Maps of Music

Walking with a Panther (1989)

Where the lyrics of Walking with a Panther take you, and where it was really made.

Only Dwayne Simon stayed on from the L.A. Posse; the others left over pay, and Def Jam refused to renegotiate the contract.

Key places

Recorded and mixed in New York (1989)

Recording site Record Plant Studios — Discogs lists this studio for recording and mixing the album. The point is shown at New York City level, so the exact building is not pinned. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Additional studio in Los Angeles (1989)

Recording site Motown Recording Studios — Discogs lists Ocean Way Recording as an additional studio for this album. The point is shown at Los Angeles city level, not an exact building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Walking with a Panther: third studio album by American hip hop artist LL Cool J
• Released June 9, 1989 on Def Jam Recordings
• Cover shows a black American panther
• Produced mainly by LL Cool J and Dwayne Simon
• Singles include 'Going Back to Cali', 'I'm That Type of Guy', 'Jingling Baby', 'Big Ole Butt' and 'One Shot at Love'

Background

• Previous album Bigger and Deffer (1987) was produced by L.A. Posse
• Dwayne Simon was the only L.A. Posse member willing to work on this album
• Bobby 'Bobcat' Erving wanted higher pay after the previous album became a big success
• Def Jam refused to change the contract, so L.A. Posse left
• Rick Rubin and Public Enemy's production team, the Bomb Squad, added extra production

Recording

• Recorded and mixed at Chung King House of Metal in New York City

Cover

• The cover shows a black American panther

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ko.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• James Todd Smith, known as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor.
• He was among the earliest rappers to achieve crossover commercial success alongside new-school acts like Run-DMC.
• Signed by Def Jam Recordings in 1984; his breakthrough single "I Need a Beat" (1984) was followed by debut album Radio (1985).
• Later albums Bigger and Deffer (1987), Walking with a Panther (1989), Mama Said Knock You Out (1990), Mr. Smith (1995), and Phenomenon (1997) brought continued success.
• Released The FORCE (2024), his fourteenth studio album, after re-signing with Def Jam.
• Acting work includes Toys, Halloween H20, Any Given Sunday, and NCIS: Los Angeles (2009–2023) as Sam Hanna.
• Two-time Grammy winner; in 2017 became the first rapper to receive a Kennedy Center Honor; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021 (Musical Excellence).

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Hip-hop community gave a mixed response at release, unfavorable toward several love ballads
• Hip-hop criticism focused on the album being too commercial and materialistic
• Commercial success: singles from the album also charted

Records

• Billboard 200: peaked at number six
• Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: number one, spending four weeks there
• Singles: 'Going Back to Cali', 'I'm That Type of Guy', 'Jingling Baby', 'Big Ole Butt' and 'One Shot at Love' achieved chart success
• RIAA: certified platinum

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

Trivia

• Def Jam refused to change the contract, which caused the L.A. Posse to leave the project
• Bobby 'Bobcat' Erving wanted more money for this album after seeing how successful the previous album had become
• Discogs lists additional studios Green Street, Ocean Way Recording and Sorcerer Sound alongside the main studio

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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