced by Eric Hudson and Chad West. Production team

produce Five of the Thirteen tracks on the album with help from up and coming Dirty Harry and Don Cheegro (Harry and Alex) and The Runners produce the lead single "All the Above".

produces two tracks including "Gutted" featuring

Cool and Dre Cool & Dre are a record production and songwriting duo from North Miami, Florida, consisting of Marcello "Cool" Antonio Valenzano and Andre "Dre" Christopher Lyon. The duo are best known for their work with Terror Squad founder Fat Joe, first ...

and Dame Grease each produced one track each. Notably absent from The Solution is primary artist and producer Kanye West.

Track listing

Reception

''The Solution'' received generally positive and exceptional ratings after its release. As CD Universe puts it, Beanie "hit the ground running" with this album. As iTunes' review points out, however, "''The Solution'' displays a lyrical mastermind who nonetheless faces an identity crisis when it comes to marketing himself. The album jumps from radio crossovers (“All of the Above”) to concrete body slams (“U Ain’t Ready for Me”) to party songs (“Shake It For Me”)." The album's message failed to maintain itself to its title, and made various direction changes in its delivery, going between very conflicting topics. But As Chris Gaerig praises, "What Beanie Sigel lacks in sheer marketability he makes up for with a vicious flow and an ingenuity rarely seen from an artist of his caliber."2007 PopMatters - Review for The Solution
Accessed December 30, 2011. The album's composition and featured vocals comes together to make up for the lack of message and consistency; Tracks like "The Day", "Gutted", and "All the Above" stand out perfectly in the album, while adding an upbeat, surreal sound and inspiring lyrics.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solution, The Beanie Sigel albums 2007 albums Albums produced by Cool & Dre Albums produced by Dame Grease Albums produced by Dre & Vidal Albums produced by Eric Hudson Albums produced by the Runners Albums produced by Rockwilder Def Jam Recordings albums Roc-A-Fella Records albums