Detoxed: Rap Albums That Got Permanently Shelved [Photos]
Written by
Trent Clark
Published on
August 17, 2015
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The immediate success of Dr. Dre’s new album, Compton: A Soundtrack has put the final nail in the coffin of the mythical Detox. The latter will be remembered as the best album never to do it but Dre himself said it was it wack so there probably will never be a campaign to unearth it.
Despite the missed opportunity, The Good Doctor isn’t the first artist to have a Neveruary 32nd release date on a studio album. Peep below to get an overview several other rap albums that got permanently shelved. Some of these were doomed from the start while many of them had no excuses to ever drop. If Chinese Democracy could come out…
50 Cent – Power of the Dollar
Best Known Song: “How to Rob”
A shook Columbia Records pulled the plug on Fiddy’s debut after he was infamously shot nine times. Shady Records saw opportunity in the situation and the rest, they say, is history.
As the Straight Outta Compton biopic will show you, the two N.W.A stars’ lives grew very hectic after departing the group. We will always cherish “Natural Born Killaz,” however.
Although several well-received singles were released, the Harlem collective scrapped the compilation last year to make way for A$AP Rocky’s eventual No. 1 Billboard album, among other projects.
For a myriad of reasons, this project never manifested and The Weeknd has since stole a No. 1 hit out the title and the producer never got paid for the numerous tracks he recorded for it. Good times.
The Metalface and the Ghostface collaborated several times but when it came down to dropping the full LP, the list of excuses grew longer than the album’s urban legend.
Even though she is one of the best to ever do it on the female side, Fox Boogie fumbled her chance at making a second impression for the first time circa 2002. The album was actually solid, too.
Charli Baltimore – Cold As Ice / The Diary (You Think You Know)
Best Known Song: “Feel It” / “Diary”
The Notorious B.I.G.’s former running partner had her shot in 1999 to claim queen but her album didn’t get to see the light of day. A few years later, she experienced déjà vu. Sad part is, Charli wasn’t even wack on the mic.
After the underwhelming Ultimate Victory in 2007, Chamillionaire needed a big set-up for his next release that never materialized. These days, rapping is the least area of focus for the successful artist.
The dissolution of Roc-A-Fella left the Memph Man without an actual label home but still in the good graces of his buddy Jay Z. Still, it has been more than a decade since he released a studio album.
InI – Center of Attention / Deda – The Original Baby
Best Known Song: “Fakin’ Jax”
Label breakdowns resulted in a couple of Pete Rock’s projects to be buried alive but in 2005, BBE Records and Rapster Records went the slick route and released both albums under the title, Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics.
Before Suge Knight went to jail in 2005 for the umpteenth time, Petey Pablo joined Death Row Records and recorded several songs that were never fully realized in stores. North Carolina deserved better.
On the record “Where Fugees At?,” Wyclef Jean rapped “Lauryn if you’re listening/Pras if you’re listening/Gimme a call, I’m in the lab in the Booga Basement.” This was in the year 2000.
Speaking of Detox, several recordings were released and/or leaked but the album obviously never followed.
