Maps of Music
Universal Mind Control (2008)
Where the lyrics of Universal Mind Control take you, and where it was really made.
This album started as Invincible Summer, with a June 2008 release date, and only reached shelves on December 9, 2008 after several delays and a title change.
View on the mapKey places
Electric Lady Studios, New York (2008)
Recording site Electric Lady Studios — Several tracks on the album were recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York. Noah Goldstein, Paul Suarez and Ian Shea assisted the sessions. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Derrty Studios, St. Louis (2008)
Recording site Notifi Studios — Some tracks were recorded at Derrty Studios in St. Louis, alongside sessions in Miami. The point is placed at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
South Beach Studios, Miami (2008)
Recording site The Hit Factory Criteria — Several tracks were recorded at South Beach Studios in Miami, with Hart Gunther assisting. The point is placed at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
CRC Studios, Chicago (2008)
Recording site Chicago Recording Company — Some tracks were recorded at CRC Studios in Chicago, with Matts Larson and Dusty Robbenolt assisting. The point is placed at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Album story
Overview
- Universal Mind Control: eighth studio album by American rapper Common
- Released December 9, 2008, under Geffen Records
- Common's third and final project for Geffen Records and Kanye West's GOOD Music label
- Final album to feature any involvement from Kanye West
- Executive production and extensive creative involvement from The Neptunes, namely Pharrell Williams
Background
- Originally scheduled for June 24, 2008, under the title Invincible Summer
- Release pushed back to September 30, 2008, because of Common's acting role in the film Wanted
- Title changed to Universal Mind Control, announced September 10, 2008; release set for November 11, 2008
- Release pushed back again to December 9, 2008
- Lead single 'Universal Mind Control' officially released July 1, 2008, on the US iTunes Store as part of the Announcement EP
- The Announcement EP included an additional track titled 'Announcement'
- Video for the title single filmed in September 2008 by director Hype Williams
- The album was sold for 79 points (roughly $0.99) on Zune Marketplace to help promote it
Recording
- Tracks recorded at several studios, including Electric Lady Studios in New York, Derrty Studios in St. Louis, South Beach Studios in Miami, and CRC Studios in Chicago
- Further sessions at Camp David ATL Studios in Atlanta, Fight Club Studios and Legacy Recording Studios in New York, and Encore Studios in Burbank
- Mixing credited to The Mix Room in Burbank, The Hit Factory Criteria in Miami, Stankonia Studios in Atlanta, and The Record Plant in Los Angeles
- Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering
- Credits list a super jewel box release
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.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
- Billboard described the sound as 'electro-tinged' and 'techno-inspired'
- The album largely divided critics and fans
- Pitchfork gave it 2.8 out of 10
- The Guardian gave it 4 out of 5 stars
- USA Today gave it 3.5 out of 4 stars
- Spin gave it 7 out of 10
- XXL gave it 3 out of 5 stars
- Uncut gave it 4 out of 5 stars, calling it an exercise in modern hip hop overseen by the Neptunes and OutKast's Mr DJ
- The A.V. Club gave it a C+, saying Common had stopped trying to uplift the human spirit
- Paste gave it 5.3 out of 10, criticizing Common's inability to sound sincere about Kanye West
- Slant Magazine gave it 2 out of 5 stars, calling it a serious step backward from his recent projects with Kanye West but not the death knell for his career
- Canadian magazine Now gave it 2 out of 5, saying the rhymes were dumbed down to a crass level
Reappraisal
- Metacritic calculated a score of 53 out of 100, indicating mixed or average reviews
Records
- First-week sales in the United States: 81,663
- Sales as of December 31, 2008: 211,781
- Billboard 200: number 12
- Top Rap Albums: number 1
- Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: number 4
- Nominated for the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, losing to Eminem's album Relapse
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- The album sold for 79 points (roughly $0.99) on Zune Marketplace to help promote it
- The album was first titled Invincible Summer; the title change was announced on September 10, 2008
- Chester French provided chorus vocals and guitar on 'What a World'
- Kanye West, Pharrell, Jeff B, Cee-Lo and Martina Topley-Bird appear as guests under their respective label arrangements
- Discogs lists the release as a super jewel box edition
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com
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