Way 2 Fonky is the second studio album by American hip hop artist and producerDJ Quik; released by Profile Records on July 20, 1992. Recording sessions for the album took place during 1991 and 1992. Production was handled by DJ Quik and was executive produced Courtney Branch and Tracy Kendrick. The album debuted at number ten on the US Billboard 200 chart on August 8, 1992, selling 120,000 copies in its first week in the United States. The album was certified Gold three months after its release on October 9, 1992. On March 21, 1994 the album was certified platinum for selling over 1,500,000 copies.
Background
DJ Quik was beefing with rapper Tim Dog during this time who dissed him on three tracks "Fuck Compton", "Step To Me",and "DJ Quik Beat Down " on his album Penicillin on Wax. He responded to Tim Dog with disses on "Way 2 Fonky" and "Tha Last Word". He was also beefing with MC Eiht; the two had already been beefing for a few years at the time. Tim Dog responded to DJ Quik with "I Don't Give a Fuck" and "Breakin' North" on his second album Do or Die.
Singles
Two singles from the album were released; "Way 2 Fonky" a response to Tim Dog's West Coast diss "Fuck Compton", and "Jus Lyke Compton".
Critical response
Way 2 Fonky received generally positive reviews from music critics. Jonathan Gold of the Los Angeles Times wrote that "Way 2 Fonky" is a great-sounding rap record, with a giant, Jeep-worthy bottom and high, articulated, almost reggae-inflected rhyming. His lyrics celebrate the fun side of the mythical Compton experience where N.W.A.'s dwell on what could go wrong; his sleek, '70s-soul-style grooves, which he produces himself, swing, well... way fonky. And though he's easily as obscene as any of his peers, he seems actually to like women. Havelock Nelson of Entertainment Weekly wrote that Unlike those other rap quasars from Compton, N.W.A, DJ Quik doesn't just give us frightening images from Black Cali alleys. This near-platinum poet may involve himself in verbal gunplay and narrate a few violent street adventures, but on his sophomore set Quik is more concerned with getting paid and laid than with gang wars and bloodbaths. As he declares in "America'z Most Complete Artist," I don't go toe to toe, I go ho to ho. Quik's nasty, but he's no fool; he practices safe sex, 'cause HIV don't give a f--- about me. He's even willing to experiment musically and lyrically. Witness the sexually playful reggae track "Me Wanna Rip Your Girl," where he adopts a Jafakean accent. On the album's other tracks, he throws his thin yet effective countrified voice against sampled grooves that for the most part bounce and shake like hard-core Jell-O. Ron Wynn of Allmusic wrote that DJ Quik proved his mettle with "Jus Lyke Compton," a definitive bit of regional touting that proclaimed West Coast rap the style-setter and all others followers. Whether or not you bought the line, you were hooked by the rap. Nothing else on the disc matched this single's intensity and wit, but it helped him earn a second straight gold LP.
Accolades
ranked "Way 2 Fonky" twenty-fourth on a 2005 list for Rolling Stone on the Top 25 Hip-Hop Albums of all time.
Track listing
signifies an co producer.
;Sample credits
"America'z Most Complete Artist" contains samples of "N.T." by Kool & the Gang, "Remember the Children" by Earth, Wind & Fire, "The Big Bang Theory" performed by Parliament, and "No One Can Do It Better" by The D.O.C..
