The Naked Truth (Lil' Kim album)

The Naked Truth is the fourth studio album by American rapper Lil' Kim, released on September 27, 2005. The album was released the same week she started her year-long prison sentence for perjury and it was her last studio album released by Atlantic Records before deciding to part ways in 2008. Two official singles were released from the album: "Lighters Up" as the lead single, released in September 2005, and "Whoa", as the second and final single, in February 2006. The Naked Truth remains the only album by a female rapper to be rated five mics by The Source. The album has sold over 400,000 copies in the United States.[1][2]

The Naked Truth
Studio album by
Lil' Kim
ReleasedSeptember 27, 2005 (2005-09-27)
Recorded2004–2005
GenreHip hop
Length76:31
Label
Producer
Lil' Kim chronology
La Bella Mafia
(2003)		 The Naked Truth
(2005)		 9
(2019)
Singles from The Naked Truth
  1. "Lighters Up"
    Released: July 10, 2005
  2. "Whoa"
    Released: February 7, 2006

Singles

The first single taken from the album was "Lighters Up". It was released on September 13, 2005, and was a moderate success, peaking at number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second, and final, single from the album was "Whoa". Released on February 7, 2006, it was less successful than its predecessor and failed to make the Hot 100. It did manage to chart in the UK, peaking at number 43.

Promotional singles

The first promo single taken from the album was "Shut Up Bitch". For the release the title was censored to "Shut Up". Released to radio on July 12, 2005, the song served as a promotional single for the album and peaked at number 73 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[3] It can be heard at the start of the "Lighters Up" music video. The second promo single was "Spell Check". It was released to US radio as a promo single for the album in December 2005, alongside "Whoa". The song was promoted in the music video for "Whoa" with Kim rapping the first verse and chorus near the end.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic66/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The A.V. ClubFavorable[6]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[7]
The New York TimesUnfavorable[8]
Pitchfork7.8/10[9]
PopMatters[10]
Rolling Stone[11]
The Source[12]
Vibe[13]
The Village VoiceFavorable[14]

The album received generally positive reviews and was given a score of 66 out of 100 by Metacritic,[4] with 5 star ratings from The Source (in which she became the first and only female rapper to ever receive 5 mics), Vibe Magazine, and The Village Voice, and less than favorable reviews from The New York Times and AllMusic. Blender gave the album four stars, calling it her "strongest work since her pheromone-thick 1996 debut". While the album did receive several 5 star ratings, Pitchfork journalist Jess Harvell, who gave the album a positive 7.8 rating, stated, "The Naked Truth may be better than 80% of the other rap albums to be released in 2005, but that doesn't make it another Ready to Die."[9]

Commercial performance

The Naked Truth debuted at number six on the Billboard 200 and at number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 109,000 copies in its first week.[15] It sold 394,000 copies in the US[16] and 500,000 worldwide.[1][2]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
1."Intro"Dan Humiston
  • Dan The Man
  • Big Hill
0:39
2."Spell Check"
Red Spyda3:39
3."Lighters Up"
Scott Storch4:23
4."Shut Up Bitch Intro"  0:56
5."Shut Up Bitch"
  • Jones
  • Michael "Mr. Williams" Williams
  • Roger Greene
  • Williams
  • Mista Raja
4:19
6."Whoa"
Rotem4:08
7."Slippin'"
Mr. Porter4:16
8."Answering Machine Skit 1"  2:27
9."All Good"
Jeekyman4:31
10."I Know You See Me" (featuring Tiny)
Cates3:53
11."W.P.I.M.P. Skit" Dan The Man0:30
12."Quiet" (featuring The Game)
  • Jones
  • Williams
  • Greene
  • Williams
  • Mista Raja
4:02
13."Durty"
  • Jones
  • Keith Johnson
  • Martha Velez
  • Millie Jackson
  • Randy Klein
  • Terrance "Hot Runner" Lovelace
Lovelace4:10
14."Answering Machine Skit 2"  2:23
15."We Don't Give a Fuck" (featuring Bun B and Twista)
Lovelace4:22
16."Gimme That" (featuring Maino)
Jeekyman4:27
17."Kitty Box"
Channel 73:49
18."Kronik" (featuring Snoop Dogg and Jack Knight)
Fredwreck4:32
19."Winners and Losers Skit"  0:57
20."Get Yours" (featuring T.I. and Sha-Dash)
Cates4:09
21."Last Day"
  • Jones
  • Rotem
J.R. Rotem4:29
22."Last Day Skit"  5:30

Sample credts

Personnel
  • Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones – executive producer
  • Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace – executive producer
  • Craig Kallman – executive producer
  • Hillary Weston – co-executive producer, manager
  • Jean Nelson – co-executive producer, A&R
  • Gee Roberson – co-executive producer, A&R
  • Dre Weston – A&R
  • Kyambo "HipHop" Joshua – A&R
  • Lanre Gaba – A&R administrator
  • Jamel Jackson – product manager
  • Veronica Alvericci – product manager
  • Dan the Man for Dan Man Productions – engineer
  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Will Quinell – assistant mastering engineer
  • L. Londell McMillian – legal affairs
  • Berdon LLP – business affairs
  • Deborah Mannis-Gardiner – sample clearances
  • Robert D'Este – photography (cover and page 12)
  • Roger Erickson – photography (outside inlay and pages 2–11)
  • Patty Wilson – styling
  • Kithe Brewster – styling
  • Will Robinson – hair
  • JJ – makeup
  • Andrew Zach – art producer
  • Ellen To – art direction, design
  • Alex Kirzhner – design

Charts

References
  1. Fields, Kiah. "HONORING LIL KIM ON HER BIRTHDAY". Retrieved June 9, 2017. Naked Truth was released on the first day of her sentence. This album received the coveted 5 Mics from The Source in 2006 and is to date the only female rap album to receive this honor. The album was certified platinum in the year of its release and ranked in at #6 on the Billboard 200 chart. As of 2015 this album has sold 2.7 million albums worldwide.
  2. Tomlinson, Bee. "Baller Alert's Today in Hip-Hop: Lil' Kim Released 'The Naked Truth". Retrieved September 29, 2017. The album debuted at number six on the Billboard 200, selling 156,000 copies in its first week. To this date, it has sold over 2.7 million copies worldwide.
  3. "Lil' Kim Revealing 'Naked Truth' Pre-Prison". Billboard. Retrieved February 25, 2012.
  4. "The Naked Truth Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved May 30, 2012.
  5. Kellman, Andy (September 27, 2005). "The Naked Truth – Lil' Kim". AllMusic. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  6. Rabin, Nathan (October 5, 2005). "Lil' Kim: The Naked Truth". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  7. Endelman, Michael (October 17, 2005). "The Naked Truth Review". EW.com. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  8. Sanneh, Kelefa (September 26, 2005). "New CD's". The New York Times. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  9. Harvell, Jess (November 21, 2005). "Lil' Kim: The Naked Truth". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  10. Huff, Quentin (December 20, 2005). "Lil' Kim: The Naked Truth". PopMatters. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  11. Relic, Peter (October 20, 2005). "Rolling Stone Review: The Naked Truth by Lil' Kim". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 21, 2007. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  12. "Lil' Kim 2005". The Source. Archived from the original on September 5, 2013. Retrieved March 16, 2012.
  13. "Vibe". Vibe Vixen. Vibe Media Group: 210. December 2005. ISSN 1070-4701. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
  14. Morgan, Joan (November 1, 2005). "From a Different Place". Village Voice. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  15. Mar, Alex (October 5, 2005). "Gretchen Wilson, Sheryl Crow Are Tops on the Chart". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 16, 2012.
  16. Crosley, Hillary (January 22, 2008). "Lil' Kim Parts Ways With Atlantic". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
  17. "ネイキッド・トゥルース リル・キムのプロフィールならオリコン芸能人事典-ORICON STYLE". Oricon.co.jp. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  18. "Lil' Kim Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  19. "Lil' Kim Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  20. "Lil' Kim Chart History (Top Rap Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  21. "Year End 2005 – Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 14, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
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