We Major

We Major
Mixtape by Fort Minor
Recorded:	2004-2005
Released:	October 25, 2005
Length:	59:25
Producer:	Mike Shinoda
Label:	Machine Shop
Fort Minor chronology We Major (2005) The Rising Tied (2005)

DJ Green Lantern Presents Fort Minor: We Major is Fort Minor's mixtape released in October 2005 to promote the upcoming album The Rising Tied.

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. It was recorded after Mike finished writing and recording The Rising Tied. The mixtape's purpose was to hype fans up for the release of the album. Some of the songs, such as "Be Somebody", "There They Go", and "Cover And Duck" 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.

We Major is preceded by Fort Minor's five track Sampler Mixtape sent to street team members the previous month in September 2005.

Writing and Recording

The mixtape encompasses a wide variety of songs. Since this was Mike's first solo release, he had been writing songs for quite a while that didn't fit with Linkin Park. He stated that Fort Minor material dated back as far as 2003 or earlier in some cases.

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".

All of the songs that compose We Major fit into five categories:

- Tracks recorded after The Rising Tied was already finished. The Rising Tied was completed several months before release, and the last mixtape tracks for We Major were finished just a few days before it was released in October.

- Remixes ("There They Go", "Petrified", "Remember The Name", "Nobody's Listening", and "Bleach (Jimi Remix)").

- Songs containing copyrighted samples that couldn't have been released commercially without permission ("Dolla", "S.C.O.M.", "Bloc Party", "All Night", and "Respect 4 Grandma". A majority of these songs were likely recorded specifically for We Major, if not all.

- Songs that didn't have Mike on them ("Get It", "All Night", and "S.C.O.M.").

- Songs that were considered for the album, but voted off ("Be Somebody", "There They Go", and "Cover And Duck"). It has never been confirmed by Mike, but it is possible that "Spraypaint & Inkpens" also fits into this category.

Ryu of Styles of Beyond said about "We Major", "i really like the mixtape, it almost could be an album in itself" In later years, Ryu has said on social media that he prefers the mixtape to the album.

In June 2020, Mike said, "The We Major mixtape, I made that with all the people involved after I finished the Fort Minor album. I had a couple of those tracks that I wasn't going to include on the album and then we did them for the mixtape, and then I did a bunch of other stuff. I made all the tracks except for I think Scoop DeVille did two. Yeah we just sent it to Green Lantern and he blended it, he mixed it. I put all of the songs together, we put all of the raps together like in a few weeks. It was pretty fast, I feel like that's the point of a mixtape."

Composition

Mike took a lot of pride in the mixtape, 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."

Mike told MTV, "I first met Green when we were out on tour, just hanging out — this was pre-Collision Course. He hit me with a couple of his Shady [Records] mixtapes and I was like, 'Thanks man, I got the first one and I've wanted to get these.' We swapped numbers and he was the first person I called. He did a real good job. I told Green he had to come up with the title so he came up with We Major, from the Kanye song. But I thought that was an excellent idea doing the "minor" and "major.""

He added in an interview just after the mixtape came out, "The mixtape is the shit, man. I can't even tell you. The only thing better than the mixtape is the real album. This thing is a monster. Green Lantern and I did it. There is so much exclusive shit on there, I kinda felt bad. I almost felt like I shouldn't even put it out. But I'm excited about it and we were already committed to doing this 100% or don't do it at all. We got Ghostface on there. Fiasco, Apathy, Self-Titled, S.O.B., Sixx John... Juelz Santana is on that shit, so you gotta pick it up. And the thing is this is gonna be out this week, so you gotta go out and find it. You can find it on the Internet. Go find it at the record store. It's for promotional use only, so it will be all over the place."

Releases

On August 18, 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." Mike added on the LPU, "we're putting together an FM mixtape right now. i'm doing it with DJ green lantern. i know that i'm doing a ton of exclusives for it, as are styles of beyond and some of the other demigodz crew." He also mentioned that a remix of "Bleach" that he has produced for Styles of Beyond may appear on the mixtape.

On September 20, 2005, Ryu posted on the Fort Minor forums, "a lot of songs will be on the net soon, not songs off fort minor, but unreleased mixtape songs. a mixtape, is a whole bunch of songs that are just thrown together so fans can have some exclusive songs. songs that might not be considered album worthy, but still good. Hope that helps"

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."

Ryu said on October 7, 2005, "i don't know when it's being released we are basically done with it, we are waiting on 2 more verses from guest appearances and i think it's ready to be released. maybe about 15 songs. just hip hop stuff. don't expect it to sound in anyway like fort minor. if your an LP fan, this mixtape might not be your cup of tea. i think it's really dope though." He added, "there is a couple big name guests on the mixtape." Mike added on October 9, 2005, "as you can see, this is not a normal release with just a single and a video--we have a TON of material to get out there to you. i just talked to green lantern, and he says the fort minor mixtape should be done this week..."

The Fort Minor Sampler Mixtape that was released to the Fort Minor Street Team was leaked online on October 17, 2005 by fans. There is a coded messages on the Sampler Mixtape that reads, "Full length Green Lantern Mixtape featuring Ghostface, Lupe Fiasco, Big Daddy Kane, Celph Titled and Apathy available in October." All of these guests except Big Daddy Kane appeared on We Major.

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. Earlier in the day on October 26, 2006, the remix of "Nobody's Listening" also leaked.

On October 25, 2005, Mike instructed fans to "search high and low" for the mixtape, as it was rumored to be hidden deep on the Internet somewhere. He said on the Fort Minor forum, "just to confirm, the mixtape is called FORT MINOR: WE MAJOR and is hitting the streets this week (if i can help it). you will be finding it on the web today, so get out there and do your homework. tell a friend." And added on the Fort Minor Militia, "The Mixtape Is Out There - i don't already see any posts about the mixtape tracks, so this must be exclusive news. the mixtape tracks are out there. email your friends. hunt them down. we just released these little guys out into the wilderness, and it's your job to get out there and catch them. welcome to FM.MILITIA -mike"

The same day, Derty JaSon from RapBasement.com posted that he was in talks with DJ Green Lantern and Mike to get some quotes for "We Major" so they can make a big post about the release, saying that they will be leaking the mixtape. The link to the full download was found on MySpace, and was then hosted immediately by RapBasement.com the same day. It 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. 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.

Physical

Physical copies of We Major were sent to Fort Minor street team members for free, with five copies for each member. DJ Green Lantern also sold copies on his website.

At some point in mid-to-late 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. The re-release was sold at Joe Hahn's store Suru in Los Angeles. On the reissue, "Where'd You Go (S.O.B. Remix)" is a bonus track. The remix was originally released on the "Where'd You Go" single on April 10, 2006. This reissued version has been known to have fake bootleg copies online for sale.

HipHopSite.com in late 2005 issued a physical release of We Major in a cardboard sleeve as a part of a two CD set, including their own "Preemptive Hype Vol. 11 Compilation CD." Numbers on this release were quite limited. The CD is the exact same as the original We Major release and contains no differences at all besides a cardboard sleeve instead of a jewel case.

Digital

The 2006 reissue of We Major is currently available on Celph Titled's BandCamp page in digital format as well as on the Demigodz website for download for $5.

This is the only location where the digital download has been offered for sale. It is unlikely to receive a wider commercial release due to how many samples are on the mixtape.

We Major EP

Sometime in 2005 after the release of We Major, DJ Green Lantern released a promotional "street" vinyl containing censored and uncensored versions of four songs from We Major, titled the We Major EP. On the vinyl, they are presented in their original form without any transitions or overdubs.

The tracks included are "Spraypaint & Inkpens", "Nobody's Listening (Green Lantern Remix)", "S.C.O.M.", and "There They Go (Green Mix)", bringing it to a total of eight tracks. DJ Green Lantern titled this release the We Major EP.

Alternate Versions

Some of the tracks on We Major have been released elsewhere over time, usually in their original, unedited form.

A promotional vinyl S.C.O.M. / Dolla / Get It / Spraypaint & Ink Pens was released by Warner Bros. in 2006 containing explicit, clean, and instrumental versions of all four songs.

Celph Titled released a large four disc compilation The Gatalog - A Collection of Chaos on October 24, 2006 containing original, unedited versions of "S.C.O.M.", "All Night", and "Cover & Duck".

Apathy released a compilation in 2007 titled Hell's Lost & Found: It's The Bootleg, Muthafu@kas! Volume 2with the original, unedited version of "Bloc Party".

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

2006 Reissue Bonus Track

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

Gallery

• 

  Standard cover

• 

  2006 reissue

• 

  Promo vinyl ("We Major EP" street release)

• 

  Mike's list of songs from "The Rising Tied" documentary

External Links

• http://mikeshinodaclan.com/media/interviews/ballerstatus-mike-shinoda-we-major-not-minor/
• http://mikeshinodaclan.com/media/2005-interviews/