Bobby Digital in Stereo is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer RZA. It was released on November 24, 1998, and was certified Gold on February 5, 1999, by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It is an experimental album that is based on a story featuring him rhyming as a hedonistic, fun-loving alter-ego named Bobby Digital and showcasing a unique keyboard-driven sound (rather than samples) that RZA called digital orchestra, receiving mostly positive, though somewhat mixed, reviews.
He explained the origins of Bobby Digital, saying:
It came from a really good bag of weed one day, right? I was in my studio. My birth name is Bobby Diggs. So at the time, creatively, I felt like I was in a digital frame. I felt like I was in high-speed, where everything was digital, in numbers, mathematics. I said to myself at the same time that as Bobby Digital, I could use a character to describe some of the earlier days of my own life. Partying, bullshitting, going crazy, chasing women, taking drugs. At the same time, I would mix in my love for comic books. It was a mixture of fiction and reality together to make a character I thought would be entertaining, and I could utilize that character to get fans into me as an MC, as a lyricist, and also following the path of my life. It's like pre-RZA. It's what The RZA struggles not to be, in a way, you know what I mean?[8]
Musicedit
Lyrical contentedit
On the pseudonym and character of Bobby Digital, which dominated the album's lyrics, RZA later stated:
I had to live in a way that I don't really live...I got to dip my weed in honey, and I had mad bitches around me. I probably fucked with 50 bitches this year...women are queens. But if they don't know that themselves, Bobby will prey on them. He'll treat them like bitches if they don't realize that they're queens. I had to get Bobby out of me, or else I'd be emotionally unbalanced. Bobby Digital is just me feeling my nuts. RZA is my heart.[9]
— RZA
Productionedit
The sound of the album is largely keyboard-driven, but there are still samples. On the sound of Bobby Digital, RZA stated:
I learned how to play chords and progress the chords—I got together at least 16 or 17 different keyboards for this album. I always liked orchestras and strings, so I composed a digital orchestra.[10]
— RZA
Track listingedit
Track listing information is taken from the official liner notes.[11] Tracks 1-17 are Bobby Digital songs, while tracks 18-21 are RZA songs.
^Keith Farley (1998-11-16). "RZA as Bobby Digital in Stereo - RZA | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^Browne, David (1998-12-18). . EW.com. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^Nme.Com (2005-09-12). "NME Reviews - RZA : Bobby Digital In Stereo". Nme.Com. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^. Archived from the original on August 28, 2001. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^Hudak, Joseph. . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 24, 2007. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^. Tower.com. 1998-11-24. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^. Archived from the original on 2008-04-03. Retrieved 2008-12-18.
^"RZA interview with The Onion A.V. Club :: news articles at Wu-Tang Corp. - The Official Site of the Wu-Tang Clan". Wutang-corp.com. 2003-11-19. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
^. wuforever.com. Archived from the original on 2020-08-06. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
^. wuforever.com. Archived from the original on 2020-08-06. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
^In Stereo (booklet). RZA as Bobby Digital. Gee Street/V2/BMG Records. 1998. 32521.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^In Stereo (booklet). RZA as Bobby Digital. Gee Street/V2/BMG Records. 1998. V2CI 0018.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 241.
^"RZA Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
^"RZA Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
^"Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1999". Billboard. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
bobby, digital, stereo, debut, studio, album, american, rapper, producer, released, november, 1998, certified, gold, february, 1999, recording, industry, association, america, riaa, experimental, album, that, based, story, featuring, rhyming, hedonistic, lovin. Bobby Digital in Stereo is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer RZA It was released on November 24 1998 and was certified Gold on February 5 1999 by the Recording Industry Association of America RIAA It is an experimental album that is based on a story featuring him rhyming as a hedonistic fun loving alter ego named Bobby Digital and showcasing a unique keyboard driven sound rather than samples that RZA called digital orchestra receiving mostly positive though somewhat mixed reviews Bobby Digital in StereoStudio album by RZAReleasedNovember 24 1998Recorded1998GenreHip hopLength67 57LabelGee Street V2 BMG RecordsProducerRZA Inspectah Deck King TechRZA chronologyOoh I Love You Rakeem 1991 Bobby Digital in Stereo 1998 Ghost Dog The Way of the Samurai soundtrack 1999 Wu Tang Clan solo chronologyTical 2000 Judgement Day 1998 Bobby Digital in Stereo 1998 Beneath the Surface 1999 Professional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic 1 Entertainment WeeklyB 2 NME 3 Pitchfork Media 2 9 10 4 Rolling Stone 5 The Source 6 Stylus favorable 7 Contents 1 Background 2 Music 2 1 Lyrical content 2 2 Production 3 Track listing 4 Personnel 5 Charts 5 1 Weekly charts 5 2 Year end charts 6 Certifications 7 References 8 External linksBackground editHe explained the origins of Bobby Digital saying It came from a really good bag of weed one day right I was in my studio My birth name is Bobby Diggs So at the time creatively I felt like I was in a digital frame I felt like I was in high speed where everything was digital in numbers mathematics I said to myself at the same time that as Bobby Digital I could use a character to describe some of the earlier days of my own life Partying bullshitting going crazy chasing women taking drugs At the same time I would mix in my love for comic books It was a mixture of fiction and reality together to make a character I thought would be entertaining and I could utilize that character to get fans into me as an MC as a lyricist and also following the path of my life It s like pre RZA It s what The RZA struggles not to be in a way you know what I mean 8 Music editLyrical content edit On the pseudonym and character of Bobby Digital which dominated the album s lyrics RZA later stated I had to live in a way that I don t really live I got to dip my weed in honey and I had mad bitches around me I probably fucked with 50 bitches this year women are queens But if they don t know that themselves Bobby will prey on them He ll treat them like bitches if they don t realize that they re queens I had to get Bobby out of me or else I d be emotionally unbalanced Bobby Digital is just me feeling my nuts RZA is my heart 9 RZA Production edit The sound of the album is largely keyboard driven but there are still samples On the sound of Bobby Digital RZA stated I learned how to play chords and progress the chords I got together at least 16 or 17 different keyboards for this album I always liked orchestras and strings so I composed a digital orchestra 10 RZATrack listing editTrack listing information is taken from the official liner notes 11 Tracks 1 17 are Bobby Digital songs while tracks 18 21 are RZA songs In StereoNo TitleWriter s Producer s Length1 Intro Robert DiggsRZA0 362 B O B B Y Robert DiggsRZA5 233 Unspoken Word Robert DiggsRZA4 444 Slow Grind African Robert DiggsRZA1 025 Airwaves Robert DiggsKing Tech1 476 Love Jones Robert DiggsRodney MathewsRZA4 317 N Y C Everything feat Method Man Robert DiggsClifford SmithRZA4 178 Mantis feat Masta Killa and Tekitha Robert DiggsElgin TurnerTekitha WashingtonRZA3 339 Slow Grind French Robert DiggsRZA0 4610 Holocaust Silkworm feat Ghostface Killah Holocaust Dr Doom and Ms Roxy Robert DiggsAnthony BrownDante CunninghamDennis ColesRZA5 1511 Terrorist feat Killarmy and Black Knights Robert DiggsDomingo Del ValleJeryl GrantRZA3 2512 Bobby Did It Spanish Fly feat Ghostface Killah Islord Royal Fam Jamie Sommers and Ndira Robert DiggsDennis ColesRodney StevensonTonia ShiversTimothy DraytonRZA4 2113 Handwriting On The Wall feat Ms Roxy and Ras Kass Robert DiggsRZA1 3914 Kiss Of A Black Widow feat Ol Dirty Bastard Robert DiggsAdrian UtleyBeth GibbonsGeoff BarrowJason HunterRussel JonesInspectah Deck2 4715 Slow Grind Italian Robert DiggsRZA1 0116 My Lovin Is Digi feat Ms Roxy Robert DiggsTekitha WashingtonRoland FrancisRZA4 2817 Domestic Violence feat Jamie Sommers Ms Roxy and Tiffany Robert DiggsRZA5 2118 Project Talk feat Baretta Nine Robert DiggsRZA1 4619 Lab Drunk Robert DiggsRZA3 3420 Fuck What You Think feat 9th Prince and Islord of Killarmy Robert DiggsRodney StevensonTerrance HamlinRZA3 1221 Daily Routine feat Baretta Nine of Killarmy Robert DiggsSamuel MurrayRZA4 23Total length 67 51 In Stereo Japanese release 12 No TitleWriter s Producer s Length1 B O B B Y Robert DiggsRZA5 502 Unspoken Word Robert DiggsRZA4 463 Airwaves Robert DiggsKing Tech1 514 Love Jones with Angel Cake Robert DiggsRodney MathewsRZA4 355 N Y C Everything with Method Man Robert DiggsClifford SmithRZA4 236 Mantis with Masta Killa and Tekitha Robert DiggsElgin TurnerTekitha WashingtonRZA3 387 Holocaust Silkworm with Ghostface Killah Holocaust Dr Doom and Ms Roxy Robert DiggsAnthony BrownDante CunninghamDennis ColesRZA5 168 Terrorist Killarmy and Black Knights Robert DiggsDomingo Del ValleJeryl GrantRZA4 109 Bobby Did It Spanish Fly with Ghostface Killah Islord Royal Fam Jamie Sommers and Ndira Robert DiggsDennis ColesRodney StevensonTonia ShiversTimothy DraytonRZA4 2410 Kiss Of A Black Widow with Wu Tang Clan and Angel Cake Robert DiggsAdrian UtleyBeth GibbonsGeoff BarrowJason HunterRussel JonesInspectah Deck2 5011 Do You Here The Bells 9 Minute Free Style Robert DiggsRZA11 2612 Project Talk featuring Baretta Nine Robert DiggsRZA1 4713 Lab Drunk Robert DiggsRZA4 1814 Fuck What You Think with 9th Prince and Islord of Killarmy Robert DiggsRodney StevensonTerrance HamlinRZA3 1315 Daily Routine with Baretta Nine of Killarmy Robert DiggsSamuel MurrayRZA4 2316 Domestic Violence with U God Jamie Sommers Ms Roxy and Tiffany Robert DiggsRZA5 19Total length 72 09 Notes Intro contains vocals by Frank Foxy Niedlich Slow Grind African contains vocals by Lisa I Anson Love Jones is erroneously credited to King Tech who produced Airwaves Slow Grind French contains vocals by Victorie Heathcole Kiss Of A Black Widow contains raps by Ol Dirty Bastard not the entire Wu Tang Clan Slow Grind Italian contains vocals by Lorenza Calamanderi Do You Here The Bells is listed as Special Bonus Track For Japan Only Sample list Love Jones contains a sample of Star Children performed by Mighty Ryeders Kiss Of A Black Widow contains a sample of Over performed by Portishead My Lovin Is Digi contains a sample of It Ain t Easy performed by Syl Johnson Personnel editBarney Chase Engineer Mixing Gabe Chiesa Engineer Tom Coyne Mastering Inspectah Producer King Tech Producer Engineer Mixing Nolan Dr No Moffitte Engineer Mixing Carl Nappa Mixing Tony Prendatt Engineer Mixing RZA Producer Engineer Mixing Miles Showell Mastering AssemblyCharts editWeekly charts edit Chart 1998 Peakposition Australian Albums ARIA 13 54 US Billboard 200 14 16 US Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard 15 3 Year end charts edit Chart 1999 Position US Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard 16 77Certifications editRegion Certification Certified units sales United States RIAA 17 Gold 500 000 Shipments figures based on certification alone References edit Keith Farley 1998 11 16 RZA as Bobby Digital in Stereo RZA Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic Retrieved 2015 09 13 Browne David 1998 12 18 Tim s Bio From the Motion Picture Life From Da Bassment EW com Retrieved 2015 09 13 Nme Com 2005 09 12 NME Reviews RZA Bobby Digital In Stereo Nme Com Retrieved 2015 09 13 RZA Bobby Digital In Stereo Pitchfork Review Archived from the original on August 28 2001 Retrieved 2015 09 13 Hudak Joseph Album Reviews Ratings and Best New Albums Rolling Stone Archived from the original on October 24 2007 Retrieved 2015 09 13 Music RZA As Bobby Digital in Stereo CD by RZA Tower com 1998 11 24 Archived from the original on 2012 10 21 Retrieved 2015 09 13 Stylus Archived from the original on 2008 04 03 Retrieved 2008 12 18 RZA interview with The Onion A V Club news articles at Wu Tang Corp The Official Site of the Wu Tang Clan Wutang corp com 2003 11 19 Retrieved 2012 01 16 wuforever com wuforever com Archived from the original on 2020 08 06 Retrieved 2012 01 16 wuforever com wuforever com Archived from the original on 2020 08 06 Retrieved 2015 09 13 In Stereo booklet RZA as Bobby Digital Gee Street V2 BMG Records 1998 32521 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link In Stereo booklet RZA as Bobby Digital Gee Street V2 BMG Records 1998 V2CI 0018 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link Ryan Gavin 2011 Australia s Music Charts 1988 2010 PDF ed Mt Martha Victoria Australia Moonlight Publishing p 241 RZA Chart History Billboard 200 Billboard Retrieved October 23 2014 RZA Chart History Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard Retrieved October 23 2014 Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Year End 1999 Billboard Retrieved August 21 2020 American album certifications RZA Bobby Digital in Stereo Recording Industry Association of America External links editRZA as Bobby Digital Holocaust Silkworm Video RZA Domestic Violence Video RZA featuring Beretta 9 Daily Routine Video Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bobby Digital in Stereo amp oldid 1190825947, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
