Order in the Court | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 16, 1998 | |||
Recorded | 1997–1998 | |||
Genre | Hip hop[1] | |||
Length | 55:17 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer |
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Queen Latifah chronology | ||||
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Singles from Order in the Court | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | A−[2] |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Source | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Village Voice | B+[5] |
Order in the Court is the fourth studio album by the American hip-hop artist and actress Queen Latifah.[6] The album was released on June 16, 1998, by Motown Records and would be Latifah's last album with Motown. Partly dedicated to The Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur, it is her first album to have a Parental Advisory warning on it.
Before the album's release, Latifah and Foxy Brown had been arguing over who was the real Queen.[7] On the album's second track, "Court Is In Session" Latifah portrayed herself as a judge presiding over the current state of hip-hop music by taunting her rivals, including Foxy.[7] However, with the closing track, "Life", Latifah comes to realize that feuding with other female rappers was futile, given the untimely and recent deaths of Biggie and Tupac.[7] Both "Black On Black Love" and "Life" celebrate the black community, black love, and black businesses.[7]
More so than Latifah's other hip-hop albums, this one focuses on her legacy and attempts to cement herself as a defining hip-hop artist, regardless of gender.[7]