Exit 13

Exit 13 is the twelfth studio album by American rapper LL Cool J. It was released on September 9, 2008 on the record label Def Jam Recordings. This would be his last album release with the label.

For the grindcore band, see Exit-13.
Exit 13
Studio album by
LL Cool J
ReleasedSeptember 9, 2008
Recorded2006–08
GenreEast Coast hip hop
Length72:43
LabelDef Jam
ProducerLL Cool J (exec.)
Suits & Ray Burghardt, Ryan Leslie, Illfonics, The Dream Team, DJ Scratch, Frado & Absolut, Tricky Stewart, Raw Uncut, Marley Marl, Cue Beats, Dame Grease, Music Mystro, Streetrunner
LL Cool J chronology
Todd Smith
(2006)		 Exit 13
(2008)		 All World 2
(2009)
Singles from Exit 13
  1. "Cry"
    Released: June 17, 2008
  2. "Rocking with the G.O.A.T."
    Released: June 20, 2008
  3. "Baby"
    Released: July 22, 2008
  4. "Feel My Heart Beat"
    Released: August 26, 2008

Production

This album is the first LL Cool J album since G.O.A.T. to have the parental advisory label for explicit lyrics. LL said in an interview with Chicago radio personality DJ Z that the vulgarities are not heavy and the edited version has alternate lyrics rather than simply omitting the vulgarities.[1] LL and DJ Kayslay teamed up to release his first mixtape as a prelude to Exit 13 titled The Return of the G.O.A.T..

Other contributors for this album include 50 Cent, Sheek Louch, Fat Joe, Ryan Leslie, Wyclef Jean, The-Dream, Lil Mo, KRS-One, Funkmaster Flex, Richie Sambora and Darlisa Blackshere.

Singles

A buzz single titled, "Cry," featuring Lil' Mo, was released as a digital download and international 12" single in June 17, 2008. The unofficial street single, "Rockin' with the G.O.A.T.," premiered on June 20, 2008.

The first official single, "Baby" featuring The-Dream was released on July 1, 2008 to the iTunes Music Store. On August 19, 2008, iTunes released the rock remix featuring Richie Sambora, lead guitarist of rock band Bon Jovi, with a rock rhythm and a sped-up tempo.

The second official single, "Feel My Heart Beat" featuring 50 Cent was released on August 26, 2008. The song did not enter the Billboard Hot 100. The official single version of the song was leaked to the Internet on November 27, 2008.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic57/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Okayplayer[4]
DJBooth[5]
Metromix (Jackson)[6]
NOW[7]
RapReviews8.0/10[8]
The Times[9]
USA Today[10]

Exit 13 garnered mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 57, based on 5 reviews.[2]

Despite being too lengthy and containing lesser tracks like "American Girl", Jesal Padania of RapReviews praised the album for having a consistent sound of instruments and synths in the tracks and LL's strong lyricism, saying that "In other words, all that effort that LL finally put into Exit 13 has really paid off - and he is getting the best revenge of all... Showing Def Jam what they will be missing."[8] Steve Jones of USA Today called it LL's "most aggressive album in years," praising his standard braggadocio and lady-swooning content for being consistently energetic because of an amalgam of young up-and-coming producers, concluding that "After 10 straight platinum albums, his last two have only gone gold. But he seems to have gotten his swagger back. He may be hitting the Exit, but he is not easing up on the gas."[10] In The New York Times, Jon Pareles felt that LL more than holds his own with the sounds delivered by newer producers that lift his old-school meets new-school lyricism, concluding with, "To his credit, LL Cool J is too romantic to treat women as crudely as younger rappers do. And while this 76-minute album flags near the end, there’s still more than enough smooth-tongued, quick-witted rhyming to justify his boasts."[11] AllMusic's Andy Kellman said that despite tracks like "You Better Watch Me" and "This Is Ring Tone M..." that show LL at his best, he criticized the record for being too try-hard in sounding like the mainstream rap albums released that year, concluding that "Out with a whimper, not a bang, Exit 13 is an off-ramp leading to a boulevard of several mismanaged White Castle knock-offs."[3]

In regards to the album's reception and lack of proper marketing, the artist stated:

The record just really honestly, you know, didn’t have that support that I wish it would have had. [I] can’t blame anyone. It was my last record, and I guess for whatever reason, whether it was quality or business, you know, the company just decided that they were going to write it off and not really give it that shot.

[12]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."It's Time for War"Burhardt, Cartisano, Mendelson, SmithSuits & Ray Burghardt5:06
2."Old School New School"Leslie, SmithRyan Leslie3:41
3."Feel My Heart Beat" (featuring 50 Cent & Precious Paris)Cury, Jackson, Kaye, Nix, Smith, WoolfolkThe Dream Team3:21
4."Get Over Here" (featuring Nicolette, Jiz, Lyrikal & Ticky Diamondz)Muir, Rivera, SmithFrado & Absolut5:49
5."Baby" (featuring The-Dream)Nash, Smith, StewartTricky Stewart4:01
6."You Better Watch Me"Davis, Rio, Roper, Smith, WilliamsMarley Marl & M.Will4:20
7."Cry" (featuring Lil' Mo)Atkins, Blackshere, Dombrowski, Gamble, Huff, Lorenzo, Loving, Mays, Sigler, SmithRaw Uncut4:15
8."Baby (Rock Remix)" (featuring Richie Sambora)Burghardt, Cartisano, Sambora, SmithSuits & Ray Burghardt3:08
9."Rocking with the G.O.A.T."Smith, SpiveyDJ Scratch3:43
10."This Is Ring Tone Murder" (featuring Grandmaster Caz)Brown, Smith, SpiveyDJ Scratch2:52
11."Like a Radio" (featuring Ryan Leslie)Leslie, SmithRyan Leslie3:34
12."I Fall in Love" (featuring Élan)Blackshere, Burghardt, Cartisano, Rivera, SmithSuits & Ray Burghardt3:57
13."Ur Only a Customer"Blackmon, Cohen, Johnson, McFadden, Smith, WhiteheadDame Grease & Music Mystro2:18
14."Mr. President" (featuring Wyclef Jean)Blackshere, Burghardt, Cartisano, SmithSuits & Ray Burghardt4:35
15."American Girl" (featuring Mark Figueroa)Cappelli, Friedman, SmithIllfonics4:26
16."Speedin' on da Highway / Exit 13" (featuring Funkmaster Flex)Burghardt, Cartisano, SmithSuits & Ray Burghardt4:49
17."Come and Party with Me" (featuring Fat Joe & Sheek Louch)Cappelli, Cartagena, Friedman, Jacobs, SmithIllfonics4:37
18."We Rollin'"Clarke, Reid, Smith, StaplesCue Beats3:03
19."Dear Hip Hop" (featuring DJ Scratch)Bristol, McNeil, Moltke, Smith, Warwar, WilliamsStreetrunner4:28
iTunes bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
20."New York, New York (Interlude)"Kander and Ebb0:18
21."New York"Suits & Ray Burghardt3:58
22."5 Boroughs" (featuring KRS-One, Method Man, Jim Jones & Lil' Kim)Suits & Ray Burghardt4:28
Japanese version bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
20."New York, New York" (Interlude)Kander and Ebb0:18
21."New York"Suits & Ray Burghardt3:58
Australian version bonus tracks
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
20."5 Boroughs" (featuring KRS-One, Method Man, Jim Jones & Lil' Kim)Suits & Ray Burghardt4:28

Samples

Chart positions
Chart (2008) Peak
position
Canadian Albums Chart[13] 61
Swiss Albums Chart 75
US Billboard 200[14] 9
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[15] 3
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[15] 2
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References
  1. LL Cool J interview on DJBooth.net
  2. "Reviews for Exit 13 by LL Cool J". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  3. Kellman, Andy. "Exit 13 - LL Cool J". AllMusic. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  4. Okayplayer review
  5. Slavik, Nathan (September 9, 2008). "LL Cool J - Exit 13". DJBooth. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  6. Metromix (Jackson) review
  7. Stewart, Addi (September 10, 2008). "LL Cool J - Exit 13 (Def Jam)". NOW. NOW Communications. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  8. Padania, Jesal (September 9, 2008). "Feature for September 9, 2008 - LL Cool J's "Exit 13"". RapReviews. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  9. The Times review
  10. Jones, Steve (September 8, 2008). "This week's reviews: LL's 'Exit,' Jessica's gone country". USA Today. Gannett. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  11. Pareles, Jon (September 12, 2008). "From Kingston's Streets to the Wide-Open Spaces". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  12. "LL Cool J Explains Exit 13 Failure On E! THS". www.hiphopdx.com.
  13. HMV Canada: "All Hope is Gone" by Slipknot tops CD sales list Archived 2008-12-19 at the Wayback Machine
  14. Slipknot Edges The Game Atop Billboard 200
  15. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1593987/20080903/slipknot.jhtml
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