Order in the Court

Order in the Court
Studio album by
Queen Latifah
ReleasedJune 16, 1998
Recorded1997–1998
GenreHip hop[1]
Length55:17
Label
Producer
Queen Latifah chronology
Black Reign
(1993) 		Order in the Court
(1998) 		She's a Queen: A Collection of Hits
(2002)
Singles from Order in the Court
  1. "It's Alright"
    Released: June 28, 1997
  2. "Bananas (Who You Gonna Call?)"
    Released: April 14, 1998
  3. "Paper"
    Released: May 5, 1998
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[2]
Rolling Stone[3]
The Source[4]
The Village VoiceB+[5]

Order in the Court is the fourth studio album by the American hip-hop artist and actress Queen Latifah.[6] The album was released on June 16, 1998, by Motown Records and would be Latifah's last album with Motown. It is partly dedicated to the Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur. It is her first album to have the Parental Advisory warning on it.

Before the album's release, Latifah and Foxy Brown had been arguing over who was the real Queen.[7] On the album's second track, "Court Is In Session" Latifah portrayed herself as a judge presiding over the current state of hip-hop music by taunting her rivals, including Foxy.[7] However, with the closing track, "Life", Latifah comes to realize that feuding with other female rappers was futile, given the untimely and recent deaths of Biggie and Tupac.[7] Both "Black On Black Love" and "Life" celebrate the black community, black love, and black businesses.[7]

More so than Latifah's other hip-hop albums, this one focuses on her legacy and attempts to cement herself as a defining hip-hop artist, regardless of gender.[7]

Track listing

  1. "Bananas (Who You Gonna Call?)" (featuring Apache) – 4:00
  2. "Court Is In Session" – 3:52
  3. "No/Yes" (skit) – 0:45
  4. "No/Yes" – 4:50
  5. "Turn You On" – 4:21
  6. "Black on Black Love" (featuring Antonique Smith and Next) – 5:05
  7. "Parlay" (featuring Le Fem Markita) – 4:52
  8. "Paper" – 4:00
  9. "What Ya Gonna Do" (featuring Inaya Jafan) – 4:33
  10. "It's Alright" (featuring Faith Evans, Lil' Mo) – 3:45
  11. "Phone Call (Skit)" – 0:34
  12. "Brownsville" (featuring Le Fem Markita, Scarlet and Nikki D) – 4:40
  13. "I Don't Know" (featuring Sisqó) – 4:29
  14. "Life" – 5:42

European edition

  2. "Let Her Live" (featuring Next)

Japanese edition

  2. "Let Her Live" (featuring Next)
  3. "Keep Your Head to the Sky"

Album notes

  • Singer Inaya Day is featured on the album, credited as Inaya Jafan
  • Latifah performed the track "Life" at the Lilith Fair in 1998. The live song also appears on the CD and cassette release Lilith Fair Volume 2
  • "Turn You On" Samples and Interpolates "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On" By Cherelle
  • "Let Her Live" Samples and Interpolates "That Girl" by Stevie Wonder
  • "Keep Your Head to the Sky" Samples and Interpolates "Saturday Love" By Cherrelle and Alexander O'Neal
  • "Life" Samples "You're Not the Man" by Sade
  • "Paper" interpolates "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye
  • "Black on Black Love" Samples "Make Me Say It Again, Girl" by The Isley Brothers
  • "Court is in Session" Samples "What Am I Missing" by Rufus & Chaka Khan
  • "Bananas (Who You Gonna Call)" samples vocals from "Fu-Gee-La" by The Fugees
  • "It's Alright" samples "I Want to Thank You" by Alicia Myers

References

  1. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Order in the Court - Queen Latifah | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
  2. ^ Weingarten, Marc (June 19, 1998). "Order in the Court Review". Entertainment Weekly. p. 74. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved 2012-06-16.
  3. ^ McDonnell, Evelyn (August 6, 1998). "Queen Latifah: Order In The Court : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. No. 792. p. 72. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007.
  4. ^ Gonzales, Michael A. (July 1998). "Record Report: Queen Latifah – Order in the Court". The Source. No. 106. New York. pp. 152, 154.
  5. ^ Christgau, Robert (November 3, 1998). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Village Voice Media. p. 128. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
  6. ^ "CNN - When Latifah reigns, she pours it on - September 2, 1998". www.cnn.com.
  7. ^ a b c d e Smith, Da’Shan (2018-06-13). "Revisiting Queen Latifah's 'Order In The Court' 20 years later". REVOLT. Retrieved 2020-07-17.