2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus)
2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus) is the second studio album by rapper Canibus, released on July 18, 2000 through Universal Records.
Considered to have been a significant improvement over his debut album, Can-I-Bus, 2000 B.C. featured multiple record producers and greater differentiation. On the title track, Canibus blames the commercial failure of his first album on the bland beats by Wyclef Jean whom he severed ties with to team up with various producers, ranging from Ty Fyffe to Irv Gotti. Allegedly, rapper Eminem was to be featured on the track "Phuk U", but turned down the offer.
Universal Records was reportedly underwhelmed by sales of the second release (the album was bootlegged heavily before the release), and the label's contract with Canibus was terminated following the release of 2000 B.C. The album's only charting single was "Mic-Nificent", which peaked at number 23 on the Hot Rap Singles chart.
Critical reception
2000 B.C. received mixed reviews from music critics, calling it an improvement over his debut album but still found problems with Canibus' lack of engaging topics, monotonous flow and subpar production. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 60, based on 9 reviews.