The album's production was handled primarily by Kanye West, along with several producers, including Pharrell Williams, The-Dream, Hudson Mohawke, Sebastian Sartor, Don Cannon, Swizz Beatz, Rico Beats, Mano and Nottz.

It also features guest appearances from Rick Ross, Jeezy, 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Future, Pharrell Williams, Chris Brown and Kendrick Lamar, among others.

After the release of his EP, Pusha T started working on his debut album, and at the time it had included production from Kanye West, The Neptunes, Bangladesh, Ryan Leslie and Alex da Kid.

[4] In July 2012, Pusha T told MTV that while he was putting together his solo album, he was heavily influenced by Keanu Reeves and Al Pacino's 1997 film The Devil's Advocate.

[12] In early stages in the recording process, he began working on the album with Kanye West, Symbolyc One, The Neptunes, Bangladesh, and Ryan Leslie.

[2][3][13] Since then, he has confirmed that he was working with The-Dream, Just Blaze, No I.D., Nottz, Don Cannon, Nashiem Myrick, Carlos Brody (of The Hitmen), DJ Mano, Swizz Beatz, Rico Beats, Travis Scott, Hudson Mohawke, Young Chop, and Sham, amongst others on the album's production.

[19] Pusha T has announced leading up to the album that the guest appearances are included from Rick Ross, Kanye West, The-Dream, Future, Jeezy, 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Chris Brown, Kendrick Lamar, and the Re-Up Gang.

While performing in Vancouver, British Columbia, it was reported that Pusha T announced that he would be releasing, for promotional purposes, a mixtape, titled Wrath of Caine by the end of 2012.

"[27]On December 5, 2012, the first song released from the mixtape, "Blocka", which features guest vocals by Popcaan and GOOD Music's Travis Scott.

[31] The mixtape also features guest appearances from French Montana, Wale, Kevin Gates, Troy Ave and Andrea Martin, also it included the production from Kanye West, Young Chop, Harry Fraud, The Neptunes, Jake One, Illmind and Bink, among others.

[19] On August 30, 2013, Kanye West unveiled the simplistic standard and deluxe edition album covers via his Twitter account.

[38] On October 2, 2013, after a few days of being credited as a co-producer of "King Push", Joaquin Phoenix denied having assist in producing the song.

[41] Starting April 24, 2013, Pusha T and fellow Def Jam rapper Fabolous begun the Life is So Exciting Tour in Providence, Rhode Island.

[66] "Let Me Love You" features guest vocals by Kelly Rowland, impacted urban contemporary radio on November 12, 2013, as the album's fourth single.

[70] Mike Powell of Rolling Stone stated, "He's still a witty, quietly vicious rapper, capable of tearing apart spare street tracks like "Nosetalgia" and "Numbers on the Board" while barely raising his voice.

But set in the more commercial contexts of Kelly Rowland features and the-Dream's fluorescent R&B, he can sound like a fish out of some pretty expensive water.

"[78] David Jeffries of AllMusic said, "With Pusha's pen at full force and his performance a proper combination of cold and tense, the album is as if Clipse's Hell Hath No Fury were atom-smashed into something more artful and unstable.

"[72] Jesse Cataldo, writing for Slant Magazine, said, "Yet despite its pedigree, the album puts too much overall emphasis on guest spots and not enough on establishing a distinctive identity for the rapper.

"[82] Jon Hadusek of Consequence stated, "A few poor production choices and uneven sequencing do slow the album, but it shows flashes of real brilliance.

"[84] Reed Jackson, writing for XXL, stated, "Certain songs, like the trap house anthem "No Regrets" or the early-2000s-sounding "Let Me Love You", are entertaining, but don't have the inventiveness or excitement of the album's other tracks.

Regardless, Pusha T accomplishes a lot here, crafting a record that is big in concept but is still rooted in the longstanding hip-hop tradition that lyricism is king.

"[85] Brandon Soderberg of Spin said, "Don't tell King Push, but My Name Is My Name bears a weird resemblance to Drake's Nothing Was the Same: Here is another deeply considered collection of top-shelf beats and uncompromising-though-still-pop-enough raps that justifies the fairly awful personalities driving it, which, depending on your tolerance for wounded narcissism and a complete lack of insight, is either fascinating or frustrating.

", it thrives on understated tension as Pusha and guest vocalist Pharrell recount an interaction with an old friend who had decided to become a police informant.

If you were the reluctant "we want that old Pusha T" fan, then it fed you the teaspoon of updated classic with the medicine of his reinvention—and by the end, you appreciated both sides.

"[89] Nick Catucci of Entertainment Weekly named it the eighth best album of 2013 saying, "With these beats – private-stash stuff from the likes of his label boss Kanye West and Pharrell Williams – he could sell fire in hell.

In fact, Pusha plumbs his emotional depths, breaking down his parents' divorce after 35 years of marriage and his conflicted feelings about his brother.

They said, "Push is in fighting form, incorporating a mature point of view on his drug-dealer past while rapping with the confidence of a man who knows the game is his to lose.

The beats snapped hard, the guests including Kendrick Lamar, Rick Ross and 2 Chainz glittered and the overall vibe was dirty but triumphant.

"[94] Paste ranked it number 34 on their list of the 50 best albums of 2013 saying, "each bar has the ferociousness of a lion smelling the scent of fresh blood.

Among his contemporaries, Pusha T is the sharp-witted wordsmith who makes you feel like you're listening to a master at work, devilishly cooking up something as pure and addictive as he possibly can.