Clipse
Lord Willin (Vinyl Sampler)

Listening notes

Released in 2002 on Star Trak Entertainment, the Clipse Lord Willin Vinyl Sampler (catalog number ARDP-5205) is a promotional box set presenting four tracks from the Lord Willin album across eight twelve-inch records in hip hop format.

The set's structure is straightforward and functional. Each of the four songs — "Let's Talk About It," "Gansta Lean," "Got Damn," and "Virginia" — is spread across two dedicated records, with each record carrying identical content on both sides. Every track appears in four versions: a Radio Mix, an Instrumental, a Club Mix, and a Club Mix Acapella. The duplication of records within each pair means that every song's four versions are physically present on two separate discs carrying the same program, resulting in eight records total.

The version breakdown reflects standard promotional practice for the period, giving radio programmers, club DJs, and remixers separate cuts suited to different broadcast and performance contexts. Instrumentals and acapellas were common inclusions in promotional vinyl packages of this era, facilitating remixing and live mixing without requiring the use of the full vocal version.

Running times across the four songs vary modestly. "Gansta Lean" runs the longest in its Club Mix Acapella form at five minutes and twenty-nine seconds, while the "Got Damn" versions are the shortest of the set, each coming in under four minutes. "Let's Talk About It" and "Gansta Lean" share the longer runtime profiles, while "Virginia" and "Got Damn" run comparably brief.

As a promotional item catalogued under ARDP-5205, this release was not a standard commercial product and would have been distributed through industry channels rather than retail.