''By All Means Necessary'' is the second studio album by American

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group

Boogie Down Productions Boogie Down Productions (BDP) was an American hip-hop group formed in the Bronx, New York City, in 1986. It originally consisted of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, five months after the ...

, released on April 12, 1988, by

Jive Records Jive Records (later stylized as JIVE Records) was a British-American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary of the Zomba Group of Companies, Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chic ...

. After the 1987 murder of DJ-producer

Scott La Rock Scott Monroe Sterling (March 2, 1962 – August 27, 1987), known by the stage name DJ Scott La Rock, was an American hip-hop disc jockey and music producer from the Bronx, New York. He was a founding member of the East Coast hip hop group Boog ...

, MC

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 ...

moved away from the violent themes that dominated Boogie Down Productions's debut album, ''

Criminal Minded ''Criminal Minded'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Boogie Down Productions. It was released in 1987 through B-Boy Records. It is considered a highly influential hip hop album and one of the first in the gangsta rap genre. ...

'', and began writing socially conscious songs using the

moniker A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

the Teacher.

Album information

Accompanied by

minimalist In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

production and hard-hitting drum beats, KRS-One covers social issues that include

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

and

police corruption Police corruption is a form of police misconduct in which a law enforcement officer breaks their political contract and abuses their power for personal gain. A corrupt officer may act alone or as part of a group. Corrupt acts include taking ...

safe sex Safe sex is sexual activity using methods or contraceptive devices (such as condoms) to reduce the risk of transmitting or acquiring sexually transmitted infections (STIs), especially HIV. "Safe sex" is also sometimes referred to as safer ...

, government involvement in the drug trade, and violence in the hip hop community. The album's cover art and title both make reference to

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an African American revolutionary, Islam in the United States, Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figur ...

. The cover, depicting KRS-One, references an iconic photograph of Malcolm X peering through a window while holding an

M1 carbine The M1 carbine (formally the United States carbine, caliber .30, M1) is a lightweight semi-automatic carbine chambered in the .30 carbine (7.62×33mm) cartridge that was issued to the U.S. military during World War II, the Korean War, and t ...

rifle, and the title is a modification of Malcolm X's famous phrase "

by any means necessary By any means necessary is an English phrase, or a translation of a French phrase that has been attributed to at least three famous sources. The earliest of these three sources is French leftist intellectual Jean-Paul Sartre in his 1948 play '' Di ...

". As of September 25, 1989, the album was certified

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

in sales by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

Reception

The album is widely seen as one of, if not the first, politically conscious efforts in hip-hop.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

critic Steve Huey described the album as a landmark of political hip hop that's unfairly lost in the shadow of

Public Enemy Public Enemy is an American Hip-hop, hip hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as Racism in the United States, American r ...

's ''

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ''It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back'' is the second studio album by American Hip hop music, hip hop group Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was recorded from 1987 to 1988 in sessio ...

''.

Anthony DeCurtis Anthony DeCurtis (born June 25, 1951) is an American author and music critic, who has written for ''Rolling Stone,'' ''The New York Times'', '' Relix'' and many other publications. Career DeCurtis is a contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'', ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' praised its social commentary and wrote, "Over irresistible beats provided by his BDP cohorts, KRS delivers the word on the drug trade, AIDS and violence—three forces that threaten to destroy minority communities." In 1998, ''By All Means Necessary'' was included in ''

The Source The Source may refer to: Film and television * ''The Source'' (1918 film), 1918 American drama directed by George Melford * ''The Source'' (1999 film), a 1999 documentary film about the Beat generation * ''The Source'' (2002 film), a 2002 scienc ...

''s "100 Best Albums" list. In 2008, the single "My Philosophy"Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
was ranked number 49 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.

Track listing

*All songs were written, produced and performed by

Samples used

*"My Philosophy" contains a sample from the

Stanley Turrentine Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophone, tenor saxophonist and record producer. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note Reco ...

song "Sister Sanctified". *"Ya Slippin'" contains an interpolation of the

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

song "

Smoke on the Water "Smoke on the Water" is a song by English rock band Deep Purple, released on their 1972 studio album '' Machine Head''. The song's lyrics are based on true events, chronicling the 1971 fire at Montreux Casino in Montreux, Switzerland. It is ...

" and has the beat from "Poetry" from BDP's ''

''. *"Stop the Violence" contains the

riddim In Jamaican dancehall music, a riddim is the instrumental accompaniment to a song and is synonymous with the rhythm section. Jamaican music genres that use the term consist of the ''riddim'' plus the ''voicing'' (vocal part) sung by the deeja ...

from the Courtney Melody recording "This Sound a Dem Trouble". *"Illegal Business" contains samples from the

Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids ''Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids'' (often referred to simply as ''Fat Albert'') is an educational American animated television series created, produced, and hosted (in live action bookends) by comedian Bill Cosby, who also lent his voice to a nu ...

recording "Creativity" and the

Jefferson Starship Jefferson Starship is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1974 by a group of musicians including former members of Jefferson Airplane. Between 1974 and 1984, they released eight RIAA certification, gold or Music rec ...

recording "Rock Music". *"Nervous" contains samples from the

Rhythm Heritage Rhythm Heritage was a 1970s American funk/R&B band, best known for their 1976 US number one single " Theme from ''S.W.A.T.''". It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA ...

recording "Sky's the Limit" and the

War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

recording "Galaxy". *"I'm Still #1" contains a sample from the All the People (featuring Robert Moore) recording "Cramp Your Style". *"Part-Time Suckers" contains samples from the

Smokey Robinson & the Miracles The Miracles (later known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1955. They were the first successful recording act for Motown Records and are considered one of the most ...

recording "

Mickey's Monkey Mickey's is a brand of malt liquor made by the Miller Brewing Company, a subsidiary of Molson Coors. It has a 5.6% ABV. The brand was created by Sterling Brewery in Evansville, Indiana, which brewed it from 1962 through 1972, when the company w ...

" and interpolation from

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

's song "

Part-Time Lover "Part-Time Lover" is a song by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the first single from his twentieth studio album, '' In Square Circle'' (1985). The song reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, R&B, dance, ...

". *"Jimmy" contains the basic rhythm from the

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

song "

Let 'Em In "Let 'Em In" is a song by Wings from their 1976 album '' Wings at the Speed of Sound''. It was written and sung by Paul McCartney and reached the top 3 in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. It was a No. 2 hit in the UK; in t ...

" and a sample from

the Sequence The Sequence was an American hip hop group formed in Columbia, South Carolina in 1979, that comprised Angie B., Blondy, and Cheryl the Pearl. Their debut album, ''Sugar Hill Presents The Sequence'' (1980), was released on Sugar Hill Records an ...

song "Funk You Up."

Charts

Album Singles

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Boogie Down Productions albums Jive Records albums RCA Records albums 1988 albums Albums produced by KRS-One