Harlem's American Gangster Explained

Harlem's American Gangster
Type:mixtape
Artist:Jim Jones
Cover:Harlem's American Gangster.jpg
Released:February 19, 2008
Recorded:2007–2008
Genre:East Coast Hip hop
Label:Koch/Diplomat
Producer:ByrdGang (exec.), I.N.F.O. & NOVA, DJ Khalil, Chinky P, Chad Beatz, Oneya, P Riot, Andreas Dombrowski, Pete Rock, Justa Beast, Feva, King James, Chink Santana
Prev Title:A Dipset X-Mas
Prev Year:2006
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Next Year:2008

Harlem's American Gangster is the sixth mixtape by American hip hop rapper Jim Jones released to digital retailers on February 19, 2008 under Koch Records. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number one on the Top Rap Albums chart. The Koch CD was remixed and remastered from a limited edition release that came out the previous November. There was also a change in the track list, with some tracks added and others omitted. The mixtape is hosted by Dame Dash and features the entire ByrdGang crew. "Love Me No More" was released as a single but didn't reach any major Billboard charts.

Album information

Jim Jones explained to MTV why he chose to do the album,"The title of this mixtape is a bit controversial," Jim recently told Mixtape Monday about his response to Jay-Z's American Gangster. "[Roc-A-Fella co-founder] Dame [Dash] feels the same way I do about American gangsters: If you snitch, you're not an American gangster. Understand me. That's what we're doing it for." Dame actually crops up on the mixtape — he surfaces in the intro and in a series of skits — while Byrd Gang flagship member Max B did some co-writing. Don't miss "Byrd Gang Money," "Love Me No More" and "Up in Harlem."[1]

Track listing

TitleProducer(s)LengthNotes
1"Intro" (featuring Oshy and Dame Dash)Chinky P.5:06
2"The King" (featuring NOE)I.N.F.O. & NOVA2:58
3"Love Me No More" (featuring Kobe)DJ Khalil2:41
4"Dame Dash Skit #1"Chinky P0:35
5"Byrd Gang Money" (featuring Mel Matrix & NOE)Chad Beatz4:26
6"Stay Ballin"Oneya2:10
7"Dame Dash Skit #2"Chinky P1:04
8"Come on, Come On" (featuring NOE & Oshy)Jonny Bro2:58
9"I Gotta Have It" (featuring NOE)Andreas Dombrowski3:05
10"Dame Dash Skit #3"Chinky P0:36
11"Up in Harlem"Pete Rock1:37Contains elements of the composition "Native New Yorker" by Odyssey
12"American Gangsta"Justa Beast2:36
13"Lifestyle"Feva3:34
14"Dame Dash Skit #4" (featuring Haruomi Hosono)Chinky P.1:49
15"Lookin' at the Game" (featuring Stack Bundles)King James3:56Contains elements of the composition "Gucci Time" by Schoolly D
16"Rockefeller Laws" (featuring Rell)Chink Santana4:47
17"No Fuss" (featuring Mel Matrix & Stack Bundles)The Phantom Boyz3:32

Differences from the original release

The Koch release omitted "Global Money Skit", "Two More Blocks", "Money Comes and Money Goes", and "Poverty" from the "unofficial" version, and added "Come on, Come On", "I Gotta Have It", "Lookin at the Game", "Rockefeller Laws", and "No Fuss". Additionally, The Game does not appear on "Love Me No More" as he does on the "unofficial" version of the album.

Charts

Year-end charts

Notes and References

  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20080229011658/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1581730/20080215/jones_jim_rap_.jhtml Jim Jones Tries To School Kidz Bop; Plus Kurt Cobain And More, In New Releases
  2. Web site: Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2008. Billboard. October 12, 2020.