Capital Punishment is the solo debut album by rapper Big Pun, released on April 28, 1998. The album received critical acclaim, peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200 charts and #1 on the Top R&B Albums chart for two weeks. It was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 1999 Grammy Awards, but lost to Jay-Z's Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life. Capital Punishment would be the only album released in Pun's lifetime. Capital Punishment is regarded as a classic because of Pun's technical efficiency and wordplay. It was also the first Latin hip hop record to go Platinum.
Big Pun never grew as notorious as he should have: <i>Capital Punishment</i> was the Bronx icon’s only album released during his lifetime. Still, the Puerto Rican MC had the slickest tongue on the East Coast for a spell. Don’t let the flirty piano-bop of “Still Not a Player” fool you: <i>Capital Punishment</i> is an absolute clinic in technique (look no further than “The Dream Shatterer”). For all his hardcore appeal, Pun never neglected the party people, deftly balancing accessibility and aggression.