Freeway Celebrates 20th Anniversary of Debut ‘Philadelphia Freeway’

As our beloved Hip Hop celebrates its 50th anniversary, Philadelphia’s own Freeway (born Leslie Pridgen) celebrates the 20th anniversary of his debut studio album Philadelphia Freeway, which was released on Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings on February 23, 2003.

The album debuted and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 charts, selling 132,000 copies in its first week. It went on to sell over 500,000 copies in the US. The lead single “What We Do” featuring Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel debuted at #95 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and went on to become a Philadelphia anthem. The classic follow-up single “Flipside” featuring Philly artist Peedi peaked at #95 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Most of the album’s production was done by Just Blaze, Blink! and Kanye West with features from Jay-Z, Mariah Carey, Nelly, Faith Evans, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg and more alongside fellow Philadelphia rappers Beanie Sigel, Peedi Peedi, Young Chris, Young Gunz and Omillio Sparks.

Since the release of Philadelphia Freeway, Freeway has continued to be a prominent figure in Philly and Hip Hop culture. In addition to starring in the State Property film and appearing on both the original soundtrack and The Chain Gang Vol.2 project on Rocafella, Freeway went on to release multiple follow-up albums: Free At Last (2007), Philadelphia Freeway 2 (2009), Diamond in the Ruff (2012), Free Will (2016) and Think Free (2018) as well as collaborative projects such as The Stimulus Package with Jake One, The Roc Boys with Beanie Sigel and Highway Property with Jacka. The rapper continues to release music and headline shows.