The Saga Continues...

The Saga Continues... is the third studio album by American rapper P. Diddy, released on July 10, 2001 by Arista and Bad Boy Records. Similarly to his debut album No Way Out (1997), it is credited to "P. Diddy and the Bad Boy Family"; the latter act refers to his signees at Bad Boy Records. It was the first studio album released by Combs under the P. Diddy name, and the final release under Bad Boy Records' joint venture with Arista Records. His We Invented the Remix album was the last overall project with Arista.

The album garnered mixed to negative reviews from music critics. The Saga Continues... debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, spawning three singles: "Let's Get It", "Bad Boy for Life" and "Diddy".

Critical reception

Soren Baker of the Los Angeles Times called the album "a quality hip-hop collection with plenty of swagger, grit, sure-shot singles and a decidedly upbeat outlook." A staff writer for HipHopDX praised the record for having a diverse roster of new artists and label alumni on "solid cuts" ("Can't Believe", "Let's Get It", "Bad Boy For Life") and "hidden gems" ("So Complete", "Blast Off"), but criticized P. Diddy's "lyrical flow and tempo" for being poorly showcased ("Lonely", "If You Want This Money").

They highlighted G. Dep's "Child of the Ghetto" and 8Ball & MJG's "Roll with Me" as "regrettable displays" concluding that, "With the platform of platinum and pop success, The Saga Continues will be a surefire collection that has the following of P.Diddy's string of commercial hits. Forecasting his true signature talent, by seizing his roster with diverse talent that accompanies his background arrangements."

Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews gave praise to "Bad Boy For Life" and "Where's Sean?" for being "surprisingly dope cuts", P. Diddy's contributions on "Roll with Me" and "I Need a Girl", and G. Dep's "Child of the Ghetto". He criticized "Diddy" for having "one of the weakest ever Neptunes beats", the overabundance of interludes throughout the album and questioned the sampling choices on "Can't Believe" and the title track.

AllMusic's Jason Birchmeier praised the record for giving Black Rob and G. Dep the spotlight to "showcase their talent commendably" along with the other roster members and the in-house approach to the production for giving a "cohesive feel", but criticized P. Diddy's "rhetorical swagger" throughout the track listing for "teetering on the fine line between self-assurance and unintentional farce."

Robert Christgau cited "That's Crazy" as a "choice cut", indicating a good song on "an album that isn't worth your time or money." The Guardian's Alexis Petridis criticized P. Diddy for still being "a terrible rapper, cursed with a stilted and flat delivery" that's overshadowed by his obscure label members' "shouty contributions" and for lacking the "self-pitying repugnance" from Forever, concluding that: "Puzzling over the album's confused morality and logic is more rewarding than actually listening to its familiar litany of misogyny and violence. It's all been done before and by more talented rappers than Combs and pals."

Track listing

Singles

• "Diddy"
• "Bad Boy for Life"
• "Let's Get It"
• "I Need a Girl (To Bella)" Released in the form of two remixes: Pt. 1 (featuring Usher and Loon) and Pt. 2 (featuring Mario Winans, Ginuwine and Loon). Both appeared on We Invented The Remix Vol. 1 and had a respective music video. The original version appears on certain "I Need a Girl (Pt. 1)" singles.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Saga Continues....

• Harve Pierre – associate executive producer
• Chris Athens – mastering (Sterling Sound)
• Roger Che, Jimmy Lee Patterson, Marc Pfafflin – Pro Tools
• Angela Lockhart – creative direction
• Victoria Jordan – design
• Justin Jay – photography

Charts

Certifications