The Awakening is the third album from Hip Hop

Hip hop music

Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...

 artist Lord Finesse

Lord Finesse

Lord Finesse is a Hip hop artist and producer, hailing from The Bronx, New York, best known as the leader of the D.I.T.C. rap crew.- Career :...

, released four years after his second album Return of the Funky Man

Return of the Funky Man

Return of the Funky Man is the second album from hip hop producer and MC Lord Finesse. In 1991, Finesse split from his former partner DJ Mike Smooth, and his former record label, Wild Pitch Records, to release his first solo effort. Return of the Funky Man, which featured production from Finesse's...

. Unlike his first two albums, The Awakening features a large number of album guests, including O.C.

O.C. (rapper)

Omar Credle , known by his stage name, O.C., is an American rapper who has been involved with several renowned underground hip-hop groups and also released many solo albums.-Recording career:...

, KRS-One

KRS-One

Lawrence Krisna Parker , better known by his stage names KRS-One , and Teacha, is an American rapper...

, MC Lyte

MC Lyte

MC Lyte is an American rapper who first gained fame in the late-1980s becoming the first solo female rapper to release a full album with 1988's critically acclaimed Lyte as a Rock.-Early life:...

, Akinyele, Showbiz

Showbiz and A.G.

Showbiz and A.G. are an American hip hop duo from The Bronx, New York City. Showbiz is a producer and A.G. is a rapper. The two debuted on Lord Finesse's Funky Technician album in 1990. Show and A.G...

, Diamond D

Diamond D

Diamond D is a hip hop producer and MC from the Bronx, New York City, and one of the founding members of the legendary D.I.T.C. crew. He started out as a DJ for Jazzy Jay back in the late 1980s and was at the same time perfecting his skills in beat making and turntablism, and together with rhyme...

, A.G.

Showbiz and A.G.

Showbiz and A.G. are an American hip hop duo from The Bronx, New York City. Showbiz is a producer and A.G. is a rapper. The two debuted on Lord Finesse's Funky Technician album in 1990. Show and A.G...

, Kid Capri

Kid Capri

David Anthony Love, Jr , also known by his stage name Kid Capri, is an American musician.He was born in the Bronx, New York City, New York, USA....

, Brand Nubian

Brand Nubian

Brand Nubian is an American hip hop group from New Rochelle, New York, consisting of three MC's: Grand Puba , Sadat X and Lord Jamar , and two DJs: DJ Alamo and DJ Sincere...

's Grand Puba

Grand Puba

Maxwell Dixon is an emcee best known as a member of the group Brand Nubian.-Biography:He made his debut with the group Masters of Ceremony. Its album Dynamite was hailed by critics, but probably due to lack of sales, the group soon disbanded, and Puba emerged as the lead emcee of Brand Nubian...

 and Sadat X

Sadat X

Sadat X is an American rapper, most famed as a member of Alternative hip hop group Brand Nubian. Originally known as Derek X, Sadat takes his name from former Egyptian president Anwar Sadat....

, and Large Professor

Large Professor

Large Professor , also known as Large Pro and Xtra P, is a New York City-based hip hop record producer and emcee. He is also best known as a founding member of the influential underground hip hop group Main Source, and as a frequent collaborator with Nas...

. The album features the single "Hip 2 Da Game" and the hidden track "Actual Facts".

Tracklisting

#	Title	Producer(s)	Performer (s)
1	"Da Sermon (Intro)"	Lord Finesse	-
2	"Time Ta Bounce"	Lord Finesse	Doo-Wop
3	"True and Livin'"	Lord Finesse	-
4	"O Lord"	Lord Finesse	O.C.
5	"Brainstorm/P.S.K. (No Gimmicks Remix)"	Lord Finesse	O.C., KRS-One
6	"Taking It Lyte"	Lord Finesse	MC Lyte
7	"Gameplan"	Lord Finesse	Marquee
8	"Words from Da Ak"	Lord Finesse	Akinyele
9	"Flip Da Style"	Lord Finesse	-
10	"Showtime"	Lord Finesse	Showbiz
11	"Speak Ya Peace"	Myke Loe	Marquee, Diamond D, A.G.
12	"Food for Thought"	Lord Finesse	Lord Finesse
13	"Da Kid Himself"	Lord Finesse	Kid Capri
14	"Hip 2 Da Game"	Lord Finesse	-
15	"No Gimmicks"	Lord Finesse	KRS-One
16	"Actual Facts"	Myke Loe & Jesse West	Sadat X, Large Professor, Grand Puba

Album Singles

Single information
"Hip 2 Da Game" Released: 1995 B-side: "No Gimmicks"
"Gameplan" Released: 1996 B-side: "Actual Facts"

Music Videos

There have been music videos for the tracks "Hip 2 Da Game" and "Gameplan". Gameplan features a cameo from Big L.

Album Chart Positions

Year	Album	Chart positions
		Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...	Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums	Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical...
1996	The Awakening	-	36	32

Singles Chart Positions

Year	Song	Chart positions
		Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...	Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	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...	Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales
1995	"Hip 2 Da Game"	-	-	36	42
1996	"Actual Facts"	-	-	37	32