''The State vs. Radric Davis'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper

Gucci Mane Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper and record executive. He helped pioneer the hip hop subgenre of trap music alongside fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Young Jeez ...

. It was released on December 8, 2009. ''The State vs. Radric Davis'' came after a slew of independent releases, mixtapes, and features over the prior few years. Productions from

Polow da Don Jamal Fincher Jones (born October 15, 1977, or 1978), professionally known as Polow da Don, is an American record producer and rapper. Jones has produced a variety of singles for a multitude of artists including "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj (2014) ...

Drumma Boy Christopher James Gholson (born August 11, 1983), better known by his stage name Drumma Boy, is an American record producer. Early life Born in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Cordova, Tennessee, he was exposed to music at a young age. His mo ...

, Fatboi,

Mannie Fresh Byron Otto Thomas (born March 20, 1969), better known by his stage name Mannie Fresh, is an American music producer and rapper. He's best known for his productions on Cash Money Records releases, as well being half of the hip hop duo (alongside ...

, among others. Featured artists include

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** F ...

, Plies,

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), better known by his stage name Cam'ron, is an American rapper, record executive, and actor from Harlem, New York City. Beginning his career in the mid-1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed to Lance "Un" ...

Soulja Boy DeAndre Cortez Way (born July 28, 1990), known professionally as Soulja Boy (formerly Soulja Boy Tell 'Em), is an American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence, after his self published debut single " Crank That (Soulja Boy)" peak ...

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Diddy's Bad ...

Bun B Bernard James Freeman (born March 19, 1973), known professionally as Bun B, is an American rapper. He is best known as one half of the southern rap duo UGK (UnderGround Kingz), a group he formed in 1987 alongside Pimp C. Aside from his work wit ...

OJ da Juiceman Otis Williams Jr. (born November 23, 1981), better known by his stage name OJ da Juiceman, is an American rapper. OJ da Juiceman was formerly signed to Gucci Mane's 1017 Brick Squad record label. OJ Da Juiceman is also the founder of vanity labe ...

, Wooh da Kid,

Waka Flocka Flame Juaquin James Malphurs (born May 31, 1986), known professionally as Waka Flocka Flame, is an American rapper. Signing to 1017 Brick Squad and Warner Bros. Records in 2009, he became a mainstream artist with the release of his singles "O Let's ...

, and

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accents ...

. The

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...

deluxe version contains the EP, ''Wasted: The Prequel''. The album was met with generally favorable reviews from music critics. It debuted at number 10 on the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling 90,000 copies in its first week, and was certified gold by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

for sales exceeding 500,000 copies.

Background

Based on the success of ''The State vs. Radric Davis'', Gucci Mane announced that his next two albums would be part of a trilogy, with the two of them titled '' The Appeal: Georgia's Most Wanted'' and ''The State vs. Radric Davis: The Verdict'' due to be released on September 28, 2010. However, he later decided to break the trilogy and change the third album's title.

Singles

" Wasted", featuring Plies, was released as the album's lead single on July 7, 2009. The song peaked at number 36 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and number 3 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart, making it as his first top five on the chart. "

Spotlight Spotlight or spot light may refer to: Lighting * Spot lights, automotive auxiliary lamps * Spotlight (theatre lighting) * Spotlight, a searchlight * Stage lighting instrument, stage lighting instruments, of several types Art, entertainment, an ...

", featuring

, was released as the album's second single on October 19, 2009. The song peaked at number 42 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and number 15 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. "

Lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage. There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using ...

" was released as the album's third single on December 7, 2009. The song peaked at number 53 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, number 15 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart, and number 8 on the Top Rap Songs chart. The song's subject matter involves the proceeds from the illegal sale of codeine-infused lemonade, all of which the artist describes as yellow or lemon-colored. " Bingo", featuring

and

, was released as the album's fourth single on January 12, 2010. The song peaked at number 75 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart.

Promotional singles

"Worst Enemy" was released as the album's first promotional single on November 12, 2009. The song revisits Gucci Mane's past about how it led to his fame and how he's moving on in life despite his struggles.

Young Jeezy Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (or Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. Signing to Def Jam Recordings in 2004, his major label debut, '' Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101'', was released the followin ...

and T.I. are referenced on this song. The music video for the song was released on December 8, 2009. "Heavy" was released as the album's second promotional single on November 25, 2009.

Other songs

The videos for the deluxe edition tracks "Bricks" (featuring Yung Ralph and

Yo Gotti Mario Sentell Giden Mims (born May 19, 1981), known professionally as Yo Gotti, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record executive. In 1996, Gotti released his debut album ''Youngsta's On a Come Up'' under the alias Lil Yo. He went on to re ...

), "Photoshoot", and "She Got a Friend" (featuring

Juelz Santana LaRon Louis James (born February 18, 1982), better known by his stage name Juelz Santana, is an American rapper and member of East Coast hip hop group The Diplomats, also known as Dipset. He is best known for his appearances on Cam'ron's 2002 si ...

and

Big Boi Antwan André Patton (born February 1, 1975), better known by his stage name Big Boi, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is best known for being a member of the southern hip hop duo Outkast alongside André 300 ...

) were released on

on October 20, 2011. A music video was also filmed for "All About the Money", featuring

. "Bricks" and "Photoshoot" managed to peak at number 19 and 18 on the US ''Billboard''

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart, respectively. "I'm a Dog" (featuring DG Yola) and "Sex in Crazy Places" (featuring

Bobby V Bobby Marcel Wilson (born February 27, 1980), better known by his stage name Bobby V (also known as Bobby Valentino), is an American R&B singer. He was first a member of the R&B group Mista in 1994, before signing to rapper Ludacris through h ...

, and

Trina Katrina Laverne Taylor (born December 3, 1978), known professionally as Trina, is an American rapper. She rose to prominence in 1998 with her appearance on the Trick Daddy single "Nann Nigga". Trina has been described by '' XXL'' as "the mos ...

) debuted on the same chart at number 8 and number 22, respectively, due to digital sales.

Critical reception

''The State vs. Radric Davis'' received generally favorable reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

. At

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that 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 average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7 ...

score of 66, based on 11 reviews. Joshua Errett of '' NOW'' gave the album high praise for its "loveable simplicity" on the typical hip-hop clichés and said that its cast of guest artists and producers combined with Gucci's performance would turn the record into "rap's album of the year." Gregory Heaney of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

praised the producers and guest artists for creating an album that's a culmination of the Dirty South sound and Gucci for straddling the line between excessive and contemplative, saying that, "At the end of the day, ''The State vs. Radric Davis'' delivers the full spectrum of Gucci Mane, showing both the cash and yellow diamond-loving side, as well as his more reflective (or at least more self-aware) side." Rob Markman of '' XXL'' also credited the album for having the producers supply it with great sounds and for giving Gucci some guests artists he can trade lines with, concluding that "musically, ''The State vs. Radric Davis'' has proven the rapper's case beyond a reasonable doubt. So when rap fans ask if he is now a bankable hip-hop star, let the record show that Gucci mane is guilty as charged." ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally ...

'' writer Sean Fennessey was fascinated by Gucci's "low-toned voice, relentless repetition, and brilliantly goofy way with vocabulary" in his lyrical delivery and how subversive he can be on tracks like "Heavy" and "Worst Enemy", concluding that, "Gucci is not always so reflective; sometimes he's as broad and bracing as a ball-peen hammer ..But more often than not, the prolific MC limits his id, and emphasizes a surprisingly gripping superego." Louis Cloutier of ''RapReviews'' commended the contributions from Fatboi and Drumma Boy throughout the record but was critical of Gucci's limited skills as a rapper, pointing out he excels in the "light-hearted goofiness" of the former but gets overshadowed by the guest artists who ride the latter's "dark and serious tone" better than he does, with the exception of "Worst Enemy", concluding that "In short, there's nothing seriously wrong with Gucci Mane, but there's nothing seriously right either." Michaelangelo Matos of '' The A.V. Club'' credited Gucci for compensating his rap delivery over "tinny keyboards and booming drum machines" with "sharp wordplay" but found that formula for the album lacking and suggested listening to his free mixtapes. Paul MacInnes of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' found the album disappointing, calling the Dirty South sound "by the numbers", the producers' contributions unengaging and Gucci's mumbling delivery hard to listen to. Rob Boffard of '' NME'' criticized Gucci's flow and lyricism for being monotonous and irritating and the producers and guest artists for not offering anything worthy to the album, concluding that "'…''Radric Davis'' is deeply flawed, and ultimately Gucci has committed the worst crime in rap: he’s boring."

Track listing

;Sample credits *"Lemonade" contains a sample of "Keep It Warm" performed by Flo & Eddie *"Kush Is My Cologne" contains a sample of "I Got Em" performed by

and J Money ;Interpolate credits *"Kush Is My Cologne" contains an interpolation of "Rehab" performed by

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A membe ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:State vs. Radric Davis, The 2009 albums Gucci Mane albums Asylum Records albums Albums produced by Bangladesh (record producer) Albums produced by Drumma Boy Albums produced by Fatboi Albums produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League Albums produced by Jazze Pha Albums produced by Mannie Fresh Albums produced by Polow da Don Albums produced by Shawty Redd Albums produced by Scott Storch Albums produced by Zaytoven Warner Records albums