Happy 25th Anniversary to Pharoahe Monch’s debut solo album Internal Affairs, originally released October 19, 1999.
A solo album by Troy “Pharoahe Monch” Jamerson had long been a dream of mine. Yes, all three of the albums that he recorded as a member of Organized Konfusion are great: Albumism has paid tribute to all three of these releases; I even wrote one of them. But on those group albums, it seemed like there was a beast within Monch, struggling to free himself, ready to hold down an album on his own. It’s conceivable that during Monch’s amazing run as a member of Organized Konfusion from 1991 to 1997, he was one of the best rappers gracing a microphone.
And then when Monch announced that he had signed to Rawkus Records, it seemed like a perfect match. Rawkus was carving out its niche as one of the strongest and most vital labels for underground and independent hip-hop. They’d released/distributed albums by Company Flow and Black Star, the Soundbombing mixtapes, and the Lyricist Lounge compilation. They’d also put out a slew of brilliant 12-inches by artists like Reflection Eternal, Black Attack, L-Fudge, and Sir Menelik. In the ongoing battle between the mainstream and the underground, Rawkus was leading the charge for backpackers like myself. And with the release of Internal Affairs 25 years ago, it seemed like a no-brainer that this was going to be everything that I’d envisioned
However, Internal Affairs was not what I‘d first anticipated, and that wasn’t a bad thing. I was used to the Organized Konfusion-version of Monch. I was used to the guy who incomprehensibly split syllables over dark, chaotic, deeply non-commercial tracks. Monch still delivers a vintage performance on the microphone, but overall he was trying something different on this album, and again, that wasn’t a bad thing. Many of the songs have call and response-based hooks, encouraging audience participation. Though Monch and his cohort Lee Stone handle a bunch of the beats, he brought in outside producers like DJ Scratch, Diamond D, and a young Alchemist to work their own studio magic.
Internal Affairs also features a lot of guest appearances, as Monch enlists a number of emcees to lend their talents to the album. Some of these artists had prior affiliation to Monch, others are beloved underground mainstays, and others are pretty high profile. Busta Rhymes makes two appearances, joined by Redman and Method Man at one point, all in their prime. Rawkus seemed to be committed to dumping money into the album’s budget with these guests, fueled at least partly by a play for mainstream attention around this time. Just the week before, the label had released Mos Def’s solo debut Black On Black Sides, which would end up as their most successful album. They seemed ready to make Monch the label’s other star.
And yet Internal Affairs still feels like an album by one half of Organized Konfusion. Monch doesn’t attempt to dumb down his style, still delivering his verbal gymnastics with amazing verbal dexterity and putting together interesting concepts. Songs like the album’s horn-driven “Intro” as well as the dark and foreboding “Behind Closed Doors” feel at peace with Monch’s earlier material. On the latter track, Monch flexes over a sinister piano loop, back percussion and chimes, rapping “Pharoahe’s the host, the audience and the motherfucking panelist / My mic’s equipped with laser sights so that command’ll miss / Never you Devils, my level's that of a high evolutionary rebel / Third rock from the sun to me is only a pebble.”
Listen to the Album:
Still, by far the best-known song on Internal Affairs is its first single, “Simon Says.” The song was a bona fide phenomenon during the end of 1999 and into the New Year, earning countless spins in clubs across the country and even mainstream radio. Funkmaster Flex famously championed the song, incorporating it into his DJ sets whenever possible. It’s a ball-to-the-wall, get-up-and-smash-something track, built upon a sample from the theme music for the original Godzilla film. Decades later, it’s still a perfect anthem to wild out to, while Monch’s roar of “GET THE FUCK UP!!!” still sounds as resonant as ever.
Unfortunately for Monch, he and Rawkus ran across the notoriously litigious legal team that represents Toho Studios. In turns out that Rawkus failed to clear the sample for “Simon Says,” and Toho, who owns and distributes the Godzilla films, sued the label for a half a million dollars. Rawkus eventually had to remove the song from all future copies of the album and destroy all the remaining “Simon Says” singles.
“Queens” functions as Monch’s version of Mos Def’s “Brooklyn” or “Habitat.” He strives to capture the essence of the unforgiving streets of his native borough by telling the story of one of its residents. Delivered in one long verse, Monch rhapsodizes about “Donovan,” a talented basketball player who lacks discipline and ends up getting involved in local drug sales. Before the audience witnesses him meeting his end in the streets of Queens, we’ve learned much about his life and motivations, with Monch fleshing him out to be a real character.
“Official” is one of Internal Affairs’ forgotten highlights, as Monch puts together a full song, in the style of GZA’s “Labels,” built around athletes’ names and sports references. He’s probably the first—and possibly only—rappers to shout out Raul Mondesi and Chamique Holdsclaw, and one of the few creative enough to label himself “the bomb, like Hail Mary's inflated with napalm.” “Official” does sound a bit unfinished, as Monch seemingly stops the third verse mid-flow, and just lets the music play out for a few seconds.
Diamond D produces two strong entries on the album, the most prominent being “The Light,” the album’s second single and dedication to the ladies. The song shows a smoother side of Monch, as he woos the woman of his dreams. Hearing the man who once professed to “butt fuck emcees” show his romantic side is a bit jarring, but he proves as adept at it as he is at conquering the world with his rhymes. Diamond D utilizes his excellent abilities of finding the perfect sample, as he expertly chops part of an acoustic guitar solo from Wes Montgomery’s “Mi Cosa.”
“The Ass” is far less dreamy, as this time around Monch gets downright nasty. After proclaiming, “Fuck it, I shagged her!” he spends his portion of the song bragging about his recent sexual conquest and his prowess. But in a “twist,” the song features a verse by Apani B. Fly Emcee, who was one of the best underground artists around. Apani flips the script by turning out to be even raunchier than Monch, rapping, “Hanging ten with the best of wenches that never flinches / Bench your game, poor form won't score / Gotta hit the backboard, like it raw backdoor / Want to pause hardcore porn style, baby.”
Monch collaborates with Canibus on the gritty “Hell,” starting the song off strong, letting loose a flurry of words beginning with the letter F: “Focus upon the fact that facts can be fabricated to form lies / My phonetics alone forces feeble emcees into defense on the fly.” Even though Canibus’ own debut album was a bit of disappointment, he bounces back strong here, boasting, “We giving n****s what the fuck they want: A Holocaust, stomping n****s with a thousand-man march.”
“No Mercy,” featuring early production by The Alchemist is a clear standout song. Alchemist has said that he created the beat, built around a soaring string sample from Jerry Goldsmith’s score of The Last Run, with Prodigy of Mobb Deep in mind. Monch insisted on getting the track, not taking no for an answer. After Alchemist received Prodigy’s blessing, he sold it to Monch.
I have no doubt Prodigy would have done the track justice, but Monch and Brownsville lyrical Warriorz M.O.P. all deliver high-powered, adrenaline-fueled performances, charging the track. Monch contributes one of his best verses on the album, rapping, “This rhyme will remain in the minds of my foes forever in infamy / The epitome of lyrical epiphanies / Skillfully-placed poems and carefully planned symphonies / Who would be ignorant enough to have the audacity.”
This song directly preceded the release of “Ante Up,” where both members of M.O.P. were really getting into a groove. Lil Fame sounds as intimidating as possible as he raps, “What you wanna cry for? You know that my hammer is heavy / And it got kick like taekwondo, now you gwon die slow.”
Internal Affairs settles into a more introspective groove as the album comes to a close. On the Diamond D-produced “The Truth,” Common and Talib Kweli join Monch, and all three explore how each person defines their own truth. Monch re-teams with Prince Poetry on “God Send,” which very much feels like an authentic Organized Konfusion track, with both emcees describing a whole community coming apart at the seams, while its citizens remain unconcerned with the decay. At the time, “God Send” gave me hope that the duo would release another album together; thus far they have not. It’s worth noting that Prince Po absolutely owns the track, rapping, “Stray bullets continue shattering dreams, battering spleens / I’m gathering schemes, had only cream just as bad as a fiend / Take food from a table and get drunk to your death / Now feel it in your heart from the love in my breath.”
Previously out of print for years, Internal Affairs is thankfully now available across multiple physical formats and streaming platforms. There’s a lot to love about Internal Affairs and there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be re-discovered by a few new generations of hip-hop heads.
LISTEN:
Editor's note: this anniversary tribute was originally published in 2019 and has since been edited for accuracy and timeliness.