Word Power is the debut album by American rapper and producer Divine Styler. It was released on October 23, 1989, on Ice-T's Records under Epic Records. The album peaked at No. 62 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The Scheme Team, a hip hop collective of Divine Styler, made their introduction on the record. Divine rhymed about being proud of heritage (highlighted on "It's a Black Thing") and featured audio production handled by Bilal Bashir (who made later instrumentals for the likes of Everlast, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube), who later re-released this album in instrumental form in 2005. The album produced the only lead single "Ain't Sayin' Nothin", featuring a scratch noise similar to the sound used in "Jump Around" and "Insane in the Brain". It peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart.

Critical reception

The Chicago Tribune called the album "exciting, and that isn't a word you can use to describe many recent rap releases."

Track listing

Samples

Personnel