O.G. Original Gangster (1991)

O.G. Original Gangster is the fourth studio album by American rapper Ice-T, released May 14, 1991, by Sire Records. Recording took place from July 1990 to January 1991 in Los Angeles. Its production was handled by seven producers: Afrika Islam, Beatmaster V, Bilal Bashir, DJ Aladdin, Nat the Cat, SLJ and Ice-T himself, who also served as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Body Count, Prince Whipper Whip and various Rhyme Syndicate artists, such as Donald D, Evil E and Randy Mac.

The album peaked at number 15 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number 9 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. On July 24, 1991, it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, indicating U.S. sales of more than 500,000 units. O.G. Original Gangster was ranked at #25 in Melody Maker's list of the top 30 albums of 1991, and was featured in The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums and the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. The album was praised by many as his best.

Release

On the album's release, the vinyl version only contained 16 of the compact disc's 24 tracks. The NME stated to "forget the format's limitations" and promoted the compact disc version with 24 tracks over the lp.

Critical reception

From contemporary reviews, NME critic Dele Fadele praised O.G. Original Gangster as Ice-T's "best shot yet; riotous vignettes from a decaying America full of devious humour and striking pathos – all those things NWA profess to be but clearly aren't." Fadele found that the music "is always restlessly inventive in catering for your solar plexus (even on the hardcore/Heavy Metal crossover token track)" and "complements highlights like the sad, droning 'The Tower', the optimistic 'Escape from the Killing Fields' (a scathing re-write of Public Enemy's 'Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos' that explains the original metaphor) and the out-of-character bad-tempered 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Infamous'".

In a negative review for Select, Adam Higginbotham wrote that only three tracks – "Mind Over Matter", "The Tower" and "The House" – are "outstanding", while "much of the rest relies on a well-tested recipe of looped breakbeats and linear drums"; he concluded that the album "often functions better as manifesto than as music."

Commercial performance

The album was certified gold on July 24, 1991, selling over 500,000 copies.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.