Personnel: Beanie Sigel, Jay-Z, Scarface, Amil, Eve, Memphis Bleek Lofey (various instruments); Mike Tyler (guitar); Chauncey Mahan (programming); Nafeisa Abdalla, Jeremy Alexander (background vocals).

Producers include: Kanye West, Robert "Shim" Kirkland, Just Blaze, Bink, Rockwilder.

Engineers include: Chauncey Mahan, Pat Viala, T-Mix.

Recorded at Sony Music Studios & Right Track Studios, New York, New York & Enterprise Studios, Los Angeles, California.

At the start of the 21st century, much hype in the rap world was built around the debut of Roc-a-fella rap artist Beanie Sigel. And rightfully so. Prior to his debut, the Philly native had created quite a discography without ever having his own song. He has appeared on posse cuts alongside a number of different MCs, including Jay-Z, and mesmerized listeners with his rhymes every time out (see the Jay-Z cut "Reservoir Dogs" or the Roc-a-fella jam "Crew Love" for proof).

THE TRUTH!!!, Beanie Sigel's full-length debut, is a testament to his prodigious lyrical skills. For starters, Beanie reps for the thugs with the anthem "What a Thug About," a track in which he provides a street definition for his own personality. The standout title track is perhaps the best example of what sets Beanie apart from the pack.

What the critics say...

Rolling Stone (3/30/00, pp.61-2) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[He] has a style and manner all his own....layering his work with meaning and subtext and delivered with real conviction..."
Q (6/00, p.114) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[He's] more articulate than your average Timberland-shod would-be street poet. In particular, 'Mac Man' is a brilliant drug dealing/Pac Man analogy....it's a potent state-of-the-art example of contemporary rap."
CMJ (3/13/00, p.29) - "...[He] proves why he's one of the most in-demand cameo guests in rap..."
Vibe (5/00, pp.169-70) - "...He's displayed enough wit, charisma, and artistic potential to justify a healthy percentage of [Jay-Z's] love....Beanie's most lethal weapon is his 'arsenic flow'....Sigel's unique instrument compellingly displays its ornery charms..."
The Source (4/00, pp.199-200) - 4.5 mics out of 5 - "...offers itself as a moment of truth - that time when people, places and things get stripped ass-naked, raw to the bone for all the world to see....one of the defining albums of the turn-of-the-century's street-savvy generation..."
NME (Magazine) (4/8/00, p.34) - 8 out of 10 - "...Perfect 21st-century rap product....one of the best hip-hop albums you'll see this year."