| Excuse My French | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 21, 2013 | |||
| Recorded | 2011–13 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 55:05 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer |
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| French Montana chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Excuse My French | ||||
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Excuse My French is the debut studio album by Moroccan-American rapperFrench Montana. It was released on May 21, 2013, byCoke Boys Records,Bad Boy Records,Maybach Music Group andInterscope Records. The album featuresguest appearances fromDiddy,Nicki Minaj,Drake,Ace Hood,Lil Wayne,Birdman,The Weeknd,Rick Ross,2 Chainz,Max B,Ne-Yo,Machine Gun Kelly,Raekwon,Scarface andSnoop Dogg, while the production was handled byMike Will Made It,Jahlil Beats, Reefa,Rico Love,Lex Luger andYoung Chop. The album was supported by threesingles: "Pop That", "Freaks" and "Ain't Worried About Nothin'".
Excuse My French garnered negative reviews from critics, finding criticism in Montana's technical delivery and the formulaic production throughout the record. The album debuted at number four on the USBillboard 200, selling 56,000 copies in its first week.
French Montana revealed in a September 2012 interview with RapFix Live that he has worked with several fellow recording artists on the album, includingDiddy,Nicki Minaj,Drake,Rick Ross,Lil Wayne,Wiz Khalifa,2 Chainz,Wale,Max B,Lana Del Rey,M.I.A., andScarface.[1] Montana also stated that he had a song withR&B singerThe Weeknd, entitled "Gifted".[2] In addition, on January 26, 2013, he revealed in an interview with Rap-Up TV that he had also worked withKanye West on the album.[3] The album cover was released on January 29, 2013.[4]
In another January 2013 interview with Rap-Up he announced he had a song with Wiz Khalifa andSnoop Dogg on the album and that producers on the album would includeYoung Chop, Harry Fraud andRico Love. Also saying that the album would be the "album of the decade".[5] The final track list would also reveal features fromDJ Khaled,Mavado,Ace Hood,Jeremih,Raekwon,Fabolous,Trey Songz,Machine Gun Kelly,Red Cafe,Chinx Drugz, Johnny May Cash and Los.[6] Max B performs the album's intro in a phone-in from jail with Mikey T The Movie Star[7] During the promotional run for the album French toldHot 97 that the only artist he paid to make an appearance on his album was Max B.[8]
The album was originally set for a July 17, 2012 release before being pushed back to fall 2012.[3] On December 20, 2012, Montana revealed that the release date would be March 12, 2013.[9] However, it was later postponed again to April 16, 2013,[3] and once more until May 21, 2013.[10]
On November 19, 2012, Montana released a new mixtape, entitledMac & Cheese 3. The mixtape included appearances from Diddy, MGK,Fat Joe, Wale,Mac Miller,Curren$y, Rick Ross,J. Cole,Trina,Prodigy,Tyga, and Ace Hood. In addition, the tape features production from Young Chop and Rico Love, among others.[11] As of January 26, the mixtape has been downloaded more than 1 million times on mixtape hosting siteDatPiff.[12]
From February 26 to March 26, 2013, Montana embarked on theExcuse My French tour ahead of the album's official issuance.[13] He later released 30 second snippets for every song on the record on May 12, 2013.[14] In 2017, it was confirmed thatJ. Cole was originally an executive producer for the album.[15]
The first official single released fromExcuse My French was "Pop That", which featured Rick Ross, Drake, and Lil Wayne, with production fromLee on the Beats. The song was released on June 15, 2012, and peaked at 36 on the USBillboardHot 100.[16] On January 26, 2013, Montana announced that the next single would be released within the next week[17] and is a remake of the song "Freaks", which originally appeared on the debut album of rapperLil Vicious,Destination Brooklyn. "Freaks" featuring Nicki Minaj was premiered onHot 97 on February 13, 2013, and released to iTunes the next day.[3] On February 18, 2013, the music video was filmed for "Freaks".[18] On March 7, 2013. the music video for "Freaks" featuring Nicki Minaj was released.[19] On March 12, 2013, the single was released to Rhythm Crossover radio.[20]
The song "Ain't Worried About Nothin'" would be released as the third official single, for digital download on April 15, 2013. It is his first career solo single.[21][22] A music video was filmed in late April and released on May 7, 2013.[23] The first promotional single released off the album was titled "Marble Floors" featuringRick Ross,Lil Wayne and2 Chainz was released on December 4, 2012.[24] On June 19, 2013, the music video was released for "I Told Em".[25] On September 9, 2013, the music video was released for "If I Die".[26] On September 23, 2013, the music video was released for theBirdman and Rick Ross collaboration "Trap House".[27] On October 15, 2013, the music video for "Gifted" featuring The Weeknd was released.[28] On November 18, 2013, the music video was released for "Once in a While" featuringMax B.[29] On January 20, 2014, the music video was released for "Paranoid" featuring Johnny May Cash.[30]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [31] |
| The A.V. Club | D[32] |
| DJBooth | [33] |
| Exclaim! |  [34] |
| HipHopDX | [35] |
| Pitchfork | 3.5/10[36] |
| Rolling Stone | [37] |
| RapReviews | 1.5/10[38] |
| Spin | 5/10[39] |
| XXL | (L)[40] |
Excuse My French was met with generally negative reviews frommusic critics. AtMetacritic, which assigns aweighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received anaverage score of 54, based on 14 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews".[41] David Jeffries ofAllmusic gave the album three stars out of five saying, "Montana is a flossy tycoon first and a wordsmith second at this point, so his handing in a high-power mixtape instead of a focused debut is to be expected, and with a little bottle service, enjoyed."[31] Simon Vozick-Levinson ofRolling Stone gave the album two and a half stars out of five, saying "He’s a man of few words – many of his hooks consist of a single staccato phrase, looped until it verges on nonsense. When these mantras connect, they’re indelible. When they don’t, it’s like being smacked in the face repeatedly with an iced-out chain."[37]
Ian Cohen ofPitchfork Media gave the album a 3.5 out of 10, saying "Forcing French Montana into that #1 spot and having it come off like a transplant rejection actually lets us know the genre’s in fine health."[36] Joven Haye of DJBooth gave the album three out of five stars, saying "Ultimately, Excuse My French was very predictable. If you were looking for music to ride around to this summer, then it is the perfect album. On the flip side, if you somewhat bought into French’s “10 year” comment, I can't believe you won't leave disappointed."[33] Peter Marrack ofExclaim! gave the album a one out of ten, saying "Excuse My French is almost exclusively loud and aggressive, which has become the formula for this type of thing: programmed, repetitive hi-hats, 808s and a guest verse by Rick Ross. It's the kind of sweatshop beat-making mainstream producers have learned to accept as they cash their cheques. Lyrically, Montana does what any cat on the corner can do: talk slick."[34]
Bruce Smith ofHipHopDX gave the album two and a half stars out of five, saying "Excuse My French comes off as extremely formulaic. While excessive tales of flossing, the streets, and misogyny are nothing new to Hip Hop, the complete lack of creativity those subjects are executed with on this project, whether it be lyrically or instrumentally, make it a hard listen."[35] David Turner ofSpin gave the album a five out of ten, saying "French has a great, unique adlib ("Haaan"), an identifiable voice, and a face recognizable in a silhouette. But on Excuse My French, he's outshone and undervalued."[39] Dan Buyanovsky ofXXL gave the album an L, saying "There’s enough big boasts and big beats here to carry French’s charm, which is really all you could ask for with a debut LP from the Bad Boy."[40]
Excuse My French debuted at number four on the USBillboard 200 chart, selling 56,000 copies in its first week.[42] In its second week, the album dropped to number 18 on the chart, selling an additional 18,000 copies.[43] In its third week, the album dropped to number 35 on the chart, selling 11,000 more copies.[44] In its fourth week, the album dropped to number 55 on the chart, selling 8,400 more copies that week. As of October 2016, the album has sold 177,000 copies.[45] On May 8, 2020, the album was certifiedgold by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales andalbum-equivalent units of over 500,000 units in the United States.[46]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Once in a While" (featuringMax B) | MOON | 4:47 | |
| 2. | "Trap House" (featuringBirdman andRick Ross) | Jahlil Beats | 4:24 | |
| 3. | "Ain't Worried About Nothin'" |
|
| 3:32 |
| 4. | "Paranoid" (featuring Johnny May Cash) |
| Young Chop | 4:27 |
| 5. | "When I Want" |
| Danny Boy Styles | 3:38 |
| 6. | "Fuck What Happens Tonight" (featuringDJ Khaled,Mavado,Ace Hood,Snoop Dogg andScarface) |
| The Beat Bully | 5:27 |
| 7. | "Gifted" (featuringThe Weeknd) |
| Danny Boy Styles | 4:08 |
| 8. | "Ballin' Out" (featuringJeremih andDiddy) |
| Cardiak | 4:25 |
| 9. | "I Told Em" |
| J.Oliver | 4:22 |
| 10. | "Pop That" (featuringDrake, Rick Ross andLil Wayne) |
| Lee on the Beats | 5:03 |
| 11. | "Freaks" (featuringNicki Minaj) |
|
| 3:02 |
| 12. | "We Go Wherever We Want" (featuringNe-Yo andRaekwon) |
|
| 4:17 |
| 13. | "Bust It Open" |
| The Arsenals | 3:27 |
| Total length: | 55:05 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | "40" (featuringTrey Songz andFabolous) | Lex Luger | 4:12 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | "Drink Freely" (featuring Rico Love) |
| Rico Love | 4:08 |
| 15. | "Throw It in the Bag" (featuringChinx Drugz) |
| Bos | 5:05 |
| 16. | "Marble Floors" (featuring Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and2 Chainz) |
| Mike Will Made It | 3:50 |
| 17. | "Ocho Cinco" (featuring Diddy,Machine Gun Kelly,Los andRed Café) |
|
| 4:06 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18. | "40" (featuring Trey Songz and Fabolous) |
| Lex Luger | 4:12 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19. | "If I Die" |
| Reefa, 12Keyz | 2:49 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20. | "Hey My Guy" (featuring Max B) |
| Young Los | 3:57 |
| 21. | "Ghetto Prayer" (featuring Mavado) |
| Harry Fraud | 3:46 |
Sample credits
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[55] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Regions | Dates | Label(s) |
|---|---|---|
| United States[56] | May 21, 2013 | Coke Boys,Bad Boy Records,Maybach Music Group,Interscope Records |
