Released: September 19, 2006

Songwriter: Lupe Fiasco

Producer: Lupe Fiasco

Tracklist
1. Intro
2. Real
3. Just Might Be OK
4. Kick, Push
5. I Gotcha
6. The Instrumental
7. He Say She Say
8. Sunshine
9. Daydreamin'
10. The Cool
11. Hurt Me Soul
12. Pressure
13. American Terrorist
14. The Emperor's Soundtrack
15. Kick Push II
16. Outro
17. Theme Music to A Drive By
18. Tilted
19. Carrera Lu
20. What It Do

Album Artwork



5th Anniversary Edition

Lupe Fiasco

The Chicago born Wasalu Muhammad Jaco first tasted success when he featured on Kanye West’s hit “Touch the Sky”, a track that shortly preceded his real breakout, his 2006 debut album Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor, and he never looked back. He has established himself as one of the greatest urban wordsmiths of all time, with Genius even dubbing him the ‘Proust of Rap’.

While he’s now regarded of one of the 21st Century’s Hip-Hop greats, he wasn’t always a fan of the genre, initially disliking it due to the prominence of vulgarity and misogyny within it. In his late teens, he aspired to make it as a lyricist. In his early twenty’s, he met Jay-Z, who helped him sign with Atlantic Records in 2005. The following year, he released his debut album (Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor), which was met with acclaim from fans and critics alike, as did his sophomore effort, Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool.

The following eight years of his career saw far less output than many would’ve anticipated. This can be partly attributed to his struggles with Atlantic Records. The executives wanted him to sign a 360 deal; however, as he refused to do so they instead shelved his already completed 3rd album, Lasers, and wouldn’t promote him as they had previously. The overseers at the label also interfered with his music (as they had tried to do with his fan-favorite track “Dumb it Down”); subsequently effecting the quality and sound of his third and fourth albums.