Guerrilla Warfare

Guerrilla Warfare is the second studio album by the Hot Boys, released July 27, 1999, on Cash Money and Universal Records, and the group’s commercial peak.

The story

By 1999 Cash Money’s Universal distribution deal was in place and the members’ solo careers were building, led by Juvenile’s 400 Degreez. Turk later said the album was recorded in one week at Circle House studio in Miami, while the liner notes credit Cash Money Studios. The lead single “We on Fire” was released in June 1999, followed by “I Need a Hot Girl,” featuring Big Tymers.

Sound and production

Mannie Fresh produced every track, with Bryan “Baby” Williams and Ronald “Slim” Williams as executive producers. The album keeps the debut’s format of the four members trading verses over Fresh’s programmed drums and synthesizers, with a larger budget and a more polished finish aimed at national radio and video play.

Legacy

Guerrilla Warfare debuted at number 5 on the Billboard 200 and number 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 142,000 copies in its first week. The RIAA certified it platinum on November 1, 1999. “I Need a Hot Girl” reached number 65 on the Billboard Hot 100 and “We on Fire” reached number 49 on the R&B/hip-hop singles chart. Critical response ranged from positive notices in Rolling Stone and The Source to a negative review in The Village Voice. It was the last album the four members completed together before the group split; later material appeared on the 2003 collection Let ‘Em Burn.

More from hip hop in 1999.