Maps of Music

Finding Forever (2007)

Where the lyrics of Finding Forever take you, and where it was really made.

Common's only album to debut at number one on the Billboard 200, and it was made largely by a fellow Chicagoan producer, Kanye West.

Key places

Sessions across the United States and abroad (2007)

Recording site United States — Common recorded the album with Kanye West in several places from early 2006, and the United States was one of them. The map point marks the country only, not a specific studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Finding Forever: seventh studio album by Common
• Released July 31, 2007 on GOOD Music and Geffen Records
• Largely produced by GOOD Music label boss Kanye West, a fellow Chicagoan
• Debuted atop the Billboard 200 with 155,000 units in the first week
• Common's only project to reach number one on that chart

Background

• Follows Be (2005), which was also largely produced by Kanye West
• Common says the title means finding a place in music where you can exist forever
• The album's theme of lasting music was shaped by the death of J Dilla
• Common frames the record as a continued search for "forever music"

Recording

• Work on the album began in early 2006
• Sessions took place across the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, and Spain, with Kanye West
• Most of the album was recorded while Common was filming American Gangster and Smokin' Aces
• West described the recording sessions as a relaxed, easy environment
• On some tracks West chopped samples in a way similar to Dilla, as a tribute to him

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Lonnie Rashid Lynn, born March 13, 1972 in Chicago, Illinois.
• Began rapping in the late 1980s at Luther High School South in Chicago.
• Formed the rap trio C.D.R., which dissolved by 1991.
• Debuted as a solo artist in 1992 under the name Common Sense, later shortened to Common after a lawsuit from a reggae band of the same name.

Career

• Released Can I Borrow a Dollar? (1992), Resurrection (1994), and One Day It'll All Make Sense (1997) on Relativity Records and then MCA Records.
• Gained mainstream success through the Soulquarians collective, especially with Like Water for Chocolate (2000), produced largely by J Dilla.
• Electric Circus (2002) was experimental and less commercially successful.
• Signed to Kanye West's GOOD Music; Be (2005) and Finding Forever (2007) followed, with Finding Forever debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
• Won Grammys for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Southside" and Best R&B Song for "Love of My Life" with Erykah Badu.
• Later albums The Dreamer/The Believer (2011), Nobody's Smiling (2014), Black America Again (2016), and A Beautiful Revolution Pts. 1 and 2 (2020–2021).
• Won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Glory" from Selma (2014) with John Legend.
• Acting career includes Hell on Wheels, Wanted, Date Night, John Wick: Chapter 2, and Silo.
• Won a Primetime Emmy for "Letter to the Free" from the documentary 13th.
• Made his Broadway debut in Between Riverside and Crazy (2023).

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Metacritic: 73 out of 100, based on generally favorable reviews
• Pitchfork: criticized the album for sounding tired
• Rolling Stone: criticized it for being boring at times, but gave a generally positive review
• Vibe: four out of five stars, saying Common matured gracefully into middle age
• The Village Voice: favorable review, praising the political, lover-man, and battle rhymes delivered with wit and complexity
• XXL: XL (four out of five), saying Common makes timeless hip-hop seem easy
• NME: 7 out of 10, calling the album soulful and intelligent
• Spin: 9 out of 10, calling it livelier, grittier, and better
• The Observer: four out of five, praising West's skill in embellishing a sample and his eye for a soulful hook
• Now: three out of five, noting a couple of decent West-produced tracks among the slow jams
• The A.V. Club: B+, calling it tight, cohesive, and free of filler

Reappraisal

• Well-received overall despite some minor criticisms
• Did not reach the same level of respect as the previous album, Be

Records

• Billboard 200: debuted at number one with 155,000 units in the first week
• RIAA: gold certification, as of October 25, 2007
• Rolling Stone's Top 50 Albums of 2007: number 15
• 50th Grammy Awards: nominated for Best Rap Album, lost to West's album Graduation
• 2008 Grammy Awards: "Southside" from the album won Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Common and Kanye West debuted "Southside Super Bowl" on VH1's Super Bowl Pre Bash, and the track was remade for the album under the alias "Southside".
• The first video shot for the album was for "The Game", which was also the second single.
• "Drivin' Me Wild" features Lily Allen, and its video premiered on YouTube on September 1, 2007.
• The music video for "I Want You" was co-directed by Kerry Washington.
• Three preludes appear on some tracks, and the second, Prelude to Southside, was produced by J Dilla.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

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