A Breukelen Story


A Breukelen Story is a collaborative studio album by American rapper Masta Ace and Canadian hip hop record producer Marco Polo. It was released on November 9, 2018 via Fat Beats Records. Production was handled solely by Marco Polo, who also served as executive producer together with Masta Ace. It features guest appearances from Elzhi, eMC, Lil' Fame, Marlon Craft, Pav Bundy, Pearl Gates, Pharoahe Monch, Smif-N-Wessun, Styles P and Trini Boy. An eight-track bonus extended play was released in 2019 featuring production from DJ Premier, remixing from the Drum Majors, and guest appearance from Evidence.

Critical reception

Albumism's Daryl McIntosh praised the album, saying "with A Breukelen Story, Ace and Polo craft the musical equivalent of a screenplay or novel, by sharing their personal stories and memories reflective of life in one of America's great microcosms". Sy Shackleford of RapReviews found both artists "have employed their respective talents to provide their perspective on their home and what it has birthed". Tom Hull resumed: "rapper Duval Clear, past 50 now, which moves him from gangsta to old school, teamed up with beats producer Marco Bruno, tells the story of someone moving from Toronto to New York to break into hip-hop, although the music easily tops the story".

Personnel

  • Duval "Masta Ace" Clear – vocals, executive producer
  • Marco "Marco Polo" Bruno – producer, recording, mixing, executive producer
  • Jay "Shylow" Khan – recording, editing
  • Richard "Filthy Rich" Ahee – recording
  • Ricardo Gutierrez – mixing, mastering
  • Emanuele "Mocce" Mocchetti – mixing
  • André "Deck97" Henriques – art direction, design
  • Mr. Wattson – photography
  • Darrell A. "Steele" Yates Jr. – guest artist
  • Tekomin B. "Tek" Williams – guest artist
  • Cesar "Pearl Gates" Perez Jr. – guest artist
  • David "Styles P" Styles – guest artist
  • Paris "Pav Bundy" Wells – guest artist
  • Jason "eLZhi" Powers – guest artist
  • Jamal Gerard "Lil' Fame" Grinnage – guest artist
  • Trini Boy – guest artist
  • Marlon Craft – guest artist
  • Stephen "Strick" Stricklin – guest artist
  • Vinson "Wordsworth" Johnson – guest artist
  • Troy Donald "Pharoahe Monch" Jamerson – guest artist