"React" was the lead single released from Onyx's third album, Shut 'Em Down

Shut 'Em Down

Shut 'Em Down is the third album from rap group Onyx. The album marked the group's highest debut on the Billboard 200, peaking at #10. Two singles were released from the album, "React", which features the very first major label appearance of 50 Cent and "Shut 'Em Down, featuring DMX...

. It featured Onyx affiliates X-1, Bonifucco and Still Livin' and a then unknown 50 Cent

50 Cent

Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...

 in his first official appearance on a song. React was released on June 2, 1998 through Def Jam Recordings

Def Jam Recordings

Def Jam Recordings is an American record label, focused primarily on hip hop and urban music, owned by Universal Music Group, and operates as a part of The Island Def Jam Motown Music Group...

 and was produced by Bud'da

Bud'da

Bud'da is an American West Coast hip hop producer for artists such as Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Xzibit and Aaliyah...

. This was the more successful of the two singles from the album, peaking at #62 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and #44 on the Hot Rap Singles

Hot Rap Tracks

Rap Songs is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stations and sales in hip hop-focused or exclusive markets. From 1989 through 2001, it was based on how much the single...

. The song samples the Slick Rick

Slick Rick

Richard Walters , better known by his stage name Slick Rick is a Grammy-nominated English-American rapper...

 song "Mona Lisa".

A-Side

1. "React" (Radio Edit)
2. "Broke Willies" (Radio Edit)
3. "Shut Em Down" [Remix] (Featuring Big Pun
   Big Pun
   Christopher Lee Rios , better known by his stage name Big Pun , was an American rapper who emerged from the underground rap scene in The Bronx in the late 1990s...
   
   , Noreaga
   N.O.R.E.
   Victor Santiago, Jr., best known by his stage name N.O.R.E. or Noreaga , is an American rapper of Puerto Rican descent...
   
   )

B-Side

1. "React" (TV Track)
2. "Broke Willies" (TV Track)
3. "Shut Em Down" [Remix] (TV Track)