Masquerade (Wyclef Jean album) explained

Masquerade
Type:	studio
Artist:	Wyclef Jean
Cover:	Masquerade Wyclef Jean.jpg
Released:	June 18, 2002 (US)
Recorded:	2001–2002
Genre:	Hip hop
Length:	68:55
Label:	Columbia
Producer:	Wyclef Jean, Farel Jean, Shea Taylor, Jessica Harley and Jerry 'Wonder' Duplessis
Prev Year:	2000
Next Title:	Greatest Hits
Next Year:	2003

Masquerade is the third studio album released by Haitian hip hop musician Wyclef Jean. The album was released on June 18, 2002. The album debuted at number six on the US Billboard 200 chart, making it Jean's highest-charting album.

Singles

The album features the singles "Two Wrongs", "Pussycat" and "Knockin' On Heaven's Door". Tom Jones makes a guest appearance on the album, singing his rendition of "Pussycat".

Commercial performance

Masquerade debuted at number six on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 82,000 copies in its first week of release.^[1] This became Jean’s second US top-ten album on the chart.^[2] The album also debuted at number two on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. As of May 2003, the album has sold 357,000 copies in the United States.^[3]

Track listing

Sample credits

• "Peace God" contains elements from:
  • "Let's Straighten It Out", written by Benjamin Lattimore, and performed by Latimore.
  • "Chuji Komari-Uta", written by Toshio Nomura and Itsuro Hattori, and performed by Yatsuo Koyama and Tokyo Mandalin.
• "Masquerade" contains replayed elements from "Apache", written by Jerry Lordan.
• "You Say Keep It Gangsta" contains elements from "Two Sisters of Mystery", written by Neftali Santiago, and performed by Mandrill.
• "Oh What a Night" contains replayed elements from:
  • "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)", written by Bob Gaudio and Judy Parker.
  • "Leaving on a Jet Plane", written by John Denver.
• "Pussycat" contains elements from "What's New Pussycat?", written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, and performed by Tom Jones.
• "The Mix Show" contains elements from:
  • "Pass the Dutchie", written by Jackie Mittoo, Headley Bennett, Lloyd Ferguson, Leroy Sibbles, Robert Lyn, Huford Brown, and Fitzroy Simpson; performed by Musical Youth.
  • "Material Man", written by Gregory Isaacs and Sylvester Weise, performed by Gregory Isaacs.

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart (2002)	Position
Canadian R&B Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)^[4]	90
Canadian Rap Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)^[5]	48
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[6]	62

Notes and References

1. Web site: Josh Groban Rules Billboard Chart For Third Straight Week: Blake Lewis Barely Cracks Top 10. MTV. Chris Harris. December 12, 2007. June 1, 2017.
2. Web site: Josh Groban Rules Billboard Chart For Third Straight Week: Blake Lewis Barely Cracks Top 10. MTV. Chris Harris. December 12, 2007. June 1, 2017.
3. Web site: Wyclef Wings It To J Records. Billboard. May 18, 2003. June 1, 2017.
4. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20031012032620/http://www.jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2002_r&b.html. October 12, 2003. Canada's Top 200 R&B; albums of 2002. Jam!. March 27, 2022.
5. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20031012032336/http://www.jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2002_rap.html. October 12, 2003. Top 100 rap albums of 2002 in Canada. Jam!. March 27, 2022.
6. Web site: Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2002. Billboard. August 31, 2020.