Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1
Studio album by Kardinal Offishall
Released	May 22, 2001
Recorded	1997–2000
Genre	Canadian hip hop
Length	66:40
Label	MCA
Producer	YLook (exec.) Anne-Marie Smith (exec.) Figure IV Ent. (co-exec.) Kardinal Offishall (also co-exec.) Solitair Saukrates Tara Chase Mr. Attic Yaadmaneverywhere!
Kardinal Offishall chronology
Husslin' (2000) Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1 (2001) Fire and Glory (2005)
Singles from Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1
"BaKardi Slang" Released: 2001 "Ol' Time Killin'" Released: 2001

Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1 is the second studio album by Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall. It was released on MCA Records, his first album for a major label. It is a recompilation album, which includes older songs and demos that he used to get signed. ^[1] The lead single, "BaKardi Slang", became his first single to appear on a Billboard chart. The second single, "Ol' Time Killin'", was a minor hit. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics.

Contents

• Background
• Reception
• Track listing
• Samples
• Chart positions
• Personnel
• Release history
• References
• External links

Background

In August 2000, Kardinal signed a deal with MCA Records, after the underground success of his EP, Husslin' . The strategy of the MCA project was to license his older material and release it as an album, to familiarize consumers with him. ^{[2] [3] [4]} It wasn't meant to be a big-budget album. ^[1] The album helped introduce the world to the "T-dot sound", and Kardinal's reggae and dancehall-influenced style of hip-hop. ^{[4] [5]}

The album's first single was "BaKardi Slang", which appeared on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart. In the anthemic song, Kardinal breaks down Toronto's slang. ^{[6] [7]} The second single, "Ol' Time Killin'", received heavy rotation on music video channels. A video for "Powerfulll" was released in Canada.

The songs "On wid da Show" and "Husslin'" are previous singles, released in 1997 and 2000 respectively. A remix of "Money Jane", originally released in 2000, also appears on the album. In the song "U R Ghetto 2002", he disses American rapper Bishop for copying his idea, which originated from the song "U R Ghetto When". ^{[7] [8]}

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[9]
The A.V. Club	favorable [10]
RapReviews	7/10 [11]
The Source	[12]
URB	favorable [13]

One year after its release, 25,000 copies of the album were sold in Canada. ^[14] It received generally favorable reviews from music critics. The Source gave the album 3½ out of 5 mics. ^[14] RapReviews.com gave it a 7/10 rating, calling it a "mixed bag," and stating "there are also some perfect 10's to be found here." ^[7] The A.V. Club gave the album a favorable review, praising its "impressive musical and lyrical consistency." ^[15] AllMusic gave it 2½ out of 5 stars, noting that Kardinal "displays only flashes of promise here." ^[16] The album was nominated for Best Rap Recording at the 2002 Juno Awards.

In 2021, the album won the inaugural edition of CBC Music's Canada Listens competition, a musical version of the CBC's long-running Canada Reads . ^[17] It was defended by writer and broadcaster Kathleen Newman-Bremang.

Track listing

Samples

• "Mic T.H.U.G.S." contains a sample from "Eazy-Duz-It" by Eazy-E
• "Ol' Time Killin'" contains samples from "The MC" by KRS-One, "Murderer" by Barrington Levy and "Murder She Wrote" by Chaka Demus & Pliers
• "Money Jane" (Remix) contains elements from "Jam on It" by Newcleus
• "U R Ghetto 2002" contains elements from "Les Modernes" by Mark Isham
• "Go Ahead Den" contains elements from "100% Dundee" by The Roots

Chart positions

Personnel

• Kardinal Offishall – producer
• Glenn Lewis – performer
• Sean Paul – performer
• Saukrates – producer
• Chris "The Glove" Taylor – mixing

Release history

References

External links

• Album credits at Discogs