Real Talk (Fabolous album)

Real Talk is the third studio album by American rapper Fabolous, released on November 9, 2004 by Desert Storm Records and Atlantic Records. It was received lukewarm from a critical standpoint, but was a commercial success. It peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 with 179,000 copies sold in its first week and had two charting singles: "Breathe" which is produced by Just Blaze and "Baby" which is produced by Flame Throwers and contains guest vocals from Mike Shorey. Videos were created for the singles "Do the Damn Thing" featuring Young Jeezy, which received minor airplay on BET, and "Tit 4 Tat" featuring Pharrell, which includes a portion of the album track "Round and Round."

Real Talk
Studio album by Fabolous
Released	November 9, 2004 (2004-11-09)
Recorded	2003–04
Genre	Hip hop
Length	75:07
Label	Desert Storm, Atlantic
Producer	DJ Khaled, The Neptunes, Trackmasters, J. R. Rotem, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, JV, Hotrunner, Flame Throwers, Gerard Harmon, Keith Wilkins, Reefa, Dangerous
Fabolous chronology
Street Dreams (2003) Real Talk (2004) From Nothin' to Somethin' (2007)
Singles from Real Talk
"Breathe" Released: August 31, 2004 "Baby" Released: March 24, 2005

It sold over 550,000 copies according to Billboard, being originally certified gold by RIAA on December 13, 2004.[1] In 2019, the album is certified platinum according to RIAA.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Blender	[3]
HipHopDX	[4]
RapReviews	[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]
The Situation	[7]
USA Today	[8]

Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews gave note of the album's lengthy runtime being a challenge for listeners but commended Fabolous for striking a balance between "materialism and spiritualism" throughout the track listing with help from his producers utilizing his "smooth monotone flow" in the right places, concluding that, "I'm not yet prepared to say Fabolous is DA TRUTH or that his rhyme writing has put him into echelons anywhere near the all-time greats, but he's come a long way since his Ghetto Fabolous days. You may find Real Talk a refreshing change of pace too."[5] K.B. Tindal of HipHopDX praised Fabolous for remaining consistent in delivering club bangers ("Tit 4 Tat"), romantic slow jams ("Baby") and street cuts ("Don't Stop Won't Stop"), saying "There are always the pure exotic street flow wit hard punch lines to the gut that Fab delivers as well as the smoothly shaped ballads that he always dishes out the chicks. On Real Talk, Fab delivers as usual."[4] Steve Jones of USA Today praised Fabolous' lyricism having more direct sharpness and maturity to elevate the record's "brash confidence" alongside the usual hip-hop tropes, concluding that, "In the past, his hits have tended to lean toward female fans. But with Real Talk, he balances matters."[8] Kris Ex, writing for Blender, was critical of Fabolous' lack of distinct character but praised him for being an entertaining wordsmith with a breezy yet confident flow, concluding that "It's this tension that keeps Real Talk from being a collection of one-serving throwaways: Fabolous lands dazzling lyrical stunts while sounding like he's coasting along on cruise control."[3] AllMusic's Andy Kellman gave praise to "Breathe" for showing "signs of being a hip-hop classic" but was critical of Fabolous stretching his rapping skills by unconvincingly taking on various styles and a "mixed bag of satisfactory-to-strong crossovers", concluding that, "[T]here's enough quality material to help fill out a Fabolous best-of, but the touch-all-bases formula inhibits the album's potential of being any better than Ghetto Fabolous or Street Dreams."[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Exodus"		Black Ice	1:25
2.	"Don't Stop Won't Stop"	J. Jackson, J. Alexander	JV	3:37
3.	"Real Talk (123)"	J. Jackson, D. Murchinson, T. Lovelace	Hotrunner	4:26
4.	"Gangsta"	J. Jackson, K. Khaled	DJ Khaled	3:42
5.	"Tit 4 Tat" (featuring Pharrell)	J. Jackson, P. Williams, C. Hugo, H.P. Baxxter, Rick J. Jordan, Ferris Bueller, Jens Thele, Shahin Moshirian and Stephan Browarczyk, Scooter (band)	The Neptunes	4:38
6.	"Baby" (featuring Mike Shorey)	J. Jackson, D. Thornton	Flame Throwers	4:55
7.	"Girls"	J. Jackson, S. Barnes, J.C. Olivier	Trackmasters	3:41
8.	"Church" (featuring Charlie Murphy)	J. Jackson, G. Harmon, K. Wilkins, C. Murphy	Gerard Harmon, Keith Wilkins	4:55
9.	"Can You Hear Me" (featuring Jasmin Lopez)	J. Jackson, J. Rotem, J. Lopez	J. R. Rotem	4:57
10.	"Do the Damn Thang" (featuring Young Jeezy)	J. Jackson, J. Jenkins, S. Slater	Reefa	4:23
11.	"Holla At Somebody Real" (featuring Lil' Mo)	J. Jackson, C. Loving, S. Slater	Reefa	3:47
12.	"It's Alright" (featuring Sean Paul)	J. Jackson, J. Smith, S. Henriques	Just Blaze	3:45
13.	"Breathe"	J. Jackson, J. Smith	Just Blaze	4:28
14.	"Young & Sexy" (featuring Mike Shorey & Pharrell)	J. Jackson, P. Williams, C. Hugo	The Neptunes	4:18
15.	"Round and Round"	J. Jackson, S. Storch	Scott Storch	3:40
16.	"In My Hood"	J. Jackson, H. Campbell, T. Crawford, P. Pitts	Dangerous	5:19
17.	"Ghetto" (featuring Thara)	J. Jackson, S. Storch, T. Prashad	Scott Storch	4:16
18.	"Po Po" (featuring Nate Dogg & Paul Cain)	J. Jackson, K. Pratt, J. R. Rotem, P. Cain, N. Hale	J. R. Rotem	4:39

Charts

Chart (2004)	Peak position
US Billboard 200[9]	6
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[10]	2

References

1. "Fabolous Sets Date For Long-Delayed Album". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
2. Kellman, Andy (n.d.). "Real Talk - Fabolous". AllMusic. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
3. Ex, Kris (n.d.). "Real Talk - Fabolous". Blender. Archived from the original on July 14, 2009. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
4. Tindal, K.B. (December 8, 2004). "Fabolous - Real Talk". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on August 19, 2007. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
5. Juon, Steve 'Flash' (November 9, 2004). "Fabolous :: Real Talk :: Desert Storm/Atlantic Records". RapReviews. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
6. Caramanica, Jon (December 9, 2004). "Fabolous: Real Talk". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
7. Tang, Melisa (n.d.). "Fabolous - Real Talk". The Situation. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
8. Jones, Steve (November 8, 2004). "Elton John's 'Peachtree Road': An unforgettable joy ride". USA Today. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
9. "Fabolous Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
10. "Fabolous Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.