''Slaughterhouse'' is the self-titled debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

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- ...

supergroup,

Slaughterhouse In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a mea ...

, consisting of members

Crooked I Dominick Antron Wickliffe (born September 23, 1976), better known by his stage name Kxng Crooked, (stylised as KXNG Crooked and pronounced "King Crooked"; formerly Crooked I) is an American rapper from Long Beach, California. He formed the hip ho ...

Joe Budden Joseph Anthony Budden II (born August 31, 1980) is an American broadcaster and former rapper. He first gained recognition with his 2003 single " Pump It Up", which peaked in the top 40 of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and preceded the release of h ...

Joell Ortiz Joell Christopher Ortiz (born July 6, 1980) is an American rapper and former member of the group Slaughterhouse. Raised in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn's Cooper Park Houses, he first gained recognition after appearing in the Unsigned Hype colu ...

and

Royce da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery (born July 5, 1977), known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, they became acquainted in 1997 and formed the hi ...

. The album was released on August 11, 2009 on

E1 Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch"), formerly known as Koch Records and Entertainment One (eOne) Music/Records, is an American independent record label and music management company based in New York City. It was formed in 1987 as a music div ...

and sold 18,600 copies in its first week.

Background

In June 2009,

E1 Entertainment E1, E01, E.I or E-1 may refer to: Transportation Aircraft * Azcárate E-1, a Mexican sesquiplane trainer * Fokker E.I, a German fighter aircraft * Grumman E-1 Tracer, an American airborne early warning aircraft * Hydra Technologies E1 Gavil� ...

announced the album. The group came together when

was working on a song for his ''

Halfway House A halfway house is a type of prison or institute intended to teach (or reteach) the necessary skills for people to re-integrate into society and better support and care for themselves. Halfway houses are typically either state sponsored for those ...

'' album and enlisted the services of

and

for a song entitled "Slaughterhouse". Inspired by the vibe of track and the immediate chemistry of the four rappers, a plan was immediately made to form the supergroup.

Delay

The album release date was changed from July 7 to August 11. Royce da 5'9" said that the group wanted more time to put into set up and marketing with its label

. On his interview with

AllHipHop ''AllHipHop'' is a hip-hop news website founded by Greg Watkins and Chuck Creekmur in 1998. History The website was founded in 1998 by Greg Watkins and Chuck Creekmur. In 1997, Watkins registered the allhiphop.com domain to promote the artist ...

on June 12, Royce told: "Even though this roupis a new way of doing business, we still gotta stick to the old school script when it comes time to market this, to have the proper time to set up a record. We're not idiots. We understand the concept of labels throwing something against the wall and seeing if it sticks. That's not what we are in business to do. We're still in the business of selling records, because we feel we have a great product to present to the public." The Detroit rapper also stated that the lyrics and the music came together in a way that made them want to generate maximum interest in the self-titled début. Royce continued: "All the push back has to do

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometers, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is i ...

is the set up. It's great music. My biggest concern with making the project is us picking the best beats possible. Rhyming is there. The best music possible is what I was always concerned with, that's why a lot of songs came out so good. Joell Ortiz, a Brooklyn-bred artist, said that the process of creating the album was arduous, yet fun. "It was definitely the busiest session I had ever been in my life. To come out with the product that we do have, was ridiculous." On June 16 via SOHH, the group apologized to their fans and assured them there would be no more delays.

Music

The album features production from Focus...,

the Alchemist An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to: Books and stories * ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho * ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Ben ...

DJ Khalil Khalil Abdul-Rahman Hazzard (born October 16, 1974), professionally known as DJ Khalil, is an American music producer and disc jockey, DJ from Los Angeles. The son of National Basketball Association, NBA player Walt Hazzard, he signed with rapp ...

, Streetrunner,

D12 D12 (an initialism for the Dirty Dozen) was an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1996, the group achieved mainstream success with its lineup of ''de facto'' leader Eminem, Proof, Bizarre, Kon Artis, Kuniva and Swifty McV ...

Mr. Porter Denaun Montez Porter (born December 7, 1978), also known by the stage names Mr. Porter, Kon Artis, or Denaun, is an American rapper and record producer. He was a member of Detroit hip hop group D12. He has a close association with rapper Emin ...

and more. On June 18, 2009, a street single was released via Joe Budden's Twitter. The track is "Woodstock (Hood Hop)" which is produced by

Nottz Dominick J. Lamb, (born February 21, 1977) better known by his stage name Nottz (or Nottz Raw), is an American hip hop producer and rapper from Norfolk, Virginia. Life and career Some of Nottz's earliest production work was on the Rawkus ...

and features

M.O.P. M.O.P. (short for Mash Out Posse) is an American hip-hop duo composed of rappers Billy Danze and Lil' Fame, best known for their song " Ante Up." The group has frequently collaborated with DJ Premier. The group is part of the Gang Starr Fou ...

on the hook. The first official single from the album was "

The One The One may refer to: Buildings * The One (shopping centre), a shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong * The One (Toronto), a mixed-use skyscraper under development in Toronto, Canada * The One, a residential skyscraper under constru ...

". The video, shot and directed by

Rik Cordero Rik Cordero (born 1979 as Fredric Joseph Cordero) is an American film director and musician. Cordero was born and raised in Queens, New York and is known for applying unusual, non-traditional shooting methods in his work. He was nominated for Vi ...

, premiered on July 12 online and on MTV2 Sucka Free & MTV Jams hourly. Royce confirmed that

Pharoahe Monch Troy Donald Jamerson (born October 31, 1972), better known by his stage name Pharoahe Monch, is an American rapper known for his complex lyrics, intricate delivery, and internal and multisyllabic rhyme schemes.Edwards, Paul, 2009, ''How to Rap: ...

and

Novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

are set to appear on the album. The album cover features each member wearing a sports team's logo from another member's hometown. Joell Ortiz's hat is supposed to be a Detroit Tigers hat but is blacked out.

Reception

After three weeks the album had managed to sell 28,000 copies. Reviews of the album were favorable. It has a score of 69 out of an overall score of 100 (calculated by only 9 reviews) on

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, stating that the album has "generally favorable reviews". Allmusic.com gave it a four out of five stars stating that: RapReviews gave it a 9 out of 10 stars. they stated: XXL gave it XL out of XXL stating: HipHopDX gave it a four out of five stars stated : About.com has said that:

Track listing

Sample credits

*"Sound Off" - Contains a samples of "It's Too Late" by

The Stylistics The Stylistics are an American Philadelphia soul group that achieved their greatest chart success in the 1970s. They formed in 1968, with a lineup of singers Russell Thompkins Jr., Herb Murrell, Airrion Love, James Smith, and James Dunn. All ...

*"Microphone" - Contains a samples of "L'alpagueur" by

Michel Colombier Michel Colombier (23 May 1939 – 14 November 2004) was a French composer, arranger, and conductor. Career Colombier wrote the scores of several motion pictures and TV productions. He also wrote chamber music and ballets. With composer Pierre ...

*"Not Tonight" - Contains a samples of "I Don't Know Why I Love You" by

Thelma Houston Thelma Houston ( Jackson; born May 7, 1943) is an American singer and actress. Beginning her recording career in the late 1960s, Houston scored a number-one hit in 1977 with her recording of " Don't Leave Me This Way", which won the Grammy for ...

*"The One" - Contains a samples of "I'm Still #1" by

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 ...

, "

Janie's Got a Gun "Janie's Got a Gun" is a song by American rock band Aerosmith and written by Steven Tyler and Tom Hamilton. The song was released as the second single from ''Pump'' in 1989, peaking at number four on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number two ...

" by

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...

and " Fly Away" by

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. His debut album ''Let Love Rule (Lenny Kravitz album), Let Love Rule'' (1989) was characterized by a blend of Rock music, rock ...

*"Pray (It's a Shame)" - Contains a samples of " It's a Shame" by The Spinners *"Cut You Loose" - Contains a samples of "You're No Good" by The

Harvey Averne Harvey Averne (born 1936, Brooklyn, New York) has been described as "one of several prominent Jewish Americans in New York's bustling Latin music scene." Introduction Harvey Averne is an American record producer, and the founder of CoCo Record ...

Dozen

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Slaughterhouse (Album) 2009 debut albums Albums produced by the Alchemist (musician) Albums produced by DJ Khalil Albums produced by Mr. Porter Albums produced by Emile Haynie Albums produced by Focus... E1 Music albums Slaughterhouse (group) albums