Naughty by Nature Albums (5)
What The Critics Say
Hip-hop does not look kindly on its veteran artists apart from anything other than lip service -- names are dropped all the time, but it's hard to sustain a career into a second decade for many rappers. Naughty by Nature acknowledge that situation with a wink on their fifth album, titling it Iicons and offering a definition of the word on the cover, thereby setting themselves up as icons, as titans of their genre. Which, in many ways, they are, as this rock-solid record proves. They might never have been innovators on the level of Public Enemy or Ice Cube, but they were always strong, forceful MCs and good songwriters who made strong records. Iicons is firmly within that tradition. There are a few things that make it feel modern -- some guest MC appearance, a production that is on the whole kind of spare, a stellar duet with Pink -- but the overall aesthetic is from the early '90s, when the group was at their popular peak. This doesn't mean it sounds outdated; it means that the group still crafts dynamic, varied albums, where the singles aren't the only songs that are memorable. Sure, it's a bit traditionalist, but in the best possible sense -- it keeps what's best about the form, giving the album a strong foundation, and builds on it, resulting a record that feels fresh and classic and thereby proving that it is possible to sustain a career in hip-hop without a loss of musical quality. Maybe these guys deserve to be called icons after all. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'19 Naughty Nine: Nature's Fury'
Release Date 4/27/1999
Tracks 16
Label Arista
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Longevity is a rare for hip-hop artists, since audiences place a priority on new sounds. It's difficult for veteran acts to continue to cultivate new sounds, and many have fallen by the wayside as they've tried to keep up with the times -- but not Naughty By Nature. They've never really changed their core sound, which is an alluring fusion of hardcore sentiments, pop hooks, and funky rhythms. But by not changing, they've managed to retain an audience, since they're reliable -- each Naughty By Nature record sounds essentially the same, but it's a satisfying sound that balances catchy hooks and clever, literate rhymes. Few artists are ever able to establish a track record like that, and it's amazing that 19 Naughty Nine: Nature's Fury -- the group's fourth album and first for Arista Records -- maintains the high quality. True, some listeners may wish NBN tried out different sounds and styles, but for the most part, the album delivers what any fan of the group could want: several killer party jams, a couple of slow numbers, and a handful of amiable filler. Nothing stands out as an outright classic in the vein of "O.P.P." or "Hip Hop Hooray," but there's genuine grit to the rhythms and rhymes and the music remains accessible and catchy -- in short, the best of Nature's Fury proves that it's possible to be melodic and hardcore at the same time, to have both hooks and substance. It might not break new ground, but the album proves that Vinnie and Treach have developed their own signature sound and have found ways to keep it fresh and exciting nearly a decade into their career. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
For their third album, Naughty By Nature do little to truly change their style. Some of the beats are little slower and funkier, some of the rhymes are more dexterous, some of the rhythms are a little more complex -- yet nothing distinguishes Poverty's Paradise from the group's two previous, and superior, records. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Despite an excellent debut album, Naughty by Nature was pegged as a one-hit wonder by some observers -- after all, they'd never duplicate the inescapably catchy "O.P.P.," would they? 19 Naughty III's lead single, "Hip Hop Hooray," proved that they could, and the album confirmed that Naughty by Nature were indeed highly underrated in terms of consistency. It's a shade less consistent than the debut, but has all the same strengths: head-nodding beats, Treach's bouncy flow, and a difficult balance between street attitude and accessibility. Naughty by Nature clearly comes from the streets, and have all the aggression of the streets, but they don't glamorize the streets; sure, they'll take care of themselves in a harsh environment, but ultimately they prefer to steer clear of trouble, cops, and jail. It's a refreshingly grounded and realistic perspective, best heard on "Daddy Was a Street Corner," "The Hood Comes First," and "The Only Ones." There are also energized guest appearances from Heavy D ("Ready for Dem") and Queen Latifah ("Sleeping on Jersey"). Kay Gee again shows himself a sorely underappreciated producer, with one foot in the clubs and the other one on the street corner, and that's true of the group as a whole. A few slower moments don't prevent 19 Naughty III from ranking as Naughty by Nature's second straight triumph. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
There was not a bigger, more contagious crossover radio smash in the autumn of 1991 than Naughty by Nature's "O.P.P.," a song that somehow managed the trick of being both audaciously catchy and subversively coy at the same time. Its irrepressible appeal -- the Jackson 5 sample, the saucy subject matter, the huge anthemic chorus, Treach's phat rat-a-tat flow -- was so widespread, in fact, that it played just as well to the hardcore heads in the hood as it did to the hip-hop dabblers in the suburbs. The beauty of the trio's self-titled full-length debut is that it is every bit as musically accomplished, and every bit as ghetto fabulous, in its entirety as that watershed first single. Naughty by Nature is both a pop and a rap classic that chews up stylistic real estate by the block, easily shifting from an old-school rhyme-off between Treach and Vinnie ("Pin the Tail on the Donkey"), the unflappable "Louie Louie" Vega-produced posse cut "1, 2, 3" (with verses from Flavor Unit compadres Lakim Shabazz and Apache), and the teeth-clinching combative dirge "Guard Your Grill," all of which very much come out swinging from the streets, to the more measured, emotionally developed "Ghetto Bastard," which brings an upbeat but nail-tough point of view to a grim tale of parental and societal deprivation without ever asking for an ounce of sympathy. With the assistance of Queen Latifah's makeshift patois, the trio even brought something of the Caribbean to East Orange with "Wickedest Man Alive." All the tracks are as street as they are club astute, trimming the funk loops with live keyboards and saxophone and sanguine, soulful melodies. A must-have album for fans of East Coast rap. ~ Stanton Swihart, All Music Guide
