The Villain in Black explained

The Villain in Black
Type:studio
Artist:MC Ren
Cover:1274532773 folder.jpg
Recorded:1994–1996
Genre:Gangsta rap, G-funk, political hip hop
Producer:Executive producers
Additional producers
Prev Title:Shock of the Hour
Prev Year:1993
Next Title:Ruthless for Life
Next Year:1998

The Villain in Black is the second album by rapper MC Ren, released April 9, 1996, on Ruthless Records and distributed by Relativity Records.

Background

After the release and success of his critically acclaimed debut studio album Shock of the Hour in late 1993, MC Ren immediately began working on his sophomore album. The deaths of DJ Train and Eazy-E would however prove to be a huge setback and Ren stepped off the scene for a while. Meanwhile, he continued his work with the Nation of Islam, and visited Egypt in mid-1995. Following his return from Egypt, MC Ren continued to work on his album, this time however scrapping all the material he recorded with DJ Train. Enlisting Cold 187um and Dr. Jam to produce his album, Ren began recording new material.

Content

Lyrics

While making The Villain in Black, MC Ren was closely affiliated with the Nation of Islam, which had a large impact on the some parts of the album's content. Khalid Muhammad appeared in the track "Muhammad Speaks," where he spoke about the history of the rights of African-Americans. He also made an appearance on the closing track "Bring It On".

Production

The majority of the album's production was handled by Cold 187um of Above the Law and Dr. Jam. It also features production by Madness 4 Real and Big Jessie.

Album title

The album titles is a reference to MC Ren's nickname, The Villain.

Singles

Two singles were released from the album: "Mad Scientist" and "Keep It Real".

Release and reception

Commercial performance

The album debuted number 31 on Billboard 200, with the first-week sales of 31,000 copies.

Personnel

Charts

Album

Charts (1996)Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200[1] 31
U.S. Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums[2] 7

Singles

YearSinglePeak chart positions
U.S. Hot 100U.S. R&BU.S. Rap
1996"Mad Scientist"
"Keep It Real"10643

Notes and References

  1. MC Ren Chart History (Billboard 200). Billboard . 17 January 2022.
  2. MC Ren Chart History: (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums) . Billboard . 24 January 2022.