Be (Common album)

Be
Studio album by
Common
ReleasedMay 24, 2005 (2005-05-24)
Studio
Genre
Length42:33
Label
Producer
Common chronology
Electric Circus
(2002) 		Be
(2005) 		Finding Forever
(2007)
Singles from Be
  1. "The Food"
    Released: October 8, 2004
  2. "The Corner"
    Released: March 1, 2005
  3. "Go!"
    Released: June 14, 2005
  4. "Testify"
    Released: September 27, 2005
  5. "Faithful"
    Released: October 8, 2005

Be is the sixth studio album by American rapper Common. It was released on May 24, 2005, by Geffen Records and GOOD Music. The album is Common's first album under Geffen, following the mediocre performance of 2002's Electric Circus and the July 2003 merger of preceding label MCA Records, which, like Geffen and its sister label Interscope Records, was a division of Universal Music Group.[5]

The album was primarily and executively produced by rapper and GOOD Music founder Kanye West, with additional production from frequent collaborator J Dilla. It debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 185,000 copies in the United States.[6] The album is Common's second album to sell over 500,000 copies (over 800,000 copies sold), becoming a certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Be was also a critical success, receiving acclaim and accolades from several critics and music publications. The album received a perfect "XXL" rating from hip hop publication XXL[7] and was deemed Common's magnum opus by HipHopGoldenAge.[8] In 2022 and 2024, Rolling Stone and Billboard included Be on their lists of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time.[9][10]

  1. ^ Draper, Jason (May 24, 2021). "'Be': When Common Returned To His Roots". uDiscover. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  2. ^ Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (2014). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 978-0-7893-2074-2.
  3. ^ Darling, Cary (July 24, 2005). "Stylish hip-hop thrives". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  4. ^ Ducker, Jesse (May 22, 2020). "Common's 'Be' Turns 15". Albumism. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  5. ^ "MCA, GEFFEN TO MERGE". HITS Daily Double. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
  6. ^ "Common Scores First No. 1 On Billboard 200 | Billboard". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 24, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  7. ^ XXL (December 2007). "Retrospective: XXL Albums". XXL.
  8. ^ "Top 150 Hip Hop Albums Of The 2000s". Hip Hop Golden Age. Retrieved 2021-12-06.
  9. ^ "The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 8, 2022. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  10. ^ "The 100 Greatest Rap Albums of All Time: Staff List". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 28, 2024. Retrieved August 5, 2024.