Long.Live.A$AP [Deluxe Edition]

by A$AP Rocky

Overview

While his lyrics are thug-informed and filled with a snotty swagger, rapper A$AP Rocky cloaked himself in the crackle and reverb of witch house, and then connected the dots to hip-hop's druggy past, offering chopped (cut-up) and screwed (slowed-down) hooks that recalled the hypnotic world of DJ Screw, Three 6 Mafia, and Swishahouse. Mixtapes and the Internet were his platforms, while goth and Masonic designs were his imagery, and then somehow, some way, this polar opposite to what was poppin' in 2012 wound up in a Lana Del Rey video, performing next to Rihanna at the MTV Video Music Awards, starring in an EA Sports video games commercial, and on the RCA label with a three-million dollar contract. The reason is, he can create a batch of tracks as solid and addictive as the ones found on Long.Live.A$AP, his official debut album, which lands as a more ambitious, more polished alternative to his 2011 mixtape Live Love A$AP. Here, the album rolls out with the fan-tested title track and the near-perfect "Goldie," a calling-card single with all the wooziness, hypnosis, ambitiousness, and pimp talk ("Cause my chain came from Cuba, got a lock up on the link/And them red bottom loafers just to complement the mink") at proper levels. Later, the magic of "Goldie" will be punched up and reborn as an A$AP track that can welcome Drake, 2 Chainz, and Kendrick Lamar ("F**kin' Problems"), while Skrillex and Birdy Nam Nam bring dubstep and techno bleeping into the picture with ease ("Wild for the Night"); then there's "1 Train," where Kendrick, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson, Joey Bada$$, and Big K.R.I.T. help reclaim the posse cut for the dark side. With all the major-label-flavored bits tasting delicious, this debut goes the extra mile, anchoring it all with rich album cuts like "LVL," where Clams Casino coats A$AP in a beautiful nightmare. It's the closing "Suddenly" that seals the deal, coming off as haunted hip-hop jazz musically, but lyrically, the rapper is at his least abstract here, "thuggin' like Eazy-E in his prime," kicking "conscious rap" to the curb, and dropping some Master P quotes to prove he's "'bout it, 'bout it." In the end, A$AP Rocky comes off as rap's Jim Morrison, offering an accessible, attractive, and brutish journey into darkness while remaining true to his spirit. Same danger, same swagger, same dynamic tension, and the same bust-a-nut/blow-your-mind duality, so think of the Lizard King as a No Limit soldier and you are just about there. ~ David Jeffries

Product Details

Release Date:	01/22/2013
Label:	Polo Grounds Music / Rca
UPC:	0887654369611
Rank:	1400

Tracks

1. Long Live A$AP
2. Goldie
3. PMW (All I Really Need)
4. LVL
5. Hell
6. Pain
7. Fuckin' Problems
8. Wild for the Night
9. 1Train
10. Fashion Killa
11. Phoenix
12. Suddenly
13. Jodye
14. Ghetto Symphony
15. Angels
16. I Come Apart

Album Credits

Performance Credits

A$AP Rocky   Primary Artist
Eddie Montilla   Keyboards,Synthesizer
Zac   Keyboards
Yelawolf   Featured Artist
Gunplay   Featured Artist
Birdy Nam Nam   Featured Artist
Phillip Peterson   Strings
Danger Mouse   Drums,Organ,Piano,Synthesizer
Jim Jonsin   Keyboards
Michael Chen   Violin
Drake   Featured Artist
Michael Whitson   Strings
Noah Shebib   Featured Artist
Big K.R.I.T.   Featured Artist
Florence Welch   Featured Artist
Alwyn Wright   Strings
Danny Brown   Featured Artist
Santigold   Featured Artist
Vanessa Freebairn-Smith   Strings
Kathleen Sloan   Strings
Skrillex   Featured Artist
Action Bronson   Featured Artist
ScHoolboy Q   Featured Artist
Kendrick Lamar   Featured Artist
2 Chainz   Featured Artist
Finatik   Keyboards
Joey Bada$$   Featured Artist
OverDoz.   Featured Artist
A$AP Ferg   Featured Artist
Kyauna Clarke   Featured Artist,Vocals (Background)
Laura Jane Lowther   Vocals (Background)
HAIM   Vocals (Background)
Hector Delgado   Scratching

Technical Credits

Para One   Mixing
Imogen Heap   Composer
Curtis Williams   Composer
Nate Walcott   Preparation
Eddie Montilla   Composer
Rico Love   Composer,Producer
Zac   Producer
Pharrell Williams   Composer
Santi White   Composer
Jess Willard   Composer
Mike Dean   Mixing
Birdy Nam Nam   Engineer,Producer
Brian Burton   Composer
Sonny Moore   Composer
Robert Marks   Mixing
Manny Marroquin   Mixing
Danger Mouse   Producer,String Arrangements
Christopher "Tricky" Stewart   Composer
Jim Jonsin   Producer,Programming
Jonathan Williams   Composer
Andy Haller   Engineer
Chris Galland   Assistant
Finis "KY" White   Engineer
James Scheffer   Composer
Radric Davis   Composer
Tom Coyne   Mastering
Bryan Leach   Executive Producer
Aubrey Graham   Composer
Niko Marzouca   Engineer
Amanda Ghost   Composer,Producer
Noah Shebib   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Instrumentation
Allan Sigsworth   Composer
Erwin Gorostiza   Creative Director
Geno Sims   Management,Executive Producer
John Stephens   Composer
Florence Welch   Composer
Dave Pettit   Assistant
Noel "Gadget" Campbell   Mixing
Todd Monfalcone   Mixing,Engineer
Ken Takahashi   Engineer
Phil Knott   Photography
Matt Huber   Assistant
Mickael "Lil Mike" Dalmoro   Composer
Hit-Boy   Producer
Emile Haynie   Composer,Producer
Denis "Need" Lebouvier   Composer
Frank Romano   Composer,Producer
T-Minus   Producer
Skrillex   Producer,Remixing
Daniel Lynas   Engineer
Nathan Burgess   Assistant
Noel Cadastre   Assistant
Michael Atha   Composer
Juaquin Malphurs   Composer
Tivon "V.Don" Key   Composer
Virgil Abloh   Creative Director
Tyler Williams   Composer
Peter Chill   Composer
Terius Nash   Composer
Derek "MixedByAli" Ali   Engineer
Clams Casino   Producer
Switch   Mixing
Justin Scott   Composer
Michael Mule   Composer
Kendrick Lamar   Composer
V-Don   Producer
Kendrick Duckworth   Composer
A$AP Rocky   Executive Producer
Friendzone   Producer
Chauncey Hollis   Composer
Julien Pradeyrol   Composer
Michael Volpe   Composer
Ty Beats   Producer
Finatik   Producer,Programming
Mark Bengston   Engineer
Nikhil Seetharam   Composer,Producer
Delbert Bowers   Assistant
Tauheed Epps   Composer
Dana Richard   Assistant
Nicolas Vadon   Composer
Isaac de Boni   Composer
Richard Butler Jr.   Composer
Quincy Hanley   Composer
Rakim Mayers   Composer
OverDoz.   Composer
Arian Asllani   Composer
Assala Nasri   Composer
Daniel Sewell   Composer
Darold Ferguson   Composer
Dylan Reznick   Composer
James Laurence   Composer
Jo-Vaugn Scott   Composer
Laura Jane Lowther   Composer
Markese Rolle   Composer
Richard Morales, Jr.   Composer
Soufien Rhouat   Composer
A$AP Ty   Producer
Al Naser   Composer
Ariyan Arslani   Composer
Chace Johnson   Management,Executive Producer
Gee Bizzy   Assistant
Jack "Sutherfolk" Brown   Engineer
Jess "Joon" Willard   Composer
Jo-Vaughn Virginie   Composer
Lord Flacko   Producer,Remixing
Luke Leveille   Assistant
Matthew Henson   Stylist
Soufien 3000   Producer
Steven "A$AP Yams" Rodriguez   Executive Producer
Stuart Innis   Assistant
Thomas Parent   Composer
Tyshaun Holloway   Composer
Yaacoub Al Khobeisi   Composer
Tim Sorace   Engineer
Dayquan Davis   Composer
Clarence Connor   Composer
C. Papi   Producer
Amsterdam   Producer,Producer
Joey Fatts   Composer,Producer
Jonathan "MP" Williams   Composer,Additional Production
S. "Static" Garrett   Composer
Solomon Davis   Composer
Joe Perez   Design,Art Direction
Stephen Garrett   Composer
Hector Delgado   Mixing,Editing,Composer,Engineer,Producer
Khalid Muhammed   Composer