 Although the catalog number 45119 was already assigned to it and the single "Gotta Lotta Love" was released, the album was still deferred.Ice-T initially agreed, opting for an all-black cover and a name change to "The Black Album".He later realized that his future output would be continuously monitored and censored, so he left the label amicably, signing a distribution deal with Priority Records, which released the album with the originally intended artwork.