Alive Till I'm Dead

Alive Till I'm Dead
Studio album by Professor Green
Released	16 July 2010
Recorded	2010
Genre	British hip hop, rap rock, UK garage, electro hop
Length	42:52
Label	Virgin
Producer	Future Cut, Alex 'Cores' Hayes, Mike Skinner, The ThundaCatz, Labrinth, Naughty Boy, True Tiger, Semothy Jones
Professor Green chronology
The Green EP (2008) Alive Till I'm Dead (2010) At Your Inconvenience (2011)
Singles from Alive Till I'm Dead
"I Need You Tonight" Released: 9 April 2010 "Just Be Good to Green" Released: 25 June 2010 "Monster" Released: 1 October 2010 "Jungle" Released: 31 December 2010

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
BBC Music	favourable[2]
Daily Mirror	[3]
Metro	[4]
MusicOMH	[5]
RapReviews	(6.5/10)[6]
The Guardian	[7]
The Independent	[8]

Alive Till I'm Dead (sic) is the debut studio album by English rapper Professor Green, that was released on 16 July 2010.^[9] The album features guest vocals from the likes of Lily Allen, Example, Labrinth and Emeli Sandé, among others.

Background

"Just Be Good to Green" was originally written and produced back in July 2007 when Green was signed to The Beats, Mike Skinner's record label. The track was composed and produced by Semothy Jones, and at the time featured Neon Hitch on the chorus. When The Beats folded, the track was put on hold, and later purchased by Green for use on his next record. Green spoke about how the collaboration came about between him and Lily Allen, stating that the pair got speaking through Facebook.

Green stated "We got chatting on Facebook and I mentioned the track, which turned out to be one of her favourite songs. She suggested her singing the chorus. I didn't take much persuading! Lily's wicked. She's straightforward and honest, you always know where you're at with her."^[10]

Singles

• "I Need You Tonight" was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland as the first single from Alive Till I'm Dead. The song features guest vocals from Ed Drewett. The song was written by Professor Green and was produced by The ThundaCatz, mixed by Steve Fitzmaurice. The single debuted at number 3 in the UK Singles Chart and also did well in Ireland, where it charted at number 15. I Need You Tonight samples the 1987 rock/new wave song "Need You Tonight" by INXS.

• "Just Be Good to Green" is the second single from the album. The single features guest vocals from world wide superstar, Lily Allen. The single was officially released on 25 June 2010. The single has been released around the world. The song has charted at number 52 in Australia. Just Be Good to Green also samples the 1983 R&B song "Just Be Good to Me" by The SOS Band.^[10]

• "Monster" is the third single from album. The single features vocals from Example and was released on 1 October 2010. Video shooting started on 8 September. The video was released on 17 September 2010.^[11]

• "Jungle" is the fourth single from the album. The single features guest vocals from Maverick Sabre. The single was released on 20 December. It peaked at 31 on the UK Singles Chart and 9 on the UK R&B Chart.

Commercial performance

The album debuted at No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart.^[12] As of 6th September 2014 the album has sold 250,000 copies in UK.

Reception

Alive Till I'm Dead has received positive reviews from music critics, with BBC Music stating that the album is "As fizzy, dramatic and inventive as pop should be without losing his initial grime edge". Paul MacInnes of The Guardian gave a similar review, agreeging that it was "Pop music, yes, but sparky and cleverly composed pop that still has an ear for the club". He also remarked that Professor Green has a "flow like an estuary Eminem and a humorous sensibility reminiscent of Lily Allen".

Helen Clarke of MusicOMH also praised the album, likewise comparing Professor Green with Eminem, saying that "Alive Till I'm Dead grabs you like the first few times you heard The Slim Shady LP". She also asserts that the album is a "ball of tightly wound bitterness, anger and aggression", while also managing to be "cheeky, playful and almost frighteningly confident and experimental". Jesal Padania of RapReviews gave a positive review, tempered with a feeling that Professor Green is "so much more" than what his record label have allowed him to display thus far.

Track listing

Standard edition[13]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Kids That Love to Dance" (featuring Emeli Sandé)	Stephen Manderson, Emeli Sandé, Shahid Khan, Harry Craze, Hugo Chegwin	Naughty Boy	2:46
2.	"Just Be Good to Green" (featuring Lily Allen)	Manderson, Terry Lewis, Andrew Hughes, Samuel Harris	Semothy Jones	3:26
3.	"I Need You Tonight" (featuring Ed Drewett)	Manderson, Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence, Fontaine, El Bergamy	The ThundaCatz	3:45
4.	"City of Gold"	Manderson, Lee Bailey, James Murray, Mustafa Omar	Mojam	4:02
5.	"Oh My God" (featuring Labrinth)	Manderson, Timothy McKenzie, Marc Williams	Labrinth, Da Digglar	3:51
6.	"Jungle" (featuring Maverick Sabre)	Manderson, Maverick Sabre, Sukh Knight, Gowers, Blue Bear, Stanza, Chunky	True Tiger	3:13
7.	"Do for You"	Manderson, Hanni Ibrahim	Sunny Productions	4:21
8.	"Falling Down"	Manderson, Bailey, DeLeon Blake, Yogi Tulsiani, Costas Nicolaides	Yogi Tulsiani	3:53
9.	"Monster" (featuring Example)	Manderson, Elliot Gleave, James Murray, Mustafa Omar	Future Cut, Mojam	3:08
10.	"Closing the Door" (featuring Fink)	Manderson, Fink Greenall	Fink	4:00
11.	"Where Do We Go" (featuring Shereen Shabanaa)	Manderson, Alex 'Cores' Hayes	Alex 'Cores' Hayes, 12 Milagram	3:47
12.	"Goodnight"	Manderson, Alex 'Cores' Hayes, Edward Hayes	Alex 'Cores' Hayes	4:43

iTunes Store deluxe edition bonus tracks[14]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Crying Game" (featuring The Streets)	Manderson, Mike Skinner, Kevin Mark Trail, Johnny Drum Machine	Mike Skinner	3:55
14.	"All to Myself" (pre-order only)	Manderson, Hayes	Alex 'Cores' Hayes	4:25

Charts and Certifications

Charts Chart (2010) Peak position Australian Albums Chart[15] 98 Irish Albums Chart 18 UK Albums Chart[16] 2

Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments United Kingdom (BPI)[17] Gold 100,000^^ Summaries ^^shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

1. "Professor Green Alive Till I'm Dead". Jon O'Brien. 19 July 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
2. "Professor Green Alive Till I’m Dead Review". BBC (United Kingdom: Martin Aston). 8 July 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
3. "Professor Green album review of Alive Till I'm Dead". Daily Mirror (United Kingdom: Gavin Martin). 16 July 2010. Archived from the original on 17 July 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
4. "Professor Green's Alive Till I’m Dead is full of welcome surprises". Metro (United Kingdom: Siobhan Murphy). 18 July 2010. Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
5. "Professor Green - Alive Till I'm Dead". MusicOMH (United Kingdom: Helen Clarke). Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
6. "Professor Green :: Alive Til I'm Dead :: Virgin Records". RapReviews (Jesal 'Jay Soul' Padania). 24 August 2010. Archived from the original on 7 October 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
7. "Professor Green Alive Till I’m Dead CD Review". The Guardian (United Kingdom: Paul MacInnes). 15 July 2010. Archived from the original on 24 July 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
8. "Album: Professor Green, Alive Till I'm Dead (Virgin)". The Independent (United Kingdom: Andy Gill). 16 July 2010. Archived from the original on 19 July 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
9. "iTunes - Music - Alive Till I'm Dead by Professor Green". Itunes.apple.com. 16 July 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2011.
10. "Professor Green releasing single with Lily Allen after 'Facebook chat'". NME (United Kingdom: IPC Media). 10 May 2010. Archived from the original on 13 May 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2010.
11. "Sun Exclusive Videos Professor Green - Monster". The Sun (United Kingdom). 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
12. "Eminem Spends Fourth Week Atop UK Chart". Billboard (United Kingdom: Paul Sexton). 26 July 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
13. "Alive Till I'm Dead". Amazon (United Kingdom: Amazon). Archived from the original on 22 July 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
14. "Alive Till I'm Dead by Professor Green". Apple (USA: Apple). Retrieved 9 September 2010.
15. http://www.ariacharts.com.au/pages/chartifacts.htm - Issue 10 July 2010.
16. "OFFICIAL UK ALBUMS TOP 100". UK Albums Chart (United Kingdom: Official charts). Archived from the original on 14 September 2010. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
17. "British album certifications – Professor Green – Alive till I'm Dead". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Alive till I'm Dead in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search