The Slickness

The Slickness is the first solo studio album by Prince Po, one half of American hip hop duo Organized Konfusion. It was released on Lex Records in 2004. It peaked at number 53 on the CMJ Top 200 chart.[1]

The Slickness
Promo edition cover
Studio album by Prince Po
Released	July 5, 2004 (2004-07-05)
Genre	Hip hop
Length	42:43
Label	Lex Records
Producer	Jel Madlib Danger Mouse Richard X J-Zone Prince Po
Prince Po chronology
The Slickness (2004) Prettyblack (2006)
Singles from The Slickness
"Hold Dat" Released: 2004 "Bump Bump" Released: 2004

Production

80 percent of the album was written at Danger Mouse's house in California.[2] The album's production was handled by Jel, Madlib, Danger Mouse, Richard X, J-Zone, and Prince Po himself.[3]

In a 2005 interview, Prince Po stated that his favorite song on the album was "Be Easy".[4] The song was dedicated to the late Matt Doo, who drew the cover art for Organized Konfusion's Stress: The Extinction Agenda and committed suicide years afterwards.[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Dusted Magazine	favorable[6]
Exclaim!	favorable[7]
HipHopDX	7.5/10[8]
The Irish Times	[9]
MusicOMH	favorable[10]
The Observer	[11]
Pitchfork	7.9/10[12]
Stylus Magazine	C+[13]
XLR8R	favorable[14]

David Jeffries of AllMusic called the album "a victory for all involved."[5] He added: "It's rough and rugged, real and approachable, and you'll have to make plenty of room on your mixtapes for all the highlights within."[5] Jamin Warren of Pitchfork wrote: "Despite a handful of occasional blunders, Po helms an excellent release."[12] DJ Anna of XLR8R commented that "Madlib, Danger Mouse and J-Zone create the background for Po's mesmerizing delivery here, and each track drips with heart and soul as a classic voice collaborates with the best of today's talent."[14] Meanwhile, Dom Passantino of Stylus Magazine wrote: "You just can't help but wonder what it'd be like if he put everything of himself into it."[13]

A single from the album, "Hold Dat", received a favorable review from DJ Shadow.[15] Writing for The New York Times, DJ Shadow said: "Underground rap is finally emerging from its own conservatism and embracing the present, evidenced by the adventurous production on this single from Richard X."[15]

CMJ New Music Monthly placed the album at number 19 on the "20 for 04" list.[16] Tom Dunmore of The Guardian placed it at number 7 on the "Most Beautiful Sleeves of 2004" list.[17]

Track listing

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Hello"	Jel	2:16
2.	"Too Much"	Madlib	2:55
3.	"Love Thang"	Danger Mouse	3:24
4.	"Hold Dat" (featuring Jemini and Rell)	Richard X	4:08
5.	"It's Goin' Down" (featuring Stone)	J-Zone	2:59
6.	"Social Distortion" (featuring MF Doom)	Danger Mouse	3:08
7.	"The Slickness"	Madlib	2:53
8.	"Grown Ass Man"	Prince Po	3:58
9.	"Bump Bump" (featuring Raekwon)	Madlib	3:23
10.	"Meet Me at the Bar" (featuring J-Ro and J-Zone)	J-Zone	5:09
11.	"Fall Back" (featuring Jemini and Cairo)	Danger Mouse	4:45
12.	"Be Easy"	Prince Po	3:44
Total length:			42:43

CD edition bonus track

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Hold Dat (Club Remix)" (featuring Jemini and Rell)	Richard X	3:17
Total length:			46:04

Personnel

Credits adapted from the CD edition's liner notes.

• Prince Po – vocals, production (8, 12), mixing (8, 12)
• Jel – production (1)
• Marty Delafongio – mixing (1, 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11), guitar (3)
• Madlib – production (2, 7, 9)
• Carla Holden – extra vocals (3)
• Danger Mouse – production (3, 6, 11), mixing (6), executive production
• Jemini – vocals (4, 11, 13), co-executive production
• Rell – vocals (4, 13)
• Richard X – production (4, 13), mixing (4, 13), remix (13)
• Stone – vocals (5)
• J-Zone – production (5, 10), mixing (5), vocals (10)
• MF Doom – vocals (6)
• Raekwon – vocals (9)
• J-Ro – vocals (10)
• Cairo – vocals (11)
• Ehquestionmark.com – artwork
• Maya Hayuk – photography

References

1. "CMJ Top 200". CMJ New Music Report (878): 9. August 23, 2004.
2. Jones, Todd E. (November 2005). "The Pedagogical Slickness Of Prince Po (page 4 of 5)". MVRemix. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
3. Betz, Chet (November 8, 2007). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Cokemachineglow. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
4. Jones, Todd E. (November 2005). "The Pedagogical Slickness Of Prince Po (page 1 of 5)". MVRemix. Archived from the original on February 19, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
5. Jeffries, David. "The Slickness - Prince Po". AllMusic. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
6. Ho, Brian (September 20, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". Dusted Magazine. Archived from the original on June 11, 2012. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
7. Cowie, Del F. (August 1, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
8. J-23 (July 19, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on May 21, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
9. Carroll, Jim (July 30, 2004). "Hip-Hop". The Irish Times. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
10. Welsh, David (July 5, 2004). "Prince Po – The Slickness". MusicOMH. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
11. Jamieson, Ruth (July 18, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". The Observer. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
12. Warren, Jamin (August 17, 2004). "Prince Po: The Slickness". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
13. Passantino, Dom (August 6, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
14. DJ Anna (July 20, 2004). "Prince Po - The Slickness". XLR8R. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
15. DJ Shadow (June 13, 2004). "Music: Playlist; The Roots Get a Case of the Mumbles". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
16. "20 for 04". CMJ New Music Monthly (129): 31. 2004.
17. Dunmore, Tom (December 17, 2004). "The most beautiful sleeves of 2004". The Guardian. Retrieved April 25, 2016.

External links

• The Slickness at Discogs (list of releases)