''All Hail the Queen'' is the debut studio album by American rapper

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, singer, and actress. She has received various accolades, including a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe ...

. The album was released on November 7, 1989, through

Tommy Boy Records Tommy Boy Records is an American independent record label and multimedia brand founded in 1981 by Tom Silverman. The label is credited with helping and launching the music careers of Queen Latifah, Amber, Afrika Bambaataa, Stetsasonic, Digita ...

. The feminist anthem "Ladies First", featuring Monie Love, remains one of Latifah's signature songs. ''All Hail the Queen'' peaked at No. 6 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Top Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart and at No. 124 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. "Wrath of My Madness" was the first single from ''All Hail the Queen,'' and was later sampled in

Yo-Yo A yo-yo (also spelled yoyo) is a toy consisting of an axle connected to two disks, and a string looped around the axle, similar to a spool. It is an ancient toy with proof of existence since 440 BC. The yo-yo was also called a bandalore in th ...

's "You Can't Play with My Yo-Yo". "Mama Gave Birth to the Soul Children" peaked at No. 14 in the UK. In 2023, the album was selected for preservation in the United States

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

by the

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as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Critical reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' noted that "the backup tracks are sometimes rich enough to carry the album on their own, but they don't have to; some songs have vocal choruses, while in others Queen Latifah's rising and falling speech provides melody enough." ''

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'' called the album "international ghetto music filtered through hip-hop's strongest feminist sensibility." In 1998, ''All Hail the Queen'' was included in ''

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''s "100 Best Albums" list. It was later featured in Robert Dimery's ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music criti ...

''. In 2008, the single "Ladies First" was ranked number 35 on

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.

Legacy

In 2023, ''All Hail the Queen'' was inducted into the Library of Congress's

, based on its "cultural, historical or aesthetic importance in the nation’s recorded sound heritage." In their statement explaining their inclusion of the album, the Library of Congress said, " ueen Latifah'salbum showed rap could cross genres including

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

, hip-hop,

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, and

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– while also opening opportunities for other female rappers."

Track listing

Personnel

* Daddy O – Producer, Performer, Mixing *

De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...

– Performer *Dr. Jam – Remixing *

KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from the Bronx. He rose to prominence as part of the ...

– Producer, Mixing *Queen Latifah – Producer, Mixing * Monie Love – Performer * DJ Mark the 45 King – Producer, Performer, Mixing * Paul C. – Engineer, Mixing * Prince Paul – Producer, Mixing *Soulshock – Remixing *Dwayne Sumal – Engineer *Rob Sutton – Mixing *Ted Jensen – Mastering *Mike Teelucksingh – Engineer *Little Louie Vega – Producer, Mixing *Dr. Shane Faber – Bass, Engineer *Dan Miller – Engineer, Mixing *Bob Coulter – Engineer, Mixing *Al Watts – Engineer, Mixing *Steven Miglio – Artwork, Design, Layout Design *Dante Ross – Production Coordination, Production Consultant *Ultimatum – Remixing *Dilly d'Mus – Assistant Engineer *Louis Vego – Producer, Mixing *Howard Zucker – Typography *Jane Wexler – Photography *Bart Everly – Photography *Christopher Shaw – Engineer *Gawthaman Gobinath – Make-up Artist

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Charting singles

References

External links

''All Hail the Queen''
(

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) at

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(streamed copy where licensed) {{DEFAULTSORT:All Hail The Queen Queen Latifah albums 1989 debut albums Tommy Boy Records albums Albums produced by Prince Paul (producer) Albums produced by KRS-One Albums produced by the 45 King United States National Recording Registry recordings United States National Recording Registry albums