Keepers of the Funk

Keepers of the Funk is the second studio album by American hip hop group Lords of the Underground. It was released on November 1, 1994 via Pendulum Records. Recording sessions took place at House of Hitz in Chestnut Ridge, New York. Production was handled by Marley Marl, K-Def, Lords of the Underground and Andre Booth. It features guest appearances from Sah-B, Deniece Williams, George Clinton, Brian "Bre" Williamson and Supreme C. The album did gain some success, making it to No. 57 on the Billboard 200 and No. 16 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

Keepers of the Funk
Studio album by Lords of the Underground
Released	November 1, 1994
Recorded	1993–1994
Studio	House Of Hits (Chesnut Ridge, NY)
Genre	East Coast hip hop
Length	44:49
Label	Pendulum Records EMI
Producer	Ruben Rodriguez (exec.) Marley Marl (also exec.) K-Def Lords of the Underground
Lords of the Underground chronology
Here Come the Lords (1993) Keepers of the Funk (1994) Resurrection (1999)
Singles from Keepers of the Funk
"Tic Toc" Released: October 11, 1994 "What I'm After" Released: February 21, 1995 "Faith" Released: June 27, 1995

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Rap Pages	6/10[2]
The Source	[3]

Three singles made it to the Billboard charts: "Tic Toc", "What I'm After" and "Faith".

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro"			1:00
2.	"Ready or Not"	Dupré Kelly Al'Terik Wardrick Marlon Williams	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.)	4:03
3.	"Tic Toc"	Kelly Wardrick Williams Douglas E. Davis Ricky Walters	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.)	3:51
4.	"Keepers of the Funk"	Kelly Wardrick George Clinton Williams Andre Booth	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.) Andre Booth (co.)	4:18
5.	"Steam from da Knot"	Kelly Kevin Hansford	K-Def Lords of the Underground (co.)	3:07
6.	"What I'm After"	Kelly Wardrick Hansford Emmett Nixon Robert Reed Taylor Reed Tony Fisher Reginald Noble J. Stone Rick James	K-Def Lords of the Underground (co.)	4:19
7.	"Faith" (featuring Deniece Williams)	Kelly Wardrick Bruce Colston Deniece Williams Hank Redd Nathan Watts Susaye Greene	Lords of the Underground	4:02
8.	"Neva Faded" (featuring Supreme C)	Kelly Wardrick Carle Harte Brian Williamson Williams	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.)	5:16
9.	"No Pain"	Wardrick Hansford Les McCann	K-Def Lords of the Underground (co.)	3:53
10.	"Frustrated"	Kelly Wardrick Hansford	K-Def Lords of the Underground (co.)	4:18
11.	"Yes Y'All"	Kelly Wardrick Williams	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.)	4:17
12.	"What U See"	Kelly Wardrick Williams	Marley Marl Lords of the Underground (co.)	3:57
13.	"Outro"			1:28
Total length:				44:49

Sample credits

• Track 3 contains a sample of "La Di Da Di" performed by Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick
• Track 9 features a sample of "Go On And Cry" performed by Les McCann
• Track 10 contains exceperts from "Hamp's Hump" performed by Lou Donaldson

Personnel

• Al'Terik "Mr. Funke" Wardrick – vocals (tracks: 2–4, 6–12), keyboards (track 11), producer (track 7), co-producer (tracks: 2–6, 8–12)
• Dupré "DoItAll" Kelly – vocals (tracks: 2–8, 10–12), producer (track 7), co-producer (tracks: 2–6, 8–12)
• Bruce "DJ Lord Jazz" Colston – scratches (tracks: 2–4, 7–10), producer (track 7), co-producer (tracks: 2–6, 8–12)
• George Clinton & P-Funk Singers – backing vocals (track 4)
• Andre Booth – bass & co-producer (track 4)
• Deniece Williams – vocals (track 7)
• Carle "Supreme C" Harte – vocals (track 8)
• Brian "Bre" Williamson – backing vocals (track 8)
• Frank Heller – bass (track 8), mixing (tracks: 2–5, 7–12)
• Sakinah "Sah-B" Britton – backing vocals (tracks: 9, 10)
• Marlon "Marley Marl" Williams – producer (tracks: 2–4, 8, 11, 12), executive producer
• Kevin "K-Def" Hansford – producer (tracks: 5, 6, 9, 10)
• Herb Powers Jr. – mastering
• Ruben Rodriguez – executive producer
• Nicole Dorward – project coordinator
• Lu Ann Graffeo – art direction
• Diane Cuddy – design
• Christian Cortez – logo design
• Daniel Hastings – photography
• Hafiz Farid – management

Charts

Chart (1994)	Peak position
US Billboard 200[4]	57
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[5]	16