''Fly or Die'' is the second studio album by American rap rock band

N.E.R.D N.E.R.D. (stylized as N⋆E⋆R⋆D and N.E.R.D, a backronym of No-one Ever Really Dies) is an American hip hop and rock band, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1999. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo were signed by Teddy Riley to Virgin Recor ...

. It was released on March 23, 2004.

Production

The band recorded its second album ''Fly or Die'' during 2003. The band actually learned the instruments needed to play the tunes, so they could perform live. As Chad Hugo told MTV News on December 8, 2003, "We're the ones playing the instruments live this time. I just started playing guitar last year so I'm learning as we go. Pharrell's playing drums. Last time, (on '' In Search of...'') we didn't have time to learn certain instruments so we got Spymob to help us out." The band also recruited some assistance to record the album with Lenny Kravitz and Questlove playing on the track "Maybe." Several of tracks concern issues of particular concern to adolescents including "Thrasher" about bullies, "Drill Sergeant" about rebellion and conscription, and first love on "Backseat Love".

Reception

''Fly or Die'' went on sale on March 23, 2004. The lead single " She Wants to Move" went into the Top 5 in U.K, top 10 in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, top 20 in

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Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

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as of March 2004. ''Fly or Die'' sold 412,000 copies in the United States, but shipped at least 500,000 units making it qualify for RIAA's Gold Certification. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' (4/15/04, p. 147) - 3 stars out of 5 - "It's fascinating to hear these rap geniuses go undercover as a bar band you might hear rocking Journey covers in a bowling alley." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...

'' (4/2/04, p. 62) - "Fly or Die is craftier and more multilayered than its predecessor.... set of clever, complex, studio-crafted pop--complete with musicianly, smooth-jazz licks--that doesn't owe allegiance to any one genre." - Rating: A- ''

Uncut Uncut may refer to: * ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship * ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997 * '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...

'' (p. 91) - 5 stars out of 5 - "N*E*R*D can replicate machine hypersyncopation at the drop of a hi-hat. Prog-pop album of year." ''

'' (p. 74) - Ranked #18 in Uncut's "Best Albums of 2004" - " object lesson in eclectic art-rock.... is prog-pop classic reveal further depths of detail with every repeated play." ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * ' ...

'' (p. 106) - 4 stars out of 5 - "This is an enthusiastic hymn to the terminally uncool, an un-ironic celebration of nerd-culture....They make a party you want to be invited to." It was included in the book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

N*E*R*D web site
*

Top 40 Charts entry for "She Wants to Move"
* {{Authority control 2004 albums N.E.R.D. albums Albums produced by the Neptunes Star Trak Entertainment albums Virgin Records albums