Harlem World

Harlem World is the multi-platinum debut album by rapper Mase, released October 28, 1997. Seen as Puff Daddy's new protege since the passing of The Notorious B.I.G, Ma$e rose to fame after being a member of fellow Harlem rapper Big L's rap collective 'Children Of The Corn'. After the death of Bloodshed and the subsequent disbanding of the group, Ma$e was signed to Bad Boy, catching the public eye when appearing on the track "Mo Money, Mo Problems" from Biggie's 1997 album Life After Death. Puff Daddy begin to promote Ma$e as the new premier act of Bad Boy and within a year had released "Harlem World", a highly successful album spawning hits such as 'Feel So Good' and 'What You Want'. Mase released his first solo LP, Harlem World, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Pop and R&B LP charts selling over 270,000 copies in the U.S. its first week of release. Joining Mase on his solo LP was a long list of rap dignitaries including Busta Rhymes, The Lox, Lil' Kim, Total, and Monifah. Mase told MTV about his first solo effort: "Well, basically what I'm trying to establish is a strong identity and foundation for Mase so a lot of people could know that Mase is his own person and Mase can do other things besides rap and music and things in that nature." Entertainment Weekly said of the LP: "...creatively refreshing, well-crafted lyrics... rap's newest bad boy more than holds his own on his solo debut... his distinctive marble-mouthed drawl... creates a regular-guy persona all too rare in hip-hop." button.gif (123 bytes) Mase hit the Top 40 helping out Brian McKnight with "You Should Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)."

Track listing

"Puff's Intro" - 1:40
"Do You Wanna Get $?" (Feat. Puff Daddy) - 3:49
"Take What's Yours" (Feat. DMX) - 3:45
"Mad Rapper (Interlude)" - 1:13
"Will They Die 4 Me?" (Feat. Puff Daddy & Lil Kim) - 4:04
"Lookin' at Me" (Feat. Puff Daddy) - 4:15
"White Girl (Interlude)" - :52
"Love U So" (Feat. Billy Lawrence) - 3:12
"The Player Way" (Feat. 8 Ball & MJG - 4:13
"Hater (Interlude)" - 1:00
"Niggaz Wanna Act" (Feat. Busta Rhymes) - 4:09
"Feel So Good" 3:24
"What You Want" (Feat. Total) - 4:02
"Phone Conversation (Interlude)" - 1:49
"Cheat on You" (Feat. Lil' Cease, Jay Z, & 112) - 3:15
"24 Hours to Live" (Feat. L.O.X., Black Rob, & DMX) - 4:16
"I Need to Be" (Feat. Monifah) - 5:12
"Watch Your Back (Interlude)" - :56
"Wanna Hurt Mase?" - 4:23
"Jealous Guy" (Feat. 112 - 6:25

Personnel

Barry White - Grooming
Eightball & MJG - Performer
Billy Lawrence - Performer
Busta Rhymes - Performer
Sean "Puffy" Combs - Producer, Mixing
DMX - Performer
Jermaine Dupri - Producer, Mixing
Ben Garrison - Engineer
Tony Maserati - Mixing
Michael Patterson - Engineer, Mixing
Herb Powers - Mastering
Phil Tan - Engineer, Mixing
Doug Wilson - Engineer
Total - Performer
Nasheim Myrick - Producer
Monifah - Performer
112 - Performer
Jay-Z - Performer
Lil' Kim - Performer
Puff Daddy/P. Diddy - Performer
Deric Angelettie - Producer, Associate Executive Producer
MJG - Performer
Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander - Mixing
Carlos "6 July" Broady - Piano, Producer
Lisa Peardon - Photography
Kelly Price - Vocals
Lane Craven - Mixing
Groovy Lew - Stylist
Mase - Rap
LOX - Performer
Pharrell Williams - Producer
Stephen Dent - Engineer
Jimmie Wilson - Engineer
Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence - Producer
J-Dub - Programming
Chad Hugo - Producer
Dame Grease - Producer
DJ Iroc - Scratching
Richard "Younglord" Frierson - Producer
Lil' Cease - Performer
Black Rob - Performer

Trivia

A video game called Harlem World that stars Mase is frequently featured on College University.

The title Harlem World (group) was also the name of a collaborative group formed by Mase that included: Baby Stase (Mase's Sister), Blinky Blink, Cardan (rapper), Loon (rapper) & Meeno.