After securing a new deal with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, Jadakiss began recording in 2008. After multiple push backs, the album was given an April 7, 2009 release date. The original album title was Kiss My Ass, however Jada decided to change the album title:
I had to change the name of my album because "Kiss My Ass" wasn’t testing well at retail; not even with the exclamations or none of that so we had to change it to The Last Kiss, Jada explained during an interview with music website, BestofBothOffices.com.
As The Last Kiss might lead some to believe that it could be Jadakiss' final album, he immediately stated that he has no plans to retire anytime soon and explained the meaning behind the album's title.
Some people asked me if this was my last album, nah, it’s just the first album was Kiss tha Game Goodbye, the second album was The Kiss of Death, so this one is The Last Kiss; it’s the closing of a trilogy. This is the last time the word "Kiss" is going to be in any of my album titles.
Critical reception
The Last Kiss received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 61, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 7 reviews. David Jeffries of AllMusic said, "In a genre where albums frequently miss their street date, Jadakiss' The Last Kiss is an especially late hip-hop release, having been pushed back, retitled, and retooled numerous times. This problematic arrival shows too in the final product, but the problem may not be the much maligned rapper's ability or inspiration but the constant mishandling of his material. So many prime street cuts have been given away to comps, mixtapes, and soundtracks in the five years since Kiss of Death was released that only the slick, polished numbers remain, save the misleading kickoff "Pain & Torture." Steve Jones of USA Today said, "Though Kiss isn't as gritty as his previous efforts — a sign of maturity, perhaps — he still serves up plenty of bangers for hard cases. There's no shortage of songs boasting of his accomplishments, 'hood credentials and microphone prowess. But he also takes a broader view and more varied sonic palette." HipHopDX said, "Even if there are a handful of tracks that should've been shaved off, there's nothing outright bad on The Last Kiss and a lot that's good. It probably won't be a standout in his overall catalogue when its all said and done but it's a solid entry nonetheless. A good album from a great rapper--give it your time." Simon Vozick-Levinson of Entertainment Weekly said, "When he caters to changed times, the results are forgettable. But when he stays in his lane, there’s no one who can snarl a couplet quite like him."
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 134,520 copies in its first week. Jadakiss later responded to the sales, by explaining he was pleased with the album's overall success, and that it has since been attributed to traditional marketing.
Track listing
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. Co-producer Sample credits
"Pain & Torture" contains samples of "Montage of Power", written and performed by Ray Russell.
