''Alive Till I'm Dead'' is the first

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by the English

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...

Professor Green, released on 16 July 2010. The album includes guest vocals by

Lily Allen Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen, Her accolades include a Brit Award, alongside nominations for a Grammy Award and a Laurence Olivi ...

Example Example may refer to: * ''exempli gratia'' (e.g.), usually read out in English as "for example" * .example, reserved as a domain name that may not be installed as a top-level domain of the Internet ** example.com, example.net, example.org, an ...

, Labrinth and

Emeli Sandé Adele Emily Sandé ( ; previously Gouraguine; born 10 March 1987), known professionally as Emeli Sandé, is a British singer and songwriter. Born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England and raised in Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, Sandé rose t ...

, among others.

Background

"Just Be Good to Green" was originally written and produced back in July 2007 when Green was signed to Mike Skinner's record label, The Beats. It was composed and produced by Semothy Jones, and at the time featured Neon Hitch on the chorus. When The Beats closed down, the track was put on hold, and later purchased by Green for use on his next record. Green spoke about how the collaboration came about between him and Lily Allen, saying that they began speaking through

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

. Green said, "We got chatting on Facebook and I mentioned the track, which turned out to be one of her favourite songs. She suggested her singing the chorus. I didn't take much persuading! Lily's wicked. She's straightforward and honest, you always know where you're at with her."

Singles

* " I Need You Tonight" was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland as the first single from ''Alive Till I'm Dead''. The song features guest vocals from Ed Drewett. It was written by Professor Green, produced by The ThundaCatz, mixed by Steve Fitzmaurice. The single debuted at number 3 in the UK Singles Chart and also did well in Ireland, where it charted at number 15. "I Need You Tonight" samples the 1987 rock/ new wave song " Need You Tonight" by

INXS INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as the Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney. The founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, gu ...

. * "

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" is the second single from the album. It features guest vocals from Allen and was officially released on 25 June 2010. It has been released around the world. The song charted at number 52 in Australia. "Just Be Good to Green" samples the 1983 R&B song " Just Be Good to Me" by The SOS Band. * "

Monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...

" is the third single from album. It features vocals from

and was released on 1 October 2010. Video shooting started on 8 September. The video was released on 17 September 2010. * "

Jungle jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅgala'' ...

" is the fourth single from the album. It features guest vocals from Maverick Sabre and was released on 20 December. It peaked at 31 on the UK Singles Chart and 9 on the

UK R&B Chart Official Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart The UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart and the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart (also known as The Official UK Hip Hop and R&B Charts, and previously the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Singles and the Top 40 Hip Hop and ...

Commercial performance

The album debuted at No. 2 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

. The album is now platinum, selling 400,000 copies in UK.

Reception

''Alive Till I'm Dead'' received positive reviews from music critics, with ''

BBC Music BBC Music is the arm of the BBC responsible for the music played across its services. The current director of music is Lorna Clarke. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio operational division; however, its remit also includes music used i ...

'' describing the album as "fizzy, dramatic and inventive as pop should be without losing his initial grime edge". Paul MacInnes of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' gave a similar review, agreeging that it was "Pop music, yes, but sparky and cleverly composed pop that still has an ear for the club". He also remarked that Professor Green has a "flow like an estuary Eminem and a humorous sensibility reminiscent of Lily Allen". Helen Clarke of ''

MusicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...

'' also praised the album, also comparing Professor Green with

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...

, saying that "''Alive Till I'm Dead'' grabs you like the first few times you heard ''The Slim Shady LP''". She also wrote that the album was a "ball of tightly wound bitterness, anger and aggression", while also managing to be "cheeky, playful and almost frighteningly confident and experimental". Jesal Padania of ''RapReviews'' gave a positive review, tempered with a feeling that Professor Green is "so much more" than what his record label have allowed him to display thus far.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2010 debut albums Virgin Records albums Professor Green albums Albums produced by Labrinth Albums produced by Semothy Jones Albums produced by Naughty Boy