Enter the Dru

Enter the Dru
Studio album by Dru Hill
Released October 27, 1998
Recorded 1998
Larabee Studios
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre R&B, Hip hop soul
Length 66:01
Label Island
Producer Kenneth Crear (exec.), Dru Hill (exec.), Hiriam Hicks (exec.), Haqq Islam (exec.), Kevin Peck (exec.), Baby Dave, Babyface, Warryn Campbell, Dutch, David Foster, James "Woody" Green, Nokio the N-Tity, Guy Roche, Daryl Simmons, Sisqó, Ralph Stacy, Damon Thomas
Dru Hill chronology
Dru Hill
(1996)		 Enter the Dru
(1998)		 Dru World Order
(2002)
Singles from Enter the Dru
  1. "How Deep Is Your Love"
    Released: June 23, 1998
  2. "These Are the Times"
    Released: November 17, 1998
  3. "You Are Everything"
    Released: May 18, 1999

Enter the Dru is the second studio album from American R&B group Dru Hill, released October 27, 1998 on Island Records. The album's name comes from Bruce Lee's film, Enter the Dragon. This is the first album that the group were credited as executive producers as all four members wrote and produced several of the songs. It released three singles "How Deep Is Your Love", "These Are the Times" and "You Are Everything". The singles all had music videos released, but the music video for "You Are Everything" was a remix video, which featured rapper Ja Rule, and Woody did not appear in it due to his exit from the group in early 1999. The remix version was featured on lead singer Sisqó's debut album, Unleash the Dragon. Recording sessions for the album took place at Larabee Studios in Los Angeles, California. The album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 chart. On May 1999, It was certified double-platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), after sales exceeding 2,000,000 copies in the United States.

Overview

The songs on the album are mainly performed by lead singer, Sisqó, who performs solo on four songs: "Real Freak", "How Deep Is Your Love", "This Is What We Do" and "One Good Reason". Jazz performs solo on "Holding You" and "I'll Be the One". Woody performs solo on "Angel". Nokio does not perform solo on any songs but he does get more lead vocals than on the previous album.

Background

The album was recorded over a three-week span at Larabee Studios in Los Angeles, California during the early months of 1998.[1] Group member James "Woody Rock" Green would leave the group soon after the release of the album to pursue a career as a gospel musician. The other members also went on to do solo albums, which forced the group to go on hiatus.[1]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[3]
Los Angeles Times[4]
Rolling Stone[5]
Spin(7/10)[6]

The album peaked at two on the U.S. Billboard 200 and on the R&B Albums chart.[7] The album was certified gold in December 1998 and eventually double-platinum by May 1999.[8] Michael Gallucci of Allmusic gave the group and their second effort a favorable review, stating that "Dru Hill slice into the section of '90s soul music that crosses bedroom come-ons with classic street savvy (and nervy beats) without sounding at all whipped."[2]

Track listing

No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Enter the Dru" (Interlude)Mark Andrews; David EvansSisqó, Baby Dave 0:53
2. "Real Freak" (featuring Chinky Brown Eyes)Mark Andrews; David EvansSisqó, Baby Dave 3:34
3. "How Deep Is Your Love"  Tamir Ruffin; Mark Andrews; Warryn CampbellDutch, Nokio The N-Tity, Warryn Campbell 4:03
4. "This Is What We Do" (featuring Method Man)Mark Andrews; Tamir Ruffin; Rick CousinNokio The N-Tity, Dutch 4:21
5. "Holding You"  Larry Anthony; Rick CousinDutch, Jazz 4:28
6. "I'm Wondering"  Tamir Ruffin; Warryn Campbell; Rick CousinWarryn Campbell, Nokio The N-Tity 4:17
7. "You Are Everything"  Mark Andrews; Rick CousinSisqó, Dutch 4:34
8. "I'll Be the One"  Daryl SimmonsDaryl Simmons 4:26
9. "Nowhere Without You" (Interlude)Mark Andrews; James GreenSisqó, Warryn Campbell 1:06
10. "One Good Reason"  Ralph Stacy; Raphael BrownRalph Stacy, Nokio The N-Tity 4:15
11. "Angel" (Interlude)James Green; Warryn CampbellWarryn Campbell, Woody 1:33
12. "Angel"  James Green; Warryn CampbellWarryn Campbell, Woody, Nokio The N-Tity 4:24
13. "What Do I Do with the Love"  Diane WarrenDavid Foster, Guy Roche, Nokio The N-Tity 4:46
14. "Beauty"  Tamir Ruffin; Guy Roche; Phil WeatherspoonGuy Roche, Nokio The N-Tity 4:32
15. "These Are the Times"  Kenneth Edmonds; Damon ThomasBabyface, Damon Thomas 4:09
16. "The Love We Had (Stays on My Mind)"  Terry Callier; Larry WadeDaryl Simmons 5:35
17. "What Are We Gonna Do"  Tamir Ruffin; Ralph Cousin; Shep CrawfordNokio The N-Tity, Dutch 5:06

Chart history

Album

Chart (1998)[7] Peak
position
Top Canadian Albums 11
U.S. Billboard 200 2
U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 2

Singles

Year Single Peak chart positions[9]
Canadian Singles Chart U.S. Billboard Hot 100 U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks U.S. Rhythmic Top 40 U.S. Top 40 Tracks
1998 "How Deep Is Your Love" 16 3 — 1 33
"These Are the Times" 11 21 5 6 —
1999 "Beauty" — 79 24 — —
"The Love We Had (Stays on My Mind)" — — 48 — —
"You Are Everything" 9 84 27 — —

"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Personnel

Information taken from Allmusic.[10][11]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Williams, Chris (2011-01-23). "Dru Hill founder Nokio recalls making Enter the Dru LP (1998) : Return To The Classics : SoulCulture". SoulCulture.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  2. 1 2 Gallucci, Michael. "allmusic ((( Enter the Dru > Review )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  3. ↑ Tyehimba, Cheo (1998-10-30). "Enter the Dru Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  4. ↑ "Top Pop Albums - Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. 1998-12-03. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  5. ↑ Hardy, Ernest (1998-12-10). "Dru Hill: Enter The Dru : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2008-08-21. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
  6. ↑ "Dru Hill - Enter the Dru CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
  7. 1 2 "allmusic ((( Enter the Dru > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  8. ↑ "RIAA - Gold & Platinum - April 2, 2011 : Search Results - Dru Hill". RIAA. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  9. ↑ "allmusic ((( Enter the Dru > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  10. ↑ "allmusic ((( Enter the Dru > Credits )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  11. ↑ Credits as per liner notes for Enter the Dru album

External links

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