Ghostface Killah

Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and prominent member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success. Ghostface Killah debuted his solo-career with Ironman in 1996, which was well received by music critics. He has continued his success over the following years with critically acclaimed albums such as Supreme Clientele (2000) and FishScale (2006). His stage name was taken from one of the characters in the 1979 kung fu film Mystery of Chessboxing. He is the founder of his own label Starks Enterprises.

Ghostface Killah is critically acclaimed for his loud, fast-paced flow, and his emotional stream-of-consciousness narratives containing cryptic slang and non-sequiturs. In 2006, MTV included him on their honorable mention list of The Greatest MCs of All Time, while the editors of About.com placed him on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987–2007), calling him "one of the most imaginative storytellers of our time."Q magazine called him "rap's finest storyteller."Pitchfork Media stated that, "Ghostface has unparalleled storytelling instincts; he might be the best, most colorful storyteller rap has ever seen."NPR called him "a compulsive storyteller", and asserted, "His fiction is painterly."

The Pretty Toney Album

The Pretty Toney Album is the fourth studio album by American hip hop artist Ghostface, a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. The album was released on April 20, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings. It is the only album from the artist to be released solely under the title of "Ghostface" ("Killah" is entirely omitted in any reference to his name on the packaging), but it is otherwise a normal Ghostface Killah release in line with the rest of his catalogue.

The album cover is a photograph taken from his performance of the song "Summertime" with Beyoncé at Jay-Z's farewell concert at Madison Square Garden in November 2003. The oversized jewelry he is seen wearing in the photograph was given to him prior to his performance by rapper Slick Rick, as seen in the film "Fade to Black."

Critical reception

The Pretty Toney Album received critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 84, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 14 reviews. David Jeffries of AllMusic said, "The Pretty Toney Album has a lack of Wu-related references on it. It's Ghostface's album entirely and all the better for it."Tiny Mix Tapes said, "It exemplifies all of the elements that Ghostface has been successful with in the past. Unfortunately, The Pretty Toney Album falls short in replacing what Raekwon had contributed to Ghost's previous album releases, causing the album to feel essentially incomplete."

Ghostface

Ghostface may refer to:

See also

Album

Albums of recorded music were developed in the early 20th century, first as books of individual 78rpm records, then from 1948 as vinyl LP records played at 33 ¹⁄₃ rpm. Vinyl LPs are still issued, though in the 21st century albums sales have mostly focused on compact disc (CD) and MP3 formats. The audio cassette was a format used in the late 1970s through to the 1990s alongside vinyl.

An album may be recorded in a recording studio (fixed or mobile), in a concert venue, at home, in the field, or a mix of places. Recording may take a few hours to several years to complete, usually in several takes with different parts recorded separately, and then brought or "mixed" together. Recordings that are done in one take without overdubbing are termed "live", even when done in a studio. Studios are built to absorb sound, eliminating reverberation, so as to assist in mixing different takes; other locations, such as concert venues and some "live rooms", allow for reverberation, which creates a "live" sound. The majority of studio recordings contain an abundance of editing, sound effects, voice adjustments, etc. With modern recording technology, musicians can be recorded in separate rooms or at separate times while listening to the other parts using headphones; with each part recorded as a separate track.

Pretty

Pretty may refer to:

Arts, entertainment, and media

See also

People