The Ownerz is the sixth and final studio album by the hip-hop duo Gang Starr

Gang Starr

Gang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...

, recorded two years before the duo broke up and seven years before Guru's death. It was well-received critically and boasts four singles, "Skills," "Rite Where U Stand," "Nice Girl, Wrong Place," and the title track "The Ownerz." Many tracks feature a drum kit sampled from an Oberheim DMX

Oberheim DMX

The DMX is a programmable digital drum machine introduced in 1981 by Oberheim Electronics.The Oberheim DMX was the second digital drum computer ever to be sold to the public as a product, following the Linn LM-1 in 1980...

 drum machine

Drum machine

A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...

.

Track listing

1. "Intro (HQ, Goo, Panch)" – 0:46
2. "Put Up Or Shut Up" (featuring Krumbsnatcha) – 3:15
3. "Werdz From The Ghetto Child" (featuring Smiley) – 1:09
4. "Sabotage" – 2:22
5. "Rite Where U Stand" (featuring Jadakiss
   Jadakiss
   Jason Phillips , better known as Jadakiss, is an American rapper. He is a member of the group The LOX. Jadakiss is one of the three owners of the imprint known as D-Block. In early 2007, Jadakiss signed to Roc-a-Fella Records / Def Jam Records.-Early life:By the age of 16, Jadakiss was a freestyle...
   
   ) – 3:37
6. "Skills" – 3:17
7. "Deadly Habitz" – 4:12
8. "Nice Girl, Wrong Place" (featuring Boy Big) – 3:32
9. "Peace Of Mine" – 3:01
10. "Who Got Gunz" (featuring Fat Joe
    Fat Joe
    Joseph Antonio Cartagena , better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper, CEO of Terror Squad Entertainment, and member of musical groups D.I.T.C. and Terror Squad....
    
     & M.O.P.
    M.O.P.
    M.O.P., short for Mash Out Posse, is an American hip hop duo. The duo, composed of Billy Danze and Lil' Fame, is known for the aggressive delivery typically employed by both emcees. Although they maintain a strong underground following, they are mainly known for the song "Ante Up," released on...
    
    ) – 3:36
11. "Capture (Militia Pt. 3)" (featuring Big Shug
    Big Shug
    Big Shug is a hip hop artist from Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of the Gang Starr Foundation collective.-Biography:...
    
     & Freddie Foxxx
    Freddie Foxxx
    Freddie Foxxx, also known as Bumpy Knuckles, is an American rapper and music producer from Long Island, New York.- Biography :...
    
    ) – 3:23
12. "PLAYTAWIN" – 3:11
13. "Riot Akt" – 4:04
14. "Hiney" – 1:31
15. "Same Team, No Games" (featuring NYGz & H. Stax) – 3:44
16. "In This Life..." (featuring Snoop Dogg
    Snoop Dogg
    Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
    
     & Uncle Reo) – 3:03
17. "The Ownerz" – 2:57
18. "Zonin'" – 2:54
19. "Eulogy" – 2:54
20. "Natural" [Japan Bonus Track] – 2:46
21. "Tha Squeeze" [Japan Bonus Track] – 3:29

Samples

• "Sabotage"
  • "Bump Me" by Smoked Sugar
  • "Moment Of Truth" by Gang Starr (vocals by Guru)
• "Werdz From The Ghetto Child"
  • "Coffee Cold" by Galt MacDermot
    Galt MacDermot
    Galt MacDermot is a Canadian composer, pianist and writer of musical theatre. He won a Grammy Award for the song African Waltz in 1960. His most successful musicals have been Hair and Two Gentlemen of Verona...
    
    
• "PLAYTAWIN"
  • "Full Clip" by Gang Starr
• "Riot Akt"
  • "Theme From Summer Of 42" by Maynard Ferguson
    Maynard Ferguson
    Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
    
    
• "Put Up Or Shut Up"
  • "A Hot Day in Harlem" by The Rimshots
    The Rimshots
    The Rimshots were an American funk and disco band, popular in the late 1970s. The group started out as the house band for the labels All Platinum Records and in particular, Stang Records in the early 1970s...
    
    
  • "Wrath of My Madness" by Queen Latifah
    Queen Latifah
    Dana Elaine Owens , better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American singer, rapper, and actress. Her work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy...
    
    
• "Rite Where U Stand"
  • "Gonna Keep Tryin' Till I Win Your Love" by The Temptations
    The Temptations
    The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
    
    
• "Skills"
  • "Intro" by Rakim
    Rakim
    William Michael Griffin Jr. , known by his stage names Rakim , Rakim Allah, R.A.K.I.M., and The Master, is an American rapper. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and most skilled emcees of all time. Eric B...
    
    
  • "Rapper Dapper Snapper" by Edwin Birdsong
    Edwin Birdsong
    Edwin Birdsong is a keyboard/organ player who was known in the 70's and 80's for his experimental funk/disco music. He never achieved chart success, but developed a strong fan base, and has also been sampled by other artists many times, most famously by Daft Punk who sampled "Cola Bottle Baby" in...
    
    
  • "Shadows" by Mysterious Flying Orchestra
  • "Rappers R. N. Dainja" by KRS-One
    KRS-One
    Lawrence Krisna Parker , better known by his stage names KRS-One , and Teacha, is an American rapper...
    
    
• "Nice Girl, Wrong Place"
  • "Kung Fu" by Curtis Mayfield
    Curtis Mayfield
    Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly...
    
    
• "Peace Of Mine"
  • "The Ipcress File" by John Barry
    John Barry (composer)
    John Barry Prendergast, OBE was an English conductor and composer of film music. He is best known for composing the soundtracks for 12 of the James Bond films between 1962 and 1987...
    
    
  • "Boom" by Royce da 5'9" (vocal)
  • "Skills" by Gang Starr
• "Who Got Gunz"
  • "Maybe This Will Be The Morning" Chuck Jackson
    Chuck Jackson
    Chuck Jackson is an R&B singer who was one of the first artists to record material by Burt Bacharach and Hal David successfully. He has performed with moderate success since 1961...
    
    
  • "Part II" by Method Man
    Method Man
    Clifford Smith , better known by his stage name Method Man is an American hip hop artist, record producer, actor and member of the hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He took his stage name from the 1979 film The Fearless Young Boxer, also known as Method Man. He is one half of the rap duo Method Man...
    
     & Redman
  • "Tonz o Gunz" by Gang Starr
• "In This Life"
  • "Distant Thoughts" by Hiroshima
    Hiroshima
    is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
    
    
• "The Ownerz"
  • "2000 B.C. (Before Canibus)" by Canibus
    Canibus
    Germaine Williams , better known by his stage name Canibus, is a Jamaican-born American rapper. He is a part of supergroup The HRSMN. Canibus rose to fame in the mid-nineties...
    
    
  • "Above The Clouds" by Gang Starr
    Gang Starr
    Gang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...
    
     Feat. Inspectah Deck
    Inspectah Deck
    Jason Hunter, better known by his stage name Inspectah Deck, is an American rapper, producer, and member of the Wu-Tang Clan...
    
     (vocal by Inspectah Deck)
• "Zonin"
  • "The Junkies" by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
    Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
    Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson was an innovative American composer whose interests spanned the worlds of jazz, dance, pop, film, television, and classical music.Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson was Afro-American...
    
    
  • "Mass Appeal" by Gang Starr
    Gang Starr
    Gang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...
    
     (Vocals by Guru
    Guru (rapper)
    Keith Edward Elam , better known by his stage name Guru, was an American emcee and member of the hip-hop duo Gang Starr, along with DJ Premier. He was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts...
    
    )
  • "Life is What You Make It" by Nas
    Nas
    Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
    
     Feat. DMX
    DMX (rapper)
    Earl Simmons , better known by his stage name DMX, is a multiplatinum American rapper and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s. His stage name pays tribute to the Oberheim DMX drum machine, an instrument he used when he made his own rap beats in the 80's...
    
     (vocal by DMX)
• "Capture (Militia Pt. 3)"
  • "Trapped" by Elmer Bernstein
    Elmer Bernstein
    Elmer Bernstein was an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career which spanned fifty years, he composed music for hundreds of film and television productions...
    
    

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
2003	The Ownerz	#18	#5