Fighter (Manafest album)

Fighter is the sixth studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on April 10, 2012 under BEC Recordings.[8][9] The album was, in majority, produced by Seth Mosley (of Newsboys producer fame).

For the album by David Nail, see Fighter (David Nail album).
Fighter
Studio album by
Manafest
ReleasedApril 10, 2012
GenreChristian rock, rap rock, hard rock, alternative rock
Length36:10
LabelBEC
ProducerSeth Mosley, Adam Messinger
Manafest chronology
Live in Concert
(2011)		 Fighter
(2012)		 Stories Since Seventy Nine
(2012)
Alternative cover
Japan edition album cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk7.7/10[1]
The Christian Music Review Blog[2]
Crosswalk.com(Average)[3]
Indie Vision Music[4]
Jesus Freak Hideout[5]
Mezzic.com5.4/10[6]
New Release Tuesday[7]

Critical reception

The album received overall general positive praise from multiple professional music sites and reviews.

Sarah Fine of New Release Tuesday gave the release very high praise and went on to state the album was "lyrically intense, the musicianship on this record is nearly flawless."[7] With a fair amount of positive endorsement, Timothy Estabrooks of Jesus Freak Hideout stated that "Fighter is a fun, upbeat rap rock album with a pleasantly encouraging message. Fans of Manafest and the genre in general will find plenty to like here."[5] Indie Vision Music's own Lee Brown approvingly reported "With singular focus, Fighter takes the listener through the hollow shells of life we as fallen humans often find ourselves clinging to and encourages us to fight for a newness of life that can only be found through God. Musically, Fighter is a solid album with a style that fans of Thousand Foot Krutch and Skillet should be right at home with."[4]

On the flipside, Glenn McCarthy of Crosswalk.com frankly stated, in a more average outlook of the release: "Despite Manafest's simmering intensity, the production of Adam Messinger and Seth Mosley doesn’t provide these songs with enough personality, leaving the mix just short of a rock snarl when that would be called for, and other times scrubbing the mix up to a pop sheen."[3] He further went on to say that "This one-two punch of blazing spirit and back-against-the-wall verve could just be the thing that endears Fighter to fans."[3] Finally, Ryan G. of Mezzic.com pointed out "Longtime fans risk being bothered by the lack of hip hop verses, while new fans will probably love it."[6]

Awards

The album was nominated in the category of "Hip-Hop/Rap Album of the Year" for the 44th annual GMA Dove Awards.[10]

Fighter book release

On September 15, 2013, Manafest released his first book entitled Fighter: Five Keys to Conquering Your Fear and Reaching Your Dreams.[11] The title of the book was based from the album's name.[12][13] The books's genre is semi-autobiographical, while also doubling as motivational.[14][15]

Singles

The three singles released for the album were "Never Let You Go", "Human", and the title track of "Fighter".[16][17] The title song itself also made it into the Top 5 on the ChristianRock.Net radio chart singles.[17]

Track listing
Album release
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Fighter"Chris Greenwood, Seth Mosley2:56
2."Throw It Away"Greenwood, Adam Messinger3:26
3."Pushover"Greenwood, Mosley3:13
4."Human"Greenwood, Messinger3:33
5."Come Alive"Josh Macintosh, Greenwood, Mosley3:12
6."Never Let You Go"Greenwood, Mosley3:28
7."Not Alone"Greenwood, Mosley, Juan Otero3:14
8."Prison Break"Macintosh, Greenwood, Mosley3:22
9."Heart Attack"Greenwood, Trevor McNevan, Mosley3:09
10."Will You Catch Me"Greenwood, Seth Mosley3:07
11."Never Let You Go" (Joel Bruyere Acoustic Mix)Greenwood, Mosley3:29
Total length:36:10
Japanese edition bonus track/iTunes single (later)[18]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Kimi Wa Fighter"Greenwood, Mosley2:59

Personnel

Chart performance
Billboard Charts (2012) Peak
positions
Billboard Heatseekers Albums[19] 7
Billboard Christian Albums[20] 16
Billboard Hot Christian Songs: "Human"[21] 50
Billboard Hot Christian Songs: "Never Let You Go"[21] 45
  • AllMusic records "Human" peaking at No. 30 and "Never Let You Go" peaking at No. 33.[22]

Music videos
Lyric videos

Notes
  • The Japanese exclusive track of "Kimi Wa Fighter" is an altered version of the album's title track with re-written lyrics specifically directed to the people of Japan as an encouragement and response regarding the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Manafest also sings the pre-chorus and chorus in Japanese. It was later re-released on iTunes as a single, separate from the album.[18]
  • Respectively, if one buys a copy of the Japanese edition of Fighter, they are given an altered track listing. The title track "Fighter" becomes track 11 and the Japanese bonus track "Kimi Wa Fighter" becomes track 1. The original track 11 of "Never Let You Go (Joel Bruyere Acoustic Mix)" is however removed from the album in its entirety.
  • Fighter is the first Manafest album to not have a single track featuring Trevor McNevan of Thousand Foot Krutch.
  • In 2012, as with many of Manafest's releases, Fighter was given an album instrumentals release.[23]
  • Because of this album's release, Manafest fans have since become known officially as "Fighters" amongst the themselves, as well as Manafest himself.[24]
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References
  1. "Fighter review on AbsolutePunk". AbsolutePunk. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  2. "Fighter review on The Christian Music Review Blog". The Christian Music Review Blog. April 21, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  3. "Fighter review on CrossWalk". Crosswalk.com. April 10, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  4. "Fighter review on Indie Vision Music". Indie Vision Music. April 9, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  5. "Fighter review on Jesus Freak Hideout". Jesus Freak Hideout. April 11, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  6. "Fighter review on Mezzic.com". Mezzic.com. May 2, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  7. "Fighter review on New Release Tuesday". New Release Tuesday. March 19, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  8. "Fighter on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  9. "Fighter on Amazon". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  10. "Dove Awards Announce "Hip-Hop/Rap Album of the Year" Nominations". Rapzilla. August 21, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  11. "International Rock Artist Manafest Sets His Story To Pen Releasing His First Book Fighter October 2013". Jesus Freak Hideout. September 16, 2013. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  12. Brown, Lee (April 6, 2015). "Indie Vision Music: Manafest Interview - 2015". Indie Vision Music. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  13. "Fighter book Official Website". Fighterbook.net. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  14. "Manafest on TVU's Most Wanted - Interview". YouTube. October 16, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  15. "Manafest, a "Fighter" in Life - Interview". YouTube. February 26, 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  16. "Manafest singles on Air1.com". Air1 Radio. Archived from the original on March 2, 2015. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  17. "Manafest Singles Charts on ChristianRock.Net". ChristianRock.Net. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  18. ""Kimi Wa Fighter" Single by Manafest on iTunes". iTunes. April 13, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  19. "Fighter Heatseekers Albums chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  20. "Fighter Christian Albums chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  21. "Manafest Hot Christian Songs chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  22. "Fighter awards on AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  23. "Fighter Instrumentals on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  24. "PledgeMusic: Manafest Reborn Logo". PledgeMusic. July 10, 2015. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
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