Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1

*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1*This article is part of the **Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1** era.Released: September 25, 2012
Label: 1st & 15th Entertainment / Atlantic RecordsCategory

## ***Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1***

* Explicit
* Clean

## Studio album by Lupe Fiasco

### **Label**

* 1st & 15th
* Atlantic

### **Producer(s)**

* Lupe Fiasco (exec.)
* Chilly (exec.)
* Darrale Jones (co-exec.)
* 1500 or Nothin'
* The Audibles
* B-Sides
* Famties & Bullit
* Infamous
* Julian Bunetta
* King David
* Klypso
* Mike & Keys
* Mr. Inkredible
* Poo Bear
* Pro-Jay
* Severe
* Simon Sayz
* Soundtrakk
* The Runners

## **Singles from *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1***

1. "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)"
Released: May 21, 2012
2. "Bitch Bad"
Released: June 26, 2012
3. "Go to Sleep"
Released: July 2, 2012
4. "Lamborghini Angels"
Released: August 14, 2012
5. "Battle Scars"
Released: August 28, 2012

***Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1*** is the fourth studio album by American rapper Lupe Fiasco, released on September 25, 2012, by 1st & 15th Entertainment and Atlantic Records. He said of the project, "It's meant to tell the great American experience, touch on my ideas, my very rough, very unfinished, unpolished thoughts and feelings about America: American history, American culture, American society, American beauty, American food. You'll see that laced throughout the album."

*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* debuted at number five on the US *Billboard* 200 chart. It sold 89,778 copies in its first week, which shifted to 164,000 copies in January 2013. It was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Grammy Awards and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 1, 2021.

## Synopsis

Nearly six years ago, a skater kid from Chicago made his solo debut with the excellent *Food and Liquor* and created a bona fide manifesto that spoke to socially conscious '80s babies. Now, with the release of *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1*, Fiasco reveals the extent of his evolution. Against a background of synthesized future pop, Fiasco deconstructs heavyweight topics with an undeniable flow.

## Background

While *LupEND* was planned to be his last contractual album with Atlantic, this was scrapped "due to circumstances beyond [his] control." Fiasco announced on February 4, 2009, that he still planned to release an album in June called *The Great American Rap Album*. As he awaited the release of his third album, *Lasers*, which experienced delayal and led to fan protests, Fiasco began working on his next project. Songs between "Paris, Tokyo" and "Go to Sleep" were created for *Lasers*, though the latter was dropped as a single for *The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* instead. He added, "I was in the position where I wanted to put out some music," where his previous records like "Shining Down," "What U Want," and "I'm Beamin'" were "leaked or stolen," rather than being officially released. In November 2010, Fiasco performed the second verse from "Strange Fruition" exclusively at the Marquette University Hip Hop forum.

*Food & Liquor II* was intended to be a double-album, which he told Fuse at Beale Street Music Festival, though this later changed to be split into two parts, hence the title. Ultimately this idea was vetoed, where he mentioned low sales. He wrote in a series of tweets, "Hello. A decision has been made that the project titled "F&L2 Part 2" will be summarily cancelled for public release in 2013. The title/concept for Lupe's 2013 release will be revealed later this year."

The album was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards, making it his fourth consecutive nomination in the category, which lost to *Take Care* by Drake. Fiasco had predicted, "Clearly I won't. Nas, Rick Ross, 2 Chainz and The Roots. Ah yeah, it is Drake? Forgot about it. I think they’ll give it to Nas."

## Themes

Inspirations for the record include the speeches and writings of James Baldwin, Howard Zinn's *The Bomb*, and Steven Pimpare's *A People's History of Poverty in America* (work inspired by Zinn). Fiasco explained to *Rolling Stone* about geography on his album, where "There's some examples that stand out more than others, like Pine Ridge, South Dakota or Camden, New Jersey or Detroit, that stand out physically because they're wastelands, but it's systematic. If you go through the entire country, you'll see a reflection of the same things. The same conformity, the same injustices, the same discrimination—the same happy times, the same good times. You see it all, because it's America. There's not one place that's foreign in America, if that makes any sense. When I talk about no-space-specific, I'm talking about everywhere." He informed *Chicago Tribune*, "The bulk of this album speaks to how America hasn't changed. The great turning points in history, we romanticize them too much. The general arc of the way society works hasn't changed in terms of racism, class bias, oppression, happiness, joy, displacement, urban decay and urban renewal for decades. There are certain things we have to address, but have not really addressed for decades, really—youth violence in the city, for one. The same cycle of violence keeps happening..."

Fiasco addresses Afro-diasporic themes, institutional racism, the assassination of Malcolm X, misogyny in hip hop, imperialism, and other issues that extend beyond America. While the album has been considered heavily didactic and "bold" in subject matter, it contains a few pop-oriented tracks that are reminiscent of *Lasers*, such as "Heart Donor," "Battle Scars," and "How Dare You." The song "Cold War" gives acknowledgment to Jubar "Esco" Croswell, one of his friends who was murdered in September 2010.

*Huffpost* observed, "The album is deeply concerned with the systemic, structural racism and white supremacy that has oppressed Blacks since their arrival in the U.S., and delves into it in a detail matched in recent rap perhaps only by Minneapolis' Brother Ali on his recent album. But Fiasco also talks about other struggles—those of Native Americans, Egyptians, Iraqis, Palestinians, Afghanis. He connects these fights, in a way more visceral than a Howard Zinn (an avowed Lupe favorite) might, and in a way more likely to appeal to those who most need to hear it."

## Title and artwork

He told Refinery29 of its title, in relation to his debut album, where "it wasn't actually too thought out. It was just something I thought sounded like nice." He added, "But, the core of that [debut] album was food and liquor, which means the good and the bad, human nature and duality, where we do good things and then we do terrible things. So, it's [the new album] still impressing that point, but the core of it is *The Great American Rap Album*. That was the real concept and the meat of it."

The cover artwork is entirely black, using the hexadecimal #0b0708, and was inspired by Johnny Cash. Fiasco explained to Fuse, "One of the main reasons why it's all black was there's a song called 'Man in Black' by the late, great Johnny Cash. […] The reason he wore black was because he wore it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime. There's meaning behind it."

## Critical reception

*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* received generally favorable reviews from contemporary music critics upon its release, mostly noted for Fiasco lending commentary on critical issues. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 70, based on 18 reviews. Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? compiled 13 reviews and gave the album a score of 6.4 out of 10.

Andy Kellman of AllMusic stated that while the three singles garnered controversy, he held admiration for their subject matter, particularly of "Lamborghini Angels." He continued, "As with many of his songs, the lyrical value (clever, cerebral) is far greater than the musical value (sluggish, meandering). It's much more about delivering a message and provoking debate than replays." *Billboard* was less impressed, writing, "Fiasco turns *Food & Liquor II* into one long tirade—everything sucks and no one's going to fix it," while *Spin* remarked that it was "fine and good" but did not live up to its title. From *The Guardian*, Paul MacInnes penned in his review, "Actively shunning sexism and violence, Fiasco stands out from many of his hip-hop peers. But he does so in such portentous fashion […] Fiasco is not without skills or beliefs, but neither are as refined as his self-regard." Adam Fleischer of *XXL* argued, "He's not always as nuanced as he's shown the ability to be, and can indeed come off preachy, so those with already established ideologies may find aspects of this album off-putting […] But there will be countless kids—the same ones from "Bitch Bad" and #FiascoFriday—that Google terms like "Audubon Ballroom," "manifest destiny" and "Ottoman Empire" because of it. It's that, and the pinnacle of lyricism that Lupe continues to reach, that makes this release an achievement." Similarly, *AllHipHop* opined, "Even with its nitpicks and flaws, Lupe Fiasco delivered on his promise to make an album his fans and supports could appreciate with *Food & Liquor II*. It's a lyrically strong album that is sure to spark conversations due to its content, and can easily draw in casual listeners due to the LP's sound and presentation."

*The Harvard Crimson* critiqued, "scattershot thematic concept dumps that leave little lasting impression and often deal with considerably outdated topics." They described it as "disappointingly stale," "overlong, lyrically inane choruses," and "unmemorable." Amanda Koellner of *Consequence* assessed, "Some of these tracks give Lupe the room to triumph" and listed the following issues of systematic apartheid, gender inequalities, and materialism being addressed. Nathan Slavik of *DJBooth* penned, "It has its own moments of pop-leaning lightness, but there's more than enough revolutionary material here to leave the faithful satiated."

*Paste* magazine's Luke Winkie called it "a slightly above-average rap album" at best, while *Pitchfork* acknowledged, "Lupe's dexterity remains his greatest asset." *HipHopDX* wrote, "there remains something noble about Chi-town's Guevara relentlessly waving his beliefs without fear of backlash. Someone has to shine a light on all the world's ills, right? If not Lu, then who?" Evan Rytlewski of *The A.V. Club* felt it to be an improvement from *Lasers* both sonically in its production and Fiasco's rapping. He continued, "Fiasco sounds reinvigorated, and especially in the album's ripping opening stretch, he's a riveting presence, sprinting through verses with a mischievous balance of conviction and dry humor." *The Quietus* commended, "What it proves to be is an exhilarating, uneven, thought-provoking, over-egged, over-long, lucid, barnstorming, soul-infused hip-hop album of a type that, as I may have mentioned once or twice or five times, you just don't get any more. Except, of course, you do, and here it is." Hypebeast stated, "Although laced with thought-provoking content, its lackluster production and song-crafting drags Fiasco's latest release down. But if your interest in him spawns from a love of his lyrics, you're in luck. This is the album for you." *Earmilk* remarked, "I like to think the problems that Kendrick captured in concise, artful vignettes, Lupe addresses in expository, agitated protests. As long as Fiasco remains dissatisfied, he will remain a divisive artist. And as long as he remains a divisive artist, he will continue to instigate vital dialogue."

## Accolades

Awards

Year-end lists

Select rankings for *Food & Liquor II*

## Track listing

* Charles Hamilton
* Kenneth Alexander
* Lamar Edwards
* Dopson
* W. Jaco

Notes
* The CD version ends with a track called "Things We Must Do for Others," a 12-second recording of Fiasco telling listeners that the credit information for the album can be found underneath the CD tray.
* The clean version is slightly shorter, with "Bitch Bad" having the length of 4:47, making the album's total duration to be 68:44.
* "Bitch Bad" features additional vocals from Poo Bear.

Sample credits
* "Strange Fruition" samples "Where Do I Begin (Love Story)" by Percy Faith & His Orchestra and interpolates "Strange Fruit" by Billie Holiday.
* "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)" samples "Today" by Jefferson Airplane and "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" by Pete Rock & CL Smooth.
* "Lamborghini Angels" interpolates "Angels (Remix)" by Lupe Fiasco.

## Personnel

Musicians

* Wasalu "Lupe Fiasco" Jaco – vocals (tracks 2-17)
* Ayesha Jaco – featured vocals (track 1)
* Casey Benjamin – additional vocals (track 2)
* Richard Michael Conti – saxophone (track 4)
* Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd – featured vocals (tracks 9-10, 12), additional vocals (track 6)
* We the Best Studio – chorus (track 7)
* Ava Johnson – additional vocals (track 8)
* Guy Sebastian – featured vocals (track 11)
* Keith Cooper – saxophone (track 13)
* Joseph Valburn – strings (track 13)
* Wilner Baptiste – strings (track 13)
* Kevin M. Sylvester – strings (track 13)
* Ted Zimmerman – trumpet (track 13)
* Ralfy "FAFA" Valencia – bass (track 13)
* Alejandro Elizondo – keyboards (track 13)
* Alexandria Dobson – additional vocals (track 14)
* Carlos "Los" McSwain – drums (track 14)
* Jason Evigian – featured vocals (track 15)
* Jake&Papa – additional vocals (track 16)

Technical

* Lupe Fiasco – writer (tracks 2-17), additional producer (track 4)
* Charles "Free Chilly" Patton – additional producer (track 4)
* Ayesha Jaco – writer (track 1)
* Darrale Jones – producer (tracks 1-5, 7-16)
* Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – masterer (tracks 1-5, 7-9, 12-16)
* Joe Peluso – recording engineer (tracks 1-5, 7-9, 11, 13-16)
* Graham Burris – recording engineer (track 1)
* Rudolph "Soundtrakk" Lopez – writer & producer (track 2)
* Simon "Simon Sayz" Morel – engineer & additional recording (track 2), recording engineer (tracks 3, 5, 8, 14, 16), co-producer (track 4)
* Greg "G-Ball" Magers – engineer (track 2)
* Albert Lai Francis – writer (track 2)
* Carl Sigman – writer (track 2)
* Christopher Brody Brown – writer (track 13, 17), producer & programmer (tracks 3, 13, 16-17)
* Larrance "Rance" Dopson – writer (tracks 3, 8, 14, 17), producer & programmer (tracks 3, 8, 14, 16-17)
* Trevor Astey – guitar (tracks 3, 15)
* Jason Speck – recording engineer (track 3)
* B-Side – co-producer (track 4)
* Martyn "Marty Balin" Buchwald – writer (track 4)
* Paul Kantner – writer (track 4)
* Peter "Pete Rock" Phillips – writer (track 4)
* Bullit – producer (track 5)
* Famties (Pagin & Buettner) – producer (track 5)
* Marcello Pagin – writer (track 5)
* Christian Buettner – writer (track 5)
* Thomas Mueller – writer (track 5)
* Jason Boyd – writer (tracks 6, 9-10, 12, 16), producer (track 6), co-producer (track 9, 12, 15)
* The Audibles – producer (track 6)
* Trehy Harris – assistant mixer (track 6)
* David Kutch – masterer (track 6)
* Jaycen Joshua – mixer (track 6)
* Sasha Sirota – recording engineer (track 6)
* Dominic Jordan – writer (track 6)
* Jimmy Giannos – writer (track 6)
* Brian "Mr. Inkredible" Tistog – producer (track 7)
* Julian Bunetta – writer, co-producer & programmer (track 8)
* The Runners – producer (tracks 9, 12)
* Andrew Harr – writer (track 9)
* Jermaine Jackson – writer (track 9)
* Andre "Severe" Samuel – writer (track 10)
* Joseph "Klypso" Mourad – writer (track 10)
* James "Pro-Jay" Gass – producer (track 11)
* James Kang – assistant mixer (track 11)
* Leon Zervos – masterer (track 11)
* Miles Walker – mixer (track 11)
* Guy Sebastian – writer (track 11)
* Marco "Infamous" Rodriguez-Diaz, Jr. – writer & producer (track 13)
* Mike Denten – engineer (track 13)
* Abel Guzman – engineer (track 13)
* Ed Libow – recording engineer (track 13)
* Rich Maloney – recording engineer (track 13)
* Jane $$$ – writer (track 14)
* King David – writer (track 15)
* Jamal "Mally Mall" Rashid – co-producer (track 15)
* Mike & Keys – producer (track 16)
* Garnett "G" Flynn – recording engineer (track 16)
* Charles "Uncle Chucc" Hamilton – writer (track 17)
* Kenneth Alexander – writer & producer (track 17)
* Lamar "Marz" Edwards – writer (track 17)

* Brian Ranney – package design
* Lupe Fiasco – art direction, design
* Mark Obriski – art direction, design
* Rob Gold – art manager
* Chilly – executive producer
* Darrale Jones – A&R, executive producer
* Deborah Mannis-Gardner – sample clearance
* Lanre Gaba – A&R
* Lupe Fiasco – executive producer (tracks 1-5, 8-17)
* Marsha St. Hubert – marketing

## Gallery

Artwork

Merchandise
Main article: Merchandise § Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1
## References

1. ↑ McLaughlin, Eliott (August 7, 2012). "From Pine Ridge to Preacher Pedophilia, Lupe Fiasco Album Aims to Incite". *CNN*.
2. ↑ Lipshutz, Jason (January 17, 2023). "Lupe Fiasco Scraps 'Food & Liquor II: Pt. 2' Album, Leaves Twitter". *Billboard*.
3. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco – *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1* | RIAA"
4. ↑ "Lupe Cancels LupE.N.D Plans Great American Rap Album". *Rap Basement*. February 4, 2009. Archived from the original on February 6, 2009.
5. ↑ Ahmed, Insanul (September 10, 2010). "Interview: Lupe Fiasco Talks "Lasers" Delay, Japanese Cartoon, and "Food & Liquor II"". *Complex*.
6. ↑ Kujundzic, Petar (November 25, 2010). "Lupe Fiasco Presents the Intro to "Food & Liquor II"". *Hypebeast*.
7. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco Reveals "Food and Liquor 2" Details, Talks Double Album". *Fuse*. May 4, 2012.
8. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco (@LupeFiasco)". *Twitter*. July 19, 2013.
9. ↑ Horowitz, Steven (January 17, 2013). "Lupe Fiasco Cancels "Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 2". *HipHopDX*.
10. ↑ Horotitz, Steven (February 8, 2013). "Lupe Fiasco Says "Food & Liquor II" Will Lose for Best Rap Album at the Grammy Awards". *HipHopDX*.
11. ↑ Trammell, Matthew (August 27, 2012). "Q&A: Lupe Fiasco on Tupac, Album Leaks and Leaving the Game". *Rolling Stone*.
12. ↑ Kot, Greg (October 3, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco: 'I'm Afraid Chicago Is Dying'". *Chicago Tribune*.
13. ↑ Godfrey, Sarah (September 24, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco, 'Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1' Album Review". *The Washington Post*.
14. ↑ Golianopoulos, Thomas (May 30, 2011). "Lupe Fiasco: Hit the Lights [May 2011 Cover Story]". *XXL*.
15. ↑ Setaro, Shawn (September 25, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco's "Food & Liquor II": The Great American Rap Album Reviewed". *Huffpost*.
16. ↑ Rankin, Seija (October 2, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco on *Food & Liquor II*, Vintage Shopping, & Election Day". *Refinery29*.
17. ↑ Horowitz, Steven (September 26, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco Says "Food & Liquor 2" Cover Art Is Inspired by Johnny Cash". *HipHopDX*.
18. ↑ "Food & Liquor, Vol. 2: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1 | Metacritic"
19. ↑ "*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* by Lupe Fiasco Reviews". *AnyDecentMusic?*. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
20. ↑ Kellman, Andy (September 25, 2012). "*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1* Review by Andy Kellman". *AllMusic*.
21. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco, 'Food & Liquor II': Track-by-Track Review". *Billboard*. September 25, 2012.
22. ↑ Reeves, Mosi (October 3, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco, 'Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1'". *Spin*.
23. ↑ MacInnes, Paul (September 27, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco: Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt 1 – Review". *The Guardian*.
24. ↑ Fleischer, Adam (September 25, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco, Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1". *XXL*.
25. ↑ "Album Review: Lupe Fiasco's "Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1"". *AllHipHop*. September 25, 2012.
26. ↑ Holub-Moorman, Will (September 29, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco Dumbs Down Beats, Mails in Lyrics on Tepid Latest". *The Harvard Crimson*.
27. ↑ Koellner, Amanda (October 12, 2012). "Album Review: Lupe Fiasco – Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1". *Consequence*.
28. ↑ Slavik, Nathan (September 26, 2012). "Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1 Album Review". *DJBooth*. Archived from the original on May 29, 2017.
29. ↑ Winkie, Luke (October 4, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco: *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1*". *Paste*.
30. ↑ Greene, Jayson (September 27, 2012). "*Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* by Lupe Fiasco". *Pitchfork*.
31. ↑ Hunte, Justin (September 24, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1". *HipHopDX*.
32. ↑ Rytlewski (October 2, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco : *Food And Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Part I*". *The A.V. Club*.
33. ↑ Bennun, David (October 31, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* Review". *The Quietus*.
34. ↑ Morris, Matt (September 27, 2012). "Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1 (Album Review)". *Hypebeast*.
35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 "EARMILK's Top 50 Albums of 2012 [#50-26]". *Earmilk*. December 19, 2012.
36. ↑ "HipHopDX's Top 25 Albums of 2012". *HipHopDX*. December 26, 2012.