Hard to Earn
| Hard to Earn | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 8, 1994 | |||
| Recorded | July 1992–1993 | |||
| Studio | D&D Studios (New York City) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 58:57 | |||
| Label | ||||
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| Gang Starr chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Hard to Earn | ||||
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Robert Christgau | |
| RapReviews | |
| Rolling Stone | |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
| The Source | |
Hard to Earn is the fourth studio album by American hip hop duo Gang Starr. It was released on March 8, 1994, by Chrysalis and EMI Records in North America. The album featured the singles "Dwyck" (featuring Nice & Smooth), "Mass Appeal" (their first charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart), and "Code of the Streets". Guest appearances on the album include Group Home, Jeru the Damaja, and Big Shug. At the time, all were part of the Gang Starr Foundation, which made the album a stepping-stone for future DJ Premier-helmed projects by Group Home and Jeru. Hard to Earn received acclaim and commercial success upon release.
The single "DWYCK" recorded in 1992 also featured hip hop duo Nice & Smooth. The track "Now You're Mine" originally appeared on the 1992 soundtrack White Men Can't Rap. The single "Mass Appeal" appeared in the video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4.
Hard to Earn is also the duo's first album to carry the "Parental Advisory" label.