| By All Means Necessary | |
|---|---|
 Studio album by Boogie Down Productions | |
|
Released |
31 May 1988 |
|
Recorded |
1987-1988 |
|
Genre |
Hip hop, East Coast hip hop, hardcore hip hop, political hip hop |
|
Length |
47:28 |
|
Label |
Jive/RCA |
|
Producer |
|
| Boogie Down Productions chronology | |
|---|---|
|
Previous |
Criminal Minded (1987) |
|
Next |
|
By All Means Necessary is the second album by American hip hop group Boogie Down Productions, released in 1988 on Jive Records. After the murder of DJ/producer Scott La Rock in 1987, emcee KRS-One moved away from the violence that dominated the groups debut album, Criminal Minded, and began to write socially conscious songs, replacing his moniker "the Blastmaster" with "the Teacher".
Many themes cover social issues such as government and police corruption, safe sex, government involvement in the drug trade, and violence in the hip hop community. The album's sound, entirely produced by KRS-One, involves minimalist production accompanied by hard-hitting drum beats.
Track listing[]
All songs written, produced and performed by KRS-One.
| No. | Title | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "My Philosophy" | 5:41 |
| 2. | "Ya Slippin'" | 4:56 |
| 3. | "Stop the Violence" | 4:42 |
| 4. | "Illegal Business" | 5:22 |
| 5. | "Nervous" | 4:13 |
| 6. | "I'm Still #1" | 5:13 |
| 7. | "Part Time Suckers" | 5:32 |
| 8. | "Jimmy" | 4:16 |
| 9. | "T'Cha - T'Cha" | 4:35 |
| 10. | "Necessary" | 2:57 |