We Major: Difference between revisions

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As Mike intended the mixtape to be free, it appeared online on October 26, 2005 on RapBasement.com and received heavy promotion from both Linkin Park and Fort Minor fansites. Mike was actively involved in posting on the Fort Minor website forum around the time of the release, answering fan questions and giving information on the mixtape.<ref>[https://www.lpassociation.com/forum/threads/full-mixtape-leaked.19747/ LPAssociation: FULL MIXTAPE LEAKED], October 26, 2005</ref> The RapBasement.com version of "[[Bleach (Jimi Remix)]]" was only two seconds in length due to an error, and was tagged as the "Hey Joe Remix". In response to this error, LP Association posted the full remix as an exclusive after fans discovered the problem.<ref>[https://www.lpassociation.com/forum/threads/we-major-mixtape.19722/page-5#post-437835 LPAssociation: We Major Mixtape], October 26, 2005</ref>
As Mike intended the mixtape to be free, it appeared online on October 26, 2005 on RapBasement.com and received heavy promotion from both Linkin Park and Fort Minor fansites. Mike was actively involved in posting on the Fort Minor website forum around the time of the release, answering fan questions and giving information on the mixtape.<ref>[https://www.lpassociation.com/forum/threads/full-mixtape-leaked.19747/ LPAssociation: FULL MIXTAPE LEAKED], October 26, 2005</ref> The RapBasement.com version of "[[Bleach (Jimi Remix)]]" was only two seconds in length due to an error, and was tagged as the "Hey Joe Remix". In response to this error, LP Association posted the full remix as an exclusive after fans discovered the problem.<ref>[https://www.lpassociation.com/forum/threads/we-major-mixtape.19722/page-5#post-437835 LPAssociation: We Major Mixtape], October 26, 2005</ref>
 
===Physical===
Physical copies of ''We Major'' were sent to Fort Minor street team members for free, five copies for each member.
Physical copies of ''We Major'' were sent to Fort Minor street team members for free, five copies for each member.



Revision as of 14:18, 28 May 2020

Template:Infobox album

Background

We Major is a mixtape by Fort Minor, released on October 30, 2005 before the album The Rising Tied came out on November 22, 2005. The mixtape's purpose was to hype fans up for the release of The Rising Tied. Some of the songs, such as "Be Somebody" and "There They Go", were considered for inclusion on The Rising Tied, therefore the mixtape also was an available means for Mike Shinoda to release other quality Fort Minor songs to fans. DJ Green Lantern hosted the mixtape and was chosen by Mike for this exact purpose.

Writing and Recording

The mixtape encompasses a wide variety of songs. Since this was Mike's first solo release, he obviously had been writing songs for quite a while for Fort Minor. He stated that this batch of songs was worked on since at least 2003.

Apparently, while Green Lantern was composing the mixtape, Mike had to say, "While I was working with Green Lantern, he says, “Yo Mike, I been asking around about who wants to get on the mixtape, and everyone wants to! Everybody fuckss with you!” I like positive feedback [laughs]."

When Mike asked Jay-Z to contribute something to the mixtape, he left Mike a voicemail that introduced We Major, which can be heard at the start of the very first song "Green Lantern Intro".

Composition

Mike took a lot of pride in the mixtape, even saying in an interview, "That said, when you put me on a hip-hop beat, a different side of me comes out and you get different types of lyrics. Still, just like with anything, I know there are people who question it. So I’ll say this…we’re about to drop a Fort Minor mixtape with Green Lantern, and if you had any questions about my skills on the mic, cop the mixtape. Album verses are for the masses, and mixtape verses are different."

Releases

On August 19, 2005, Mike posted on the Fort Minor forums, "absolutely. i gotta get a song out there for you all first, and i'd love to do a video. the first thing to check for is going to be a mixtape. i'm talking about it on LPU right now. it's going to be mixed by GREEN LANTERN."[1]

On September 30, 2005, Mike posted a message that could be decoded by fans on the Fort Minor website that said, "Message from Mike. We have been hard at work putting a number of things together for you including a video, a special edition DVD and a mixtape by Green Lantern. The mixtape will be released in October."[2]

The first song to leak online from We Major was "Spraypaint & Inkpens" when Lupe Fiasco uploaded it to his website and fans discovered the link on October 22, 2005.[3] Earlier in the day on October 26, 2006, the remix of "Nobody's Listening" also leaked.

As Mike intended the mixtape to be free, it appeared online on October 26, 2005 on RapBasement.com and received heavy promotion from both Linkin Park and Fort Minor fansites. Mike was actively involved in posting on the Fort Minor website forum around the time of the release, answering fan questions and giving information on the mixtape.[4] The RapBasement.com version of "Bleach (Jimi Remix)" was only two seconds in length due to an error, and was tagged as the "Hey Joe Remix". In response to this error, LP Association posted the full remix as an exclusive after fans discovered the problem.[5]

Physical

Physical copies of We Major were sent to Fort Minor street team members for free, five copies for each member.

At some point in 2006, We Major was reissued with new artwork on both covers and the CD. The music on the reissue is the same, but the reissue is rarer than the original pressing due to how few copies were made.

Digital

The 2006 reissue of We Major is currently available on Celph Titled's BandCamp page in digital format.[6]

Track Listing

Standard Edition

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1 Green Lantern Intro James D'Agostino 1:33
2 100 Degrees Mike Shinoda 3:05
3 Dolla Takbir Bashir, Ryan Maginn, Shinoda 3:05
4 Bloc Party Bashir, Chad Bromley, Shinoda 2:39
5 S.C.O.M. Maginn, LaRon James, Vic Mercer 3:30
6 Remember The Name (Funkadelic Remix) Bashir, Maginn, Shinoda 3:37
7 Bleach (Jimi Remix) Bashir, Colton Fisher, Maginn, Jason Rabinowitz 3:48
8 Spraypaint & Inkpens Dennis Coles, Wasalu Jaco, Shinoda 4:06
9 Petrified (Doors Remix) Shinoda 3:28
10 Get It Bashir, Maginn 3:08
11 Be Somebody Jaco, Shinoda 3:12
12 Respect 4 Grandma Bashir, Maginn, Mercer, Shinoda 3:05
13 There They Go (Green Lantern Remix) Sixx Johnson, Shinoda 3:19
14 All Night Bashir, Bromley, Mercer 3:28
15 Nobody's Listening (Green Lantern Remix) Chester Bennington, Rob Bourdon, Brad Delson, Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn, Shinoda 2:32
16 Cover And Duck Bashir, Maginn, Shinoda 4:54
17 Remember The Name (Album Version) Bashir, Maginn, Shinoda 3:12
18 Petrified (Album Version) Shinoda 2:46
19 Outro D'Agostino, Shinoda 0:49

Limited Edition Bonus Tracks

No. Title Writer(s) Length
20 Where'd You Go (SOB Remix) Mike Shinoda 3:17

Samples

  • "Green Lantern Intro" samples "Victory" by Puff Daddy featuring The Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes, "Mic Check" by Juelz Santana, "Feel the Beat" by LL Cool J, "Crazy In Love" by Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z and "Put You on the Game" by Game.
  • Both "100 Degrees" and "Dolla" contains a quote from the 2002 film, Gangs of New York.
  • "Dolla" contains samples of "The Ocean" by Led Zeppelin.
  • "Bloc Party" samples "Banquet" by Bloc Party.
  • "S.C.O.M." samples "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses.
  • "Remember the Name (Funkadelic Remix)" samples "Music for My Mother" by Funkadelic.
  • "Bleach (Jimi Remix)" samples The Jimi Hendrix Experience's cover of "Hey Joe" by The Leaves and contains a quote from an episode of The Sopranos entitled "Whoever Did This".
  • "Spraypaint & Inkpens" samples the soundtrack of the 1983 hip hop film, Wild Style.
  • "Respect 4 Grandma" samples "Baby, Baby Don't Cry" by The Miracles.
  • "Petrified (Doors Remix)" samples "Strange Days" by The Doors.
  • "There They Go (Green Lantern Remix)" samples "Is That Yo Chick" by Memphis Bleek featuring Missy Elliott & Jay-Z, "Encore" by Jay-Z and "Stay Fly" by Three 6 Mafia featuring Young Buck and 8Ball & MJG.
  • "All Night" samples "Tom Sawyer" by Rush.
  • "Nobody's Listening (Green Lantern Remix)" samples "No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age and "Threat" by Jay-Z.
  • Both "Nobody's Listening (Green Lantern Remix)" and "Outro" samples "We Major" by Kanye West featuring Nas and Really Doe.

Personnel

  • Mixed, arranged & hosted by DJ Green Lantern
  • Mixtape A&R: Seth Zaplin aka Dawgie Diamonds
  • Coordinator: Dave Parker for Machine Shop Recordings
  • Engineer: Ruben "Swift" Vidal

Reception

Critical Reception

Gallery

Trivia

External Links

References