G.O.A.T.
Studio album by
LL Cool J
ReleasedSeptember 12, 2000
Length73:43
Label
Producer
LL Cool J chronology
Phenomenon
(1997) 		G.O.A.T.
(2000) 		10
(2002)
Singles from G.O.A.T.
  1. "Imagine That"
    Released: June 27, 2000
  2. "You and Me"
    Released: October 17, 2000

G.O.A.T. featuring James T. Smith: The Greatest of All Time (simply known as G.O.A.T.) is the eighth studio album by American rapper LL Cool J, issued on Def Jam Recordings. It was released on September 12, 2000, and peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200. It was LL Cool J's first and, to date, only album to reach the top spot.

Background

The bulk of the album came about in the year of 1999, when DJ Scratch handed LL a CD of six instrumentals. The submission of beats took place when Scratch first met LL in the studio, as both men were working on the song "Ill Bomb," for Funkmaster Flex and DJ Big Kap's album, The Tunnel (1999).[1]

In a 2023 interview with Adam Graham of The Detroit News, who credited LL with creating the acronym G.O.A.T., LL said he got the term from Earl "The Goat" Manigault and Muhammad Ali.[2] Ali's business entity was called G.O.A.T., Inc., based at his home in Berrien Springs, Michigan.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic73/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]

G.O.A.T. received generally positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 73, based on 12 reviews.[3] Entertainment Weekly's Tom Sinclair noted that the album "finds the Queens-bred rapper in near top form. Talking trash, passing the mic to guests like DMX and Snoop Dogg, reeling off endlessly inventive boasts — he makes it all seem as easy as chillin’ on the boulevard on a hot summer night. The only downer is the creeping note of defensiveness, as though the old goat (who's all of 32) felt compelled to convince a new generation he's still relevant."[5]

Nathan Rabin from The A.V. Club found that "G.O.A.T. suffers from an unsure tone and a lack of thematic cohesion. Although a solid album by a gifted performer, it feels like the work of a rapper chasing trends instead of following his own path. That lack of vision makes the boast inherent in the title seem more hopelessly far-fetched than ever."[6] In her mixed review for AllMusic, editor Diana Potts wrote that G.O.A.T "disappoints. [...] The theme of L.L. as the older seducer who is better than the current man of a girlish temptress has been common through L.L.'s albums. It's like listening to the confessions of a horny 14-year-old teenage boy in the girl's locker room. Even with the help of popular rap acts like DMX and Redman, L.L. Cool J has made the same album he did once before, with no new twists."[4]

Chart performance

G.O.A.T. debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, becoming his first album to do so.[7] It also reached number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[8] By 2004, the album had sold 818,000 copies in the United States.[9]

Track listing

G.O.A.T. track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"
James "Bimmy" Antney1:52
2."Imagine That" (featuring LeShaun)
Rockwilder4:59
3."Back Where I Belong" (featuring Ja Rule)
  • J.T. Smith
  • Vada Nobles
  • Vada Nobles
  • Marc Wiggins
4:07
4."LL Cool J" (featuring Kandice Love)
DJ Scratch4:24
5."Take It Off"
Adam F3:34
6."Skit"  0:45
7."Fuhgidabowdit" (featuring DMX, Method Man & Redman)
Trackmasters4:33
8."Farmers" (featuring Tikki Diamondz)
Self3:39
9."This Is Us" (featuring Carl Thomas)
Vada Nobles5:55
10."Can't Think"
Ty Fyffe4:52
11."Hello" (featuring Amil)
DJ Scratch3:52
12."You and Me" (featuring Kelly Price)
DJ Scratch5:31
13."Homicide"
  • J.T. Smith
  • Spivey
  • Carlos Guedes
DJ Scratch5:01
14."U Can't Fuck with Me" (featuring Snoop Dogg, Xzibit and Jayo Felony)
  • J.T. Smith
  • Spivey
DJ Scratch4:26
15."Queens Is" (featuring Prodigy)
Havoc4:25
16."The G.O.A.T."
  • J.T. Smith
  • Fenton
Adam F.4:09
Bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
17."Ill Bomb" (Funkmaster Flex & Big Kap featuring LL Cool J)
DJ Scratch4:02
18."M.I.S.S. I" (featuring Case)
  • J.T. Smith
  • Tonee McClinton
  • Karlyton Clanton
Ill Am3:18
19."Shut 'Em Down"
  • J.T. Smith
  • Spivey
DJ Scratch3:23
Total length:73:43

Sample credits[10]

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for G.O.A.T.
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[23] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ STAFF, AllHipHop (May 29, 2006). "DJ Scratch: Face Off". allhiphop.com. Well that was basically through the Funk Master Flex [and Big Kap] project, The Tunnel Album. I gave a beat to Flex. It was the track 'Ill Bomb.' Flex put LL on it and he killed it. And that is one of my favorite songs out of my whole discography. I went to do the scratches on the song, and LL was there in the studio, and he asked me if I had any beats. I gave him a cd with six songs on it, and he picked all of them for the album.
  2. ^ Graham, Adam (August 16, 2023). "LL Cool J talks hip-hop's 50th anniversary, his new album and his relationship with Eminem". The Detroit News. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "G.O.A.T. Featuring James T. Smith: The Greatest of All Time by LL Cool J, reviewed at metacritic.com". Metacritic.
  4. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. G.O.A.T. at AllMusic. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Sinclair, Tom (September 22, 2000). "Music Review: 'G.O.A.T. Featuring James T. Smith the Greatest of All Time'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  6. ^ Rabin, Nathan (September 12, 2000). "LL Cool J: G.O.A.T.: Greatest Of All Time". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  7. ^ a b "LL Cool J Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  8. ^ a b "LL Cool J Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  9. ^ Baker, Soren (September 2, 2004). "LL Cool J Burns It Up". The Los Angeles Time. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  10. ^ G.O.A.T. (booklet). Def Jam, Universal. 2000.
  11. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 169.
  12. ^ "LL Cool J Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  13. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – LL Cool J – G.O.A.T. featuring James T. Smith - The Greatest Of All Time" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  14. ^ "Lescharts.com – LL Cool J – G.O.A.T. featuring James T. Smith - The Greatest Of All Time". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – LL Cool J – G.O.A.T. featuring James T. Smith - The Greatest Of All Time" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  17. ^ "Swisscharts.com – LL Cool J – G.O.A.T. featuring James T. Smith - The Greatest Of All Time". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  18. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  19. ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  20. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2000". Billboard. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  21. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2000". Billboard. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  22. ^ "Canadian album certifications – LL Cool J – G.O.A.T." Music Canada.
  23. ^ "American album certifications – L.L. Cool J – G.O.A.T." Recording Industry Association of America.
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