Happy 15th Anniversary to Phonte’s debut solo album Charity Starts At Home, originally released September 27, 2011.
In the closing seconds of “Who Loves You More,” the final song on Charity Starts At Home, Phonte addresses the audience directly. “I got a room and a microphone,” he raps. “And a family that I ain’t seen in months / And I played this record a million times / Just hoping you would play it once.”
These words are at the core of his debut solo album, released 15 years ago, and they’re still as resonant as ever. Charity Starts At Home is one of the best albums about artists squaring off against the attention economy, an engine that runs on a bottomless churning need for content. Some dedicate countless hours creating and refining their artistic statement, sacrificing their home and peace of mind, all in the hopes of getting a single listen from a fan before he/she moves on to the next shiny object.
Phonte Coleman is one of the most talented artists of the 21st century. He’s an exceptional emcee and singer, and as a member of Little Brother, the North Carolina based rapper recorded some of the most notable, genre-defining albums of the ’00s. Throughout much of the ‘00s and into the ‘10s, he also made exceptional music as one of half of The Foreign Exchange.
Even though he shined as a member of two separate groups, fans clamored for him to release a solo project. He delivered on his potential with Charity Starts At Home. It’s one of the strongest albums that emerged in 2011 and a top tier release of the 2010s. A decade-and-a-half later, the album holds firm as a critical favorite and an unquestionable artistic triumph.
As he said in an interview with The Come Up Show, he recorded the album “[j]ust wanting to do something for myself, for the first time. Everything that I had done up until that point had kinda been for other groups, or other brands.”
That said, it really sounds like Phonte was going through some shit while recording Charity Starts At Home. But whatever was going on in his life, he seemingly used it as an inspirational force to drive this album, professing that he’s “taken the sour grapes of wrath and made Cheerwine.”
Charity Starts At Home was released a little less than a year-and-a-half after Little Brother released their (at the time) final album and broke up. Around that period, Phonte and 9th Wonder had a few testy exchanges over social media. But during the recording process for Charity, the two had, at least temporarily, mended fences. 9th Wonder supplied the production for four of the album’s tracks and even served as Phonte’s DJ for the subsequent album tour. Currently, the pair appear to have a complex relationship, but they were able to set aside whatever issues they had at the time to make some great music.
Listen to the Album:
Along with 9th Wonder, Phonte enlists a talented roster of producers. Many of whom he had established connections to, such as Khrysis, Zo!, Fatin, E. Jones, and S1. Over this well-crafted production, Phonte gives what’s arguably his best overall lyrical performance. Phonte may have been more than a little world weary during the album’s recording process, but he was operating at the peak of his abilities. His lines are cleverer than most, and his stylistic approach is more complex and varied than it had been before. And as a vocalist, he continued to shine.
Charity Starts At Home begins with “Dance In The Reign,” one of the all-time great album-opening tracks. It’s a masterful three-verse lyrical performance by an emcee that has little interest in mainstream accolades. Working with Southern California-based producer Swiff D, Phonte explains how he continues to navigate the music industry. “I feel fine, you know that I'm real,” he raps. “Ten years still here, no worse for the wear, n***a I’m ill.”
Nearly a decade into his career, he’s more than a little jaded by what he’s seen. Right off the bat, he tweaks those hip-hop purists who insist he record music solely for the love (“I do this shit for my goddamn mortgage, n***a, and my bills”). He brushes off those who expend energy worrying about his place in the rap game (“Motherfucker, go and get a real problem”) and dismisses those who think he’s not ambitious enough. “Some might even say underachiever ’cause they are not believers,” he explains. “That I don’t want the world, but I done seen the world /And if you ever saw it, hell, you wouldn't want it either.”
“The Good Fight” could have just as easily been released in the year 2026 as 2011. He describes a world where “$5 gas, and poverty rates are rising much higher than your hourly rates,” while knowing he needs to muster the energy to keep his rap career going. He also ponders the inherent contradiction in a world where “fam in my ear all day and they are yelling, ‘Keep it real, ’Te, and don't ever sellout’ / But how the fuck you sell out when ain’t nobody selling?” “Everything Is Falling Down” serves as an apt companion piece, as Phonte explains how he’s transformed his frustrations into fuel for making him a better artist.
Phonte switches gears for Charity Starts At Home’s middle portion, focusing on what sounds like a troubled personal life. “Sendin’ My Love” zeroes in on his struggles with temptation and fidelity, as he pushes himself to recognize that the grass is not always greener. “Man, I don't fear much,” he raps. “But the thought of losing her hits me in the tear ducts.”
Phonte primarily uses his vocal skills on “Ball And Chain,” a poignant ode to a failing marriage. He laments how his relationship has transformed so that “these walls used to protect me … Now they're closing in.” The brief “To Be Yours” further explores the disillusion, as he desperately seeks inspiration to reignite his love from a song sung by a stranger in a bar.
Phonte ends this section of the album with a hopeful tone. “Gonna Be A Beautiful Night,” a duet of sorts with singer Carlitta Durand, is a more traditionally structured love song. The pair express the joy and hope that comes from finding the right person.
Phonte saves his pure verbal and stylistic exhibitions for the songs featuring other emcees, enlisting fellow top-tier lyricists to collaborate with and demonstrate how proverbially iron sharpens iron. He matches up well with Detroit’s Elzhi on “Not Here Anymore,” the album’s 9th Wonder produced first single. Phonte utilizes a more conversational style, while crafting complex deliveries, rhyming, “Carolina on my mind like Steve Spurrier / I’m the courier, carrying the word that with these verbs / That n***a Phonte’s a little murderous.” Elzhi is comparatively contemplative on the song’s final verse, rapping, “If you only knew the shit that I been through / To paint the type of pictures my pen drew.”
Phonte matches lyrical wits with the incorporable Pharoahe Monch on “We Go Off,” each delivering single verses, sans hook, over hard-hitting boom-bap from producer Fatin.
He then trades short verses with fellow NC native Median on the 9th Wonder produced “Eternally,” functioning like an early ’10s EPMD. Phonte feeds off the energy, rapping, “Before the days of the Twitter feed, we keep the beats banging / Still swanging like Rebbie Jackson sanging ’bout a ‘Centipede.’”
On the 9th Wonder produced “Life of Kings,” Evidence and Big K.R.I.T. join Phonte to get a little introspective. The three expound on the importance of wealth beyond money and material possessions, such as earning peace of mind and respect from your peers. K.R.I.T. dismisses other who dwell on the negative, rapping, “'Cause you remind me of a derelict relishing on relishments / Too busy throwing rocks at my throne to find a chair to sit.”
As mentioned earlier, the album ends with “Who Loves You More?,” where Phonte further addresses the challenges he’s faced while recording this project. He catalogues his life to this point, reflecting on the adversity he’s overcome, and takes stock as to who stuck with him as he traversed this rocky terrain. “Gotta room with a microphone and all this time,” he raps. “I just sat by the window and looked inside / Didn't like what I found, but you win or you lose / Make a living or have a life, guess that I got to choose.”
Charity Starts At Home ends with Phonte loudly exhaling and declaring, “Thank. God.” Maybe it’s because he’s happy the album is finally completed. Maybe it’s because he’s in a better place after dealing with the obstacles he overcame and the sacrifices he’s made. Maybe it’s just because the song took a while to record. But the statement conveys a distinct sense of accomplishment. Even if the audience only listens to the album once, it’s clear that Phonte gave his all when putting it together, and he put himself first.
Listen:
