The Originators is the fifth studio album by American hip hop duo The Beatnuts. It was released on July 23, 2002, via Landspeed Records. Recording sessions took place at Soho Studios and The Big Fat Suite in New York. Production was handled entirely by the Beatnuts, except for one song, "Originate", which was produced by member JuJu and Large Professor. It features guest appearances from Problemz, Amaretta, Chris Chandler, Cormega, El Gant, Ill Bill, Large Professor, Marley Metal, Tony Touch, Triple Seis and former member Al' Tariq.

The Originators
Studio album by
ReleasedJuly 23, 2002 (2002-07-23)
Recorded2001–02
Studio
  • Soho Music Studios (New York, NY)
  • Big Fat Suite (New York, NY)
GenreHip hop
Length45:43
LabelLandspeed Records
Producer
The Beatnuts chronology
Take It or Squeeze It
(2001)
The Originators
(2002)
Milk Me
(2004)
Singles from The Originators
  1. "Buying out the Bar"
    Released: November 19, 2002
  2. "Work That Pole"
    Released: 2002
  3. "Ya Betta Believe It"
    Released: April 28, 2003
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
RapReviews8/10[2]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]

Likely because of its indie record label, it failed to reach the Billboard 200 like the Beatnuts' prior four full-length albums, but managed to appear on the Independent Albums chart. Its beats and party vibe were well received, but its lyrics were criticized for lacking substance in the same vein as prior releases. Four singles were released in promotion of The Originators, but none of them charted.

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"  1:29
2."Bring the Funk Back"
The Beatnuts3:06
3."Yae Yo" (featuring Ill Bill and Problemz)
The Beatnuts3:46
4."Drunk Skit"  0:11
5."Buying out the Bar" (featuring Chris Chandler)
  • L. Fernandez
  • Tineo
The Beatnuts3:21
6."Work That Pole" (featuring Tony Touch)
The Beatnuts3:59
7."Originate" (featuring Large Professor)
3:51
8."My Music" (featuring Armaretta and Problemz)
  • L. Fernandez
  • E. Hernandez
  • Bullock
The Beatnuts3:09
9."U Crazy" (featuring Cormega)
The Beatnuts3:40
10."Ya Betta Believe It"
  • L. Fernandez
  • Tineo
The Beatnuts3:42
11."Routine"
  • L. Fernandez
  • Tineo
The Beatnuts3:56
12."Bionic" (featuring El Gant and Al Tariq)
The Beatnuts3:20
13."Becks 'N Branson" (featuring Triple Seis and Marley Metal)
The Beatnuts5:17
14."Back 2 Back"L. FernandezThe Beatnuts2:56
Total length:45:43

Personnel

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  • Lester "Psycho Les" Fernandez – vocals, producer (tracks: 2, 3, 5, 6, 8-14), mixing (tracks: 2, 3, 5-14), executive producer
  • Jerry "JuJu" Tineo – vocals, producer & mixing (tracks: 2, 3, 5-14), executive producer
  • Berntony "Al' Tariq" Smalls – vocals (track 12)
  • Corey "Problemz" Bullock – vocals (tracks: 3, 8)
  • William "Ill Bill" Braunstein – vocals (track 3)
  • Chris Chandler – vocals (track 5), additional vocals (tracks: 6, 10)
  • Joseph "Tony Touch" Hernandez – vocals (track 6)
  • Big Ang – additional vocals (track 6)
  • William Paul "Large Professor" Mitchell – vocals & producer (track 7)
  • E. "Armaretta" Hernandez – vocals (track 8)
  • Cory "Cormega" McKay – vocals (track 9)
  • Joshua Adam "El Gant" Gent – vocals (track 12)
  • Sammy "Triple Seis" Garcia – vocals (track 13)
  • Marley Fernandez – vocals (track 13)
  • Chris Conway – recording (tracks: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 14), mixing (tracks: 2, 3, 5, 7-11, 13, 14)
  • Ryan West – recording (tracks: 2, 5, 6, 8-12), mixing (tracks: 6, 12)
  • Henley Halem – co-executive producer
  • Trevor "Karma" Gendron – design

Charts

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Chart (2002) Peak
position
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[4] 57

References

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  1. ^ Marshall, Kingsley. "The Beatnuts - The Originators Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  2. ^ Juon, Steve 'Flash' (January 5, 2003). "The Beatnuts :: The Originators :: Junkyard/Pit Fight/LandSpeed Records". www.rapreviews.com. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  3. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. pp. 54–55. ISBN 978-0-7432-0169-8.
  4. ^ "The Beatnuts Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard.
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