How Ya Like Me Now

Mixing and recording for How Ya Like Me Now took place in London at Battery Studios. Alongside Kool Moe Dee, audio production was shared with and handled by Teddy Riley, Bryan "Chuck" New, LaVaba Mallison and Pete Q. Harris, with whom he worked on his previous self-titled album.

On the front cover made by Doug Rowell, Moe Dee takes musical aim at rival rapper LL Cool J, by crushing a red Kangol hat under a front wheel of the Jeep Wrangler in the backdrop. The long running feud began when Kool Moe Dee claimed that LL had stolen his rap style. He also felt that LL was disrespecting rap pioneers like Melle Mel and Grandmaster Caz, by proclaiming that he was "rap's new grandmaster" without paying due respect to those who came before him.Patrick Goldstein, [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-11-29-ca-25192-story.html "Kool Moe Grades Rappers: Give Him A+,"] Los Angeles Times, November 29, 1987. The feud persisted into the mid-1990s with more songs, and ended with both MCs proclaiming themselves the victor.

The photograph was taken on 4th St in Manhattan between Avenues C and D in Alphabet City, in an empty lot across from the San Isidoro y San Leandro Western Orthodox Catholic Church of the Hispanic Mozarabic Rite. Moe Dee references aspects the neighborhood in lyrics on the album.

Following Kool Moe Dee, How Ya Like Me Now was released through Jive Records with distribution by RCA Records, making it Kool Moe Dee's second album on the label. It was dropped on November 3, 1987, and was supported by three singles: "How Ya Like Me Now", "Wild Wild West" and "No Respect", and its music videos.

Its self-titled single peaked at #22 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and #86 on the UK Singles Chart. "Wild Wild West" peaked at #62 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #4 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The single "No Respect" did not get into any major music chart.

Reaching a peak position of number thirty-five on the US Billboard 200, How Ya Like Me Now remained on the chart for a total of 50 weeks. The album has been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on April 14, 1988, and then went platinum on November 14, 1988, indicating US sales of over one million units.

{{Album ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/how-ya-like-me-now-mw0000193872|title=How Ya Like Me Now – Kool Moe Dee|website=AllMusic|last=Henderson|first=Alex |accessdate=November 28, 2017}}

| rev2 = New Musical Express

| rev2score = 8/10{{cite magazine|title=Cool Moe Dee: How Ya Like Me Now |last=Kirsch |first=Michele |date=12 December 1987 |magazine=New Musical Express |page=33}}

| rev3 = Robert Christgau

| rev3score = A−{{cite web|url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=Kool+Moe+Dee|title=Robert Christgau: CG: Kool Moe Dee|last=Christgau|first=Robert|publisher=Robert Christgau|accessdate=November 28, 2017}}

}}

In a contemporary review, the Washington Post compared the album to work by hip hop artists Schooly D and LL Cool J, stating that Kool Moe Dee "comes across like a hip guidance couselor" and that the album was a "def aural collage: James Brown beats on the title cut, Queen on "Rock You" even Paul Simon on "50 Ways". The production is sophisticated without sacrificing the improvisational swagger that is central to rap's appeal."{{cite news |last1=Jenkins |first1=Mark|newspaper=The Washington Post |title=Achieving a Bad Rap: Beat Box Artists Talk Trash for Cash Schooly D: 'Saturday Night!' Rap Kool Moe Doe: 'How Ya Like Me Now' Just Ice: 'Kool and Deadly (Justicizms)' M.C. Shan: 'Down by Law' |location=Washington, D.C., United States |publisher=WP Company LLC d/b/a The Washington Post |date=January 17, 1988 |page=111 |issn=0190-8286|id={{ProQuest|139891546}}}} American music journalist Robert Christgau described the album as "out-of-kilter swing generated by his electronic percussion [...] - trick rhymes, variable lengths, filters, double tracks, sung refrains, and the occasional extra instrument all work to shift the beat without undercutting its dominance". Alex Henderson of AllMusic said that Kool Moe Dee "had a major hit with his sophomore effort" and that "it definitely has its share of classics".

In 2017, the album was ranked #35 on Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 1987,{{Cite news|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2017/07/top-50-albums-of-1987/full-post/|title=Top 50 Albums of 1987|date=July 10, 2017|work=Consequence of Sound|access-date=November 28, 2017|language=en-US}} and #41 of Complex 50 Greatest Rap Albums 1980s.{{Cite web|url=http://www.complex.com/music/50-greatest-rap-albums-1980s/|title=The Best Rap Albums of the '80s|last=Gonzales|first=Michael|date=October 26, 2017|website=Complex|language=en|access-date=November 28, 2017}}

In 2008, the title track "How Ya Like Me Now" was ranked #31 on VH1's 100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs.

In 2017, the song "How Ya Like Me Now" was used in the Empire episode "Strange Bedfellows".

{{Track listing

| all_writing =

| title1 = How Ya Like Me Now

| length1 = 5:37

| title2 = Wild Wild West

| length2 = 4:40

| title3 = Way Way Back

| length3 = 4:32

| title4 = 50 Ways

| length4 = 5:00

| title5 = No Respect

| length5 = 5:24

| title6 = Don't Dance

| length6 = 4:25

| title7 = I'm A Player

| length7 = 3:37

| title8 = Suckers

| length8 = 4:44

| title9 = Stupid

| length9 = 4:25

| title10 = Rock You

| length10 = 3:57

| title11 = Get Paid

| length11 = 3:19

| total_length = 49:51

}}

• Mohandes Dewese – vocals, producer
• Bryan Chuck New – mixing, engineer, producer
• Edward Theodore Riley – producer
• Peter Brian Harris – producer
• LaVaba Mallison – producer
• Doug Rowell – photography
• Kofi Tuda – grooming

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Album

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Singles

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|title=How Ya Like Me Now|artist=Kool Moe Dee|award=Platinum|relyear=1988}}

{{Certification Table Bottom | nosales=true}}

{{reflist|30em}}

{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Kool-Moe-Dee-How-Ya-Like-Me-Now/master/164657|title=Kool Moe Dee – How Ya Like Me Now|website=Discogs|language=en}}

{{Kool Moe Dee}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1987 albums

Category:Albums produced by Teddy Riley

Category:Jive Records albums

Category:Kool Moe Dee albums

Category:New jack swing albums

Category:RCA Records albums