When Disaster Strikes...

When Disaster Strikes... is the second studio album by American rapper and record producer Busta Rhymes, released by Elektra on September 16, 1997.^{[1][deprecated source]} The album follows the same theme as The Coming, the apocalypse. The album, upon its release, received mostly positive reviews, debuted at number three on the official US Billboard 200 album chart, and peaked at the top spot on the Top R&B Albums chart.

When Disaster Strikes...
Studio album by Busta Rhymes
Released	September 16, 1997[1][deprecated source]
Studio	Soundtrack Studios, New York City Daddy's House Studios, New York City Sound Techniques, Boston, Massachusetts
Genre	Hip hop
Length	76:07
Label	Flipmode Elektra
Producer	8-Off Buddah Busta Rhymes Clarence Dorsey DJ Scratch Easy Mo Bee Epitome Latief Omar Glover Rashad Smith Rockwilder Sean "Puffy" Combs Shamello Spliff Star The Ummah
Busta Rhymes chronology
The Coming (1996) When Disaster Strikes... (1997) The Imperial (1998)
Busta Rhymes solo chronology
The Coming (1996) When Disaster Strikes... (1997) Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front (1998)
Singles from When Disaster Strikes
"Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See" Released: August 12, 1997 "Dangerous" Released: November 18, 1997 "Turn It Up (Remix) / Fire It Up" Released: May 15, 1998 "One" Released: July 7, 1998

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Christgau's Consumer Guide	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B[4]
NME	7/10[5]
Pitchfork	8.2/10 (2008)[6] 7.5/10 (2022)[7]
RapReviews	9/10[8]
Rolling Stone	[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]
The Source	[11]
Spin	5/10[12]

The album was supported by three singles: "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See", "Dangerous", and "Turn It Up" – the latter two which found chart success on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The album's lead single, "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See" (notable for its music video that lampooned the 1988 film Coming to America) earned a nomination for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 40th Grammy Awards in 1998.^[2] The album was certified platinum by the RIAA.^[13] Its second single, "Dangerous", earned Rhymes a third consecutive nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 41st Grammy Awards the following year.

Background

Busta Rhymes dedicated the album to late friend and fellow rapper the Notorious B.I.G., who had been an inspiration in the making of the album.^[14]

Commercial performance

When Disaster Strikes... debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 165,000 copies in its first week.^[15] This became Busta Rhymes's second US top-ten debut on the chart.^[15] On October 9, 1997, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over one million copies in the United States.^[16]

Legacy

Fellow rapper and friend Talib Kweli included When Disaster Strikes in his list of the 100 best hip hop albums of all time.^[17]

For the 20th anniversary of the album, Busta Rhymes said he’s very pleased about “When Disaster Strikes“:

“I feel extremely great about that album. I feel great about all of my albums, and particularly that album. It was my sophomore jinx album where everybody was like, ‘We don’t wanna hear another album if he doesn’t switch it up,’ ‘Can he do it again?’ All of that talk was happening. But that album solidified my legacy.“^[18]

Track listing

When Disaster Strikes... track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro"	Trevor Smith	Busta Rhymes Omar Glover DJ Scratch	4:45
2.	"The Whole World Lookin' at Me"	T. Smith George Spivey	DJ Scratch	3:26
3.	"Survival Hungry"	T. Smith Spivey	DJ Scratch	3:26
4.	"When Disaster Strikes"	T. Smith Spivey	DJ Scratch	3:25
5.	"So Hardcore"	T. Smith James Yancey	The Ummah (Jay Dee)	4:51
6.	"Get High Tonight"	T. Smith Spivey Harry Wayne Casey	DJ Scratch	3:51
7.	"Turn It Up"	T. Smith Al Green	Busta Rhymes	4:11
8.	"Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See"	T. Smith Darrol Durant Roger Munroe	Shamello Buddah Epitome[a]	3:14
9.	"It's All Good"	T. Smith Anthony Long	Latief	3:02
10.	"There's Not a Problem My Squad Can't Fix" (featuring Jamal)	T. Smith Jamal Phillips Michael Cleveland	Busta Rhymes	5:56
11.	"We Could Take It Outside" (featuring the Flipmode Squad)	T. Smith Roger McNair Cleveland Delaney Jr. William Lewis Wayne Notise Leroy Jones[b] Rashia Fisher Spivey Alan Bergmann Marilyn Bergmann Michel Legrand	DJ Scratch	4:47
12.	"Rhymes Galore"	T. Smith Rashad Smith Rufus Thomas Jo Bridges Mack Rice Tom Nixon	Rashad Smith	2:33
13.	"Things We Be Doin' for Money, Part 1"	T. Smith	Easy Mo Bee	3:18
14.	"Things We Be Doin' for Money, Part 2" (featuring Rampage, Anthony Hamilton, and the Chosen Generation)	T. Smith Angel Aguilar Carl Dorsey	8-Off Clarence Dorsey[a]	4:56
15.	"One" (featuring Erykah Badu)	T. Smith Erica Wright Dana Stinson Stevland Morris	Rockwilder	4:38
16.	"Dangerous"	T. Smith R. Smith Henry Stone Freddy Stonewall	Rashad Smith	3:37
17.	"The Body Rock" (featuring Rampage, Sean "Puffy" Combs, and Mase)	T. Smith Sean Combs	Sean "Puffy" Combs	5:33
18.	"Get Off My Block" (featuring Lord Have Mercy)	T. Smith Notise	DJ Scratch	3:58
19.	"Preparation for the Final World Front (Outro)"	T. Smith	DJ Scratch	2:31

Some versions replace "Survival Hungry" with "Turn It Up (Remix) / Fire It Up" at track 3^[19]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
3.	"Turn It Up (Remix) / Fire It Up"	T. Smith	Busta Rhymes Spliff Star[a]	3:58

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer
• ^{^[b]} signifies an uncredited contribution
• On US versions of the album, "It's All Good" is excluded from the tracklist.

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for When Disaster Strikes... Chart (1997) Peak position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[20] 73 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21] 62 UK Albums (OCC)[22] 34 US Billboard 200[23] 3 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[24] 1 2023 weekly chart performance for When Disaster Strikes... Chart (2023) Peak position Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ)[25] 13

Year-end charts 1997 year-end chart performance for When Disaster Strikes... Chart (1997) Position US Billboard 200[26] 96 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[27] 26 1998 year-end chart performance for When Disaster Strikes... Chart (1998) Position US Billboard 200[28] 96 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[29] 46

Certifications

Certifications for When Disaster Strikes...

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[30]	Gold	100,000^
United States (RIAA)[16]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

• List of number-one R&B albums of 1997 (U.S.)