Cradle 2 the Grave (soundtrack)

Cradle 2 the Grave is the soundtrack to Andrzej Bartkowiak's 2003 action film Cradle 2 the Grave. It was released on February 18, 2003 through Bloodline Records and Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place at Quad Recording Studios, at Teamwork Music Studios, at Chung King Studios, at Right Track Recording, at Sony Music Studios, at Sound On Sound, at The Hit Factory, at Soul Clap Studios, and at Gold Mine Studios in New York, at the Room Lab in Hackensack, at the Studio in Philadelphia, at Soundcastle in California, at Enterprise Studios in Burbank, at Larrabee West in West Hollywood, and at Battery Studios in Chicago.

Cradle 2 the Grave
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released	February 18, 2003
Recorded	2002
Studio	Quad Recording Studios (Times Square, NY) Unique Recording Studios (Times Square, NY) Teamwork Music Studios (New York, NY) The Room Lab (Hackensack, NJ) The Studio (Philadelphia, PA) Chung King Studios (New York, NY) Soundcastle (California) Right Track Recording (Manhattan, NY) Sony Music Studios (New York, NY) Enterprise Studios (Burbank, CA) Sound On Sound (New York, NY) The Hit Factory (New York, NY) Soul Clap Studios (New York, NY) Larrabee West (West Hollywood, CA) Battery Studios (Chicago, IL) Gold Mine Studios (Queens, NY)
Genre	East Coast hip hop hardcore hip hop gangsta rap
Label	Bloodline Def Jam
Producer	Jazz Young (exec.) DMX (exec.) Shatek King Antwan "Amadeus" Thompson Dame Grease DJ Envy Elite Eminem Flip Matrix Gavin Marchand Jay Funk Kato Konkrete Kaos Lost Spirit Mac G Mannie Fresh Mono Paperchase Inc Reemo The Arkitects Tony Pizarro White Boy Leroy Austin Sha Money XL
Singles from Cradle 2 the Grave
"X Gon' Give It to Ya" Released: June 23, 2003

Production was handled by several record producers, including Shatek King, DJ Envy, Dame Grease, Elite, Eminem, Mannie Fresh, Tony Pizarro and Sha Money XL. It features contributions from film star DMX, alongside Birdman, C-N-N, Drag-On, Fat Joe, Foxy Brown, G-Unit, Joe Budden, M.O.P., Obie Trice and the Clipse among others.

The soundtrack was very successful, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard 200, number 3 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number 1 on the Top Soundtracks, also the soundtrack included DMX's single, "X Gon' Give It to Ya". The soundtrack was also certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on May 19, 2003, with over 500,000 copies sold.[1]

The song "Go To Sleep" has been used as the entrance song to UFC fighters Sam Stout and Dan Cramer.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
RapReviews	7/10[3]

AllMusic writer John Bush found the opening track up there with the rest of DMX's work but said it "doesn't sound too special". He added that he was surprised by the contributions from Foxy Brown and Drag-On, saying that "My Life (Cradle 2 the Grave)" had Brown being "curiously reflective (and more than just a bit poignant)" and the samples of The Temptations and Marvin Gaye used on "Fireman" make it "sound[s] completely original".[2] Steve Juon of RapReviews said, "Taken as a whole Cradle 2 the Grave is about par for most compilations, soundtrack or otherwise, released in the last twelve months. With a few nice surprises [...] this soundtrack is slightly better than most. It's not an overwhelming success, but it's good enough to ensure that DMX fans won't be calling for his head if the movie tanks".[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"X Gon' Give It to Ya" (DMX)	E. Simmons S. King	Shatek King	3:39
2.	"Go to Sleep" (Eminem featuring DMX and Obie Trice)	E. Simmons M. Mathers O. Trice S. King L. Resto	Eminem	4:42
3.	"What's It All for?" (Bazaar Royale)	B. Royale S. King C. Sandford C. Ginsberg D. Miller J. Margera	Shatek King	3:50
4.	"Follow Me Gangster" (G-Unit)	C. Jackson C. Lloyd M. Bernard K. Frazier S. Dorsian M. Clervoix V. Montana Jr.	Reemo Lost Spirit Sha Money XL (add.)	3:31
5.	"Stompdashitoutu" (Capone-N-Noreaga featuring M.O.P.)	K. Holley V. Santiago E. Murray J. Griannage T. Pizarro F. Wilcox E. Randle J. Shaw	Tony Pizarro Flip Matrix	3:03
6.	"Do Sumptin" (Comp)	J. McElveen J. Carter L. Austin	Jay Funk Leroy Austin (co.)	4:08
7.	"My Life (Cradle 2 the Grave)" (Foxy Brown featuring Althea)	I. Marchand A. Thompson G. Marchand B. Jackson E. Townsend	Antwan "Amadeus" Thompson Gavin Marchand	4:15
8.	"Fireman" (Drag-On)	M. Smalls A. Parrino B. Strong C. Mayfield N. Whitfield	Elite	2:56
9.	"Drop Drop" (Joe Budden)	J. Budden J. Kuleszynski	Joseph "White Boy" Kuleszynski	4:17
10.	"I'm Serious" (Clipse)	G. Thornton T. Thornton L. Porter	Paperchase Inc.	4:12
11.	"Right/Wrong" (DMX)	E. Simmons R. Casey R. Thybulle	DJ Envy Mono	3:46
12.	"It's Gon' Be What It's Gon' Be" (Jinx & Loose)	A. Lewis D. Pelzer S. Odom B. Holland E. Holland K. Clarke	Konkrete Kaos	3:01
13.	"Hand That Rocks the Cradle" (Big Stan)	D. Joyner D. Blackman	Dame Grease	4:13
14.	"Won't Be Coming Back" (Birdman)	B. Williams B. Thomas L. Richie	Mannie Fresh	4:10
15.	"C2G" (Fat Joe featuring Young N Restless)	J. Cartagena R. Montero R. Santanna S. King	Shatek King	4:13
16.	"Focus" (Kashmir)	E. Lomax J. Russ	Mac G	3:56
17.	"Slangin' Dem Thangs" (Profit)	L. Duminie R. Rangel F. Massey L. Creed T. Bell	Kato	4:40
18.	"Off the Hood" (Jinx da Juvy)	D. Carr M. Leather S. Campbell	The Arkitects	4:09

Bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
19.	"Getting Down" (DMX, Big Stan, Kashmir and Bazaar Royale)	E. Simmons D. Joyner E. Lomax C. Sandford R. Casey R. Thybulle	DJ Envy Mono	2:56

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2003) Peak position French Albums (SNEP)[4] 61 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[5] 39 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[6] 75 US Billboard 200[7] 6 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[8] 3 US Soundtrack Albums (Billboard)[9] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2003) Position US Billboard 200[10] 148 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[11] 56

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[1]	Gold	500,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "American album certifications – Soundtrack – Cradle 2 The Grave". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 14, 2020. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
2. Bush, John. "Cradle 2 the Grave - Various Artists". AllMusic. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
3. Juon, Steve 'Flash' (February 18, 2003). "Various Artists :: Cradle 2 the Grave Soundtrack". RapReviews. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
4. "Lescharts.com – Soundtrack – Cradle 2 The Grave". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
5. "Offiziellecharts.de – Soundtrack – Cradle 2 The Grave" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
6. "Swisscharts.com – Soundtrack – Cradle 2 The Grave". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
7. "Soundtrack Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
8. "Soundtrack Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
9. "Soundtrack Chart History (Soundtrack Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
10. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2003". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
11. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2003". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2020.

External links

• Cradle 2 The Grave at Discogs (list of releases)