Epiphany (T-Pain album)

''Epiphany'' is the second studio album by American rapper and singer T-Pain, It was released on June 5, 2007, by his record label Nappy Boy Entertainment, under the distribution of Akon's label Konvict Muzik, Jive Records, and Zomba Label Group. The album marks a first for T-Pain, who launched his own record label Nappy Boy Entertainment. Critics gave the album mixed reviews. ''Epiphany'' debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 and spawned three singles: " Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin')", "Bartender" and "Church".

Singles

The album's lead single, " Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin')" was released on February 20, 2007. The song features guest vocals from a fellow southern hip hop rapper Yung Joc. T-Pain provides the production on this track. The song peaked at number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it his highest-charting single as a lead artist.

The album's second single, "Bartender" was released on June 5, 2007. The song features guest vocals from musician and his then label-mate Akon, with T-Pain, who also produced this track. The song peaked at number 5 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Critical reception

''Epiphany'' received mixed reviews from music critics. Gentry Boeckel of ''PopMatters'' credited T-Pain on his production and use of various characters on the songs he wrote. He also said that his career will last more than other past R&B artists like Case, Joe and Tyrese concluding with, "T-Pain does seem posed for more success than those ''other'' guys. He may even be worth the verbiage, too." John Hanson of Sputnikmusic also praised the album for its production, complimenting the songs (specifically the singles) saying, "T-Pain is starting to establish himself as a lasting source of entertainment in the vein of R. Kelly." ''Vibe'' writer Chris Ryan also agreed with the R. Kelly similarities, praising the different facets of love and changes in genre, concluding that "Like any modern machine, T-Pain takes what he wants, strip it down, and gives it the voice of computer love." Meka Udoh of ''HipHopDX'' credited songs like "Time Machine" and "Suicide" for bringing out a semi-serious T-Pain but was put off by his use of multiple characters throughout the album saying, "While ''Epiphany'' has its moments, it is also its schizophrenic nature that bogs the album down." AllMusic editor David Jeffries questioned the album being 'mature', finding that side not mixing together with the party side of T-Pain's music. Norman Mayers of ''Prefix'' criticized the album for bringing out "the worst stereotypes of black music and culture" in the R&B genre saying, "''Epiphany'' is a profound statement on the poor quality and embarrassing content found in mainstream urban music."

Commercial performance

''Epiphany'' debuted at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling 171,126 copies in its first week. In its second week, the album dropped to number five on the chart, selling an additional 82,000 copies. In its third week, the album dropped to number ten on the chart, selling 56,000 more copies that week. As of September 2008, the album has sold 819,000 copies in the United States.

Track listing

All tracks produced by T-Pain.

Sample credits
* "Tallahassee Love" contains a portion of the composition "California Love" written by Woodrow Cunningham, Norman Durham, Mikel Hooks, Ronald G. Hudson, Larry Troutman, and Roger Troutman.
* "I Got It" contains a sample from "I'm Sprung", written by Faheem Najm, as performed by T-Pain.
* "69" contains a portion of the composition "85", written by Jeffery Grigsby, James Hollis, Sean P. Joseph, Antwan Patton, Kawan Prather, and Maurice L. Sinclair.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

See also

* List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 2007
* List of Billboard number-one R&B albums of 2007

References

Further reading

T-Pain in-depth interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' February 2008

{{DEFAULTSORT:Epiphany (T-Pain Album)
2007 albums
T-Pain albums
Jive Records albums
Albums produced by T-Pain