The Espada of 2012

Hands down, my favorite Espada

Yooooooo I am so fucking lazy.  Holy fuck I'm lazy.  All it took was the NBA season to get into full swing for me to stop writing about...pretty much everything.  I do Insanity everyday after work, watch a game or two, fuck around on Twitter (follow me @UchihaHunter) then stay up til 2am or later watching bullshit unfold on Twitter...then I get up at 5am and wonder why I'm tired.  I casually brought up the idea of spending less time on Twitter and more time writing to a new...acquaintance of mine and she simply replied "Do it!"......so, as with most things I've done, a female's influence pushed me to get off my ass before the year was over.

For the uninitiated among us, "Espada" is a term for one of the top 10 most powerful Arrancar (this is Bleach talk).  So using that term, I'm going to speak a little on my 10 favorite tracks of the year.  2012 has been a pretty insane year for me...I've had 4 jobs, started this blog, finally finished part of my schooling, had a few girlfriends, and just a bunch of personal shit thrown on top of that.  It seems like this year just had so much of everything...including music.  Outside of perpetual disappointments Jay Electronica (who was supposed to drop his debut) and DOOM (who was supposed to drop DOOMSTARKS with Ghostface Killah), I've actually been pleased with the quality and the quantity of work released.  Despite what people may say in these end-of-year posts, there has been a TON of good music released, and it was very difficult for me to choose just 10 songs that I loved from 2012...



So...I ORIGINALLY wanted to do a top 10 with some bullshit connection to the Espada so I could do some shit with it...THEN I was all like "well I'll do a top 20, since Aizen first led us to believe there were 20 Vast Lords in his army"...THEN I looked at my list and saw 66 and was all "I should cut it to 50," but when it blew up to 79 I figured "fuck it, let's just make this a nice round base 10 number...100."  So yea, now I've got my top 100 tracks.  Tracks 21-100 won't have any explanations, but tracks 1-20 will have a little something...


100. Game - Black Jesus
99. Wiz Khalifa - The Plan (Ft. Juicy J)
98. Childish Gambino - American Royalty (Ft. The RZA)
97. Big K.R.I.T. - Boobie Miles
96. Meek Mill - Dreams and Nightmares
95. Domo Genesis - Fuck Everybody Else
94. A$AP Rocky (Ft. A$AP Ferg and Raekwon) - Underground Killa$
93. Chief Keef - Don't Like (Remix) (Ft. Kanye West, Pusha T, Big Sean, and Jadakiss)
92. Joey Bada$$ - World Domination
91. Mellowhype - P2 (Ft. Earl Sweatshirt)
90. Killer Mike - Don't Die
89. XV - One of One
88. Fabolous - Want You Back (Ft. Joe Budden and Teyana Taylor)
87. Childish Gambino - They Don't Like Me (Ft. Chance the Rapper)
86. Lupe Fiasco - Put 'Em Up
85. Meek Mill - Maybach Curtains (Ft. Nas, John Legend, and Rick Ross)
84. Big K.R.I.T. - 4EvaNaDay Theme
83. Kendrick Lamar - Compton (Ft. Dr. Dre)
82. Sean Price - Solomon Grundy (Ft. Ill Bill)
81. Rick Ross - Pirates
80. Wu-Block - Crack Spot Stories (Ft. Raekwon and Jadakiss)
79. Freddie Gibbs - Crazy (Ft. Jadakiss and Jay Rock)
78. Wiz Khalifa - Nothin' Like The Rest (Ft. French Montana)
77. Game - Can't Get Right (Ft. K. Roosevelt)
76. Hit-Boy - East vs. West
75. Rick Ross - Fuck 'Em (Ft. Wale and 2 Chainz)
74. Joey Bada$$ - Survival Tactics (Ft. Capital STEEZ)
73. Big Sean - How it Feel
72. Smoke DZA - Marley's Garden
71. Nas - Accident Murderers (Ft. Rick Ross)
70. Kendrick Lamar - The Recipe (Ft. Dr. Dre)
69. The Other Guys - Father's Day
68. Rick Ross - Sixteen (Ft. Andre 3000)
67. Hodgy Beats - Rella (Ft. Domo Genesis and Tyler, The Creator)
66. MMG - Power Circle (Ft. Kendrick Lamar)
65. Sean Price - Straight Music
64. Lupe Fiasco - Form Follows Function
63. A$AP Rocky - Suddenly
62. Meek Mill - Tony Story, Pt. 2
61. Nas - Nasty
60. Action Bronson - Steve Wynn
59. Tyler, the Creator - Sam is Dead (Ft. Domo Genesis)
58. Schoolboy Q - Raymond 1969
57. Meek Mill - Intro to Dreamchasers 2
56. 50 Cent - You A Killer...Cool
55. Puff Daddy - Same Damn Time (Remix) (Ft. Future and Ludacris)
54. Lupe Fiasco - Lamborghini Angels
53. XV - Go On Without Me
52. Omarion - M.I.A. (Ft. Wale)
51. Dom Kennedy - We Ball (Ft. Kendrick Lamar)
50. Talib Kweli - Congregation (Ft. Black Thought and Ab-Soul)
49. Big Sean - 100 (Ft. Royce da 5'9" and Kendrick Lamar)
48. Kendrick Lamar - Westside, Right on Time (Ft. Young Jeezy)
47. A$AP Rocky - 1 Train (Ft. Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson, and Big K.R.I.T.)
46. Childish Gambino - Toxic (Ft. Danny Brown)
45. Domo Genesis - All Alone
44. DJ Khaled - They Ready (Ft. J. Cole, Big K.R.I.T., and Kendrick Lamar)
43. JJ DOOM - Guv'nor
42. Big Sean - Life Should Go On (Ft. Wale and Wiz Khalifa)
41. Domo Genesis - Elimination Chamber (Ft. Earl Sweatshirt, Vince Staples, and Action Bronson)
40. A$AP Rocky - Bath Salt (Ft. A$AP Ant and Flatbush Zombies)
39. Wiz Khalifa - Ridin' Round (Ft. Juicy J)
38. Wu-Block - All in Together (Ft. Styles P and Jadakiss)
37. Wale - Ji-Dope
36. Nas - Cherry Wine (Ft. Amy Winehouse)
35. Sean Price - Remember (Ft. Freddie Gibbs)
34. Freddie Gibbs - Tell a Friend (Ft. Curren$y)
33. Killer Mike - Jojo's Chillin'
32. J. Cole - Grew Up Fast
31. Nas - Loco-Motive
30. Kanye West - Mercy (Ft. 2 Chainz, Big Sean, and Pusha T)
29. Rick Ross - 3 Kings (Ft. Jay-Z and Dr. Dre)
28. Mellowhype - 65/Breakfast
27. Wale - Change Up
26. Hit-Boy - Jay-Z Interview
25. Wu-Block - Been Robbed
24. Fabolous - Beauty (Ft. Wale)
23. J. Cole - I'm a Fool
22. Kendrick Lamar - The Art of Peer Pressure
21. Frank Ocean - Super Rich Kids (Ft. Earl Sweatshirt)


20. Joe Budden - Words of a Chameleon

This is the only track I fucked with off of Budden's A Loose Quarter mixtape...man, this nigga can rap. I don't like the direction of the tape, but man, Budden is still dope. I wanted to include his "Stay Schemin" freestyle verse in here somewhere, but gah.


19. Game - Hallelujah (Ft. Jamie Foxx)

You should already know from this how I feel about Game's album.  This was one of the many pleasant surprises from that great album.  Jamie Foxx is older than Jay-Z but he's still belting out vocals without being called an oldhead huh...


18. Lupe Fiasco - Freedom Ain't Free (Around My Way)

I REALLY wanted to put this higher, but I couldn't.  Very good song, despite the controversy behind it.  Can't go wrong with the "T.R.O.Y." beat really, and as far as verses, we know Lupe's one of the best at rapping about social issues.  Very dope track.


17. Nas - Stay

My second favorite track from this album...but you already knew that.  That "but do I got love for ya?" part of the verse is some of the realest shit spat this year.


16. Schoolboy Q - Hands on the Wheel (Ft. A$AP Rocky)

This was HUGE at the beginning of the year...it hit a lot of people's favorite track list back in January.  Q and Rocky have a really good chemistry, and this is yet another example of that.


15. Freddie Gibbs - The Hard (Ft. Dana Williams)

If you haven't already checked out Baby Face Killa (or my review), please do so.  Gibbs isn't exactly a "new" rapper, but he's definitely one of the best of the newer guys out.  This is one of my favorite tracks from that mixtape...it was difficult to not fill the list with Gibbs tracks.


14. Ab-Soul - Terrorist Threats (Ft. Danny Brown and Jhene Aiko)

I still think Ab-Soul is overrated (his stans are among the most irritating in rap right now), but this track is dope.  "I ain't tryna be nobody's chattel." I'm mad I couldn't put more Danny Brown on this!  If it was 2011, he'd have filled my top 20!  Cheeeck!


13. Sean Price - Bully Rap (Ft. Realm Reality)

Sean Price really might be the most entertaining nigga in rap right now...who the hell would rap some shit like "I fuck around and throw yo baby organs...use yo baby's organs just to make a baby organ"?!  Only P!  I didn't review Mic Tyson but if you like that thuggish ruggish shit, you probably already listen to Sean Price.


12. Wale - Freedom of Speech

Wale is in my top 5 of MY favorite rappers (different from the 5 rappers I think are the best rappers)...I've been fairly disappointed in his post-MMG work, but this got me hyped for the very good Folarin mixtape.  I wanted to sneak more Wale into this list, but I was trying to show some semblance of objectivity...Wale really can rap when he wants to.  He acts an ass on this track.


11. Wu-Block - Drivin' Round (Ft. Masta Killa, The GZA, and Erykah Badu)


I love Erykah Badu...you love her too.  The alliance of Sheek Louch and Ghostface Killah produced a number of solid tracks, as I reviewed here.  I hadn't heard a new GZA verse in a minute, so it was nice to get a track with him on it.

Ladies and Gentlemen, your Espada!

These are MY personal 10 favorite tracks.  They're somewhat in order, but I didn't want any artist to have more than 1 top 5 song, so I had to switch some of it a little.

10. Earl Sweatshirt - Chum

Earl Sweatshirt is probably my favorite rapper right now...when you listen to Earl and listen to him now, you can really hear the growth (both physically and lyrically).  I was a little concerned that when he got back from Samoa he'd have lost a step, but he's killed features all year long as well as dropped a couple of good tracks.  This sort of track is him at close to his best, speaking on his past, from his early loneliness to joining up with Tyler and Odd Future, to the time in Samoa, to his return.  Disappointing if you wanted him to keep rapping about rape and shit, but for those of us who like progress, he's made excellent strides.

9. Freddie Gibbs - BFK

Like I said before, Gangsta Gibbs is probably my favorite "new" rapper out.  If you want "quality street music" (to steal DJ Drama's phrase) then look no further...Gibbs is that guy.  There aren't too many rappers fucking with Gibbs' flow ("send him to God, tryna rob the Godfather, and if you scared of catchin a murder, then why bother?" is fucking ridiculous the way he says it), and despite this track, he's got a breadth of lanes he fits in.  This is the title and standout track from his Baby Face Killa mixtape/album.

8. Game - Blood of Christ

The audio on this is a little off since this is an actual album track, but this'll do.  When I first heard this track...my expectations for the rest of the album went through the proverbial roof.  Despite the length, it's only 2 verses, but damn he hits hard in those 2 verses.  Sean Price is a very entertaining rapper, but Game is as well on this one ("iPhone in my hand doin the 40 wop, that nigga looked up and thought he saw 40 Pacs" is hilarious when you consider what happened to dude.  The best track on Jesus Piece.

7. A$AP Rocky - Goldie

A$AP really had a dope year...the mixtape was decently received, his name was all over the place, whether for music or his questionable fashion choices, and he aligned himself with other hot acts in Drake and the Black Hippy crew.  "Goldie" was a hit from the time it dropped, and rightfully so; Hit-Boy low-key went the fuck off this year, producing a bunch of hits (no pun).  Rocky fits the screwed sound better than some Southern artists I've heard use it, and the visual for the track isn't too shabby either.

6. Kendrick Lamar - Black Boy Fly

Again, the sound is a little off here, but damn.  Maybe it's because I'm a basketball fan.  Maybe it's because I loved that he mentioned Game on this.  Maybe it's because Kendrick fucked around and dropped a possible classic.  Maybe it's all of these things, but I REALLY fuck with this track...he really fit a copious amount of hood shit in less than 5 minutes.  This is probably my favorite track off of good kid, m.A.A.d. city when I consider how much I hate hearing Maya Angelou's voice...but again, you already knew this.

5. Killer Mike - Reagan

Sadly, I waited until the end of the year to listen to Killer Mike's excellent album, R.A.P. Music.  I didn't get around to reviewing it, but PLEASE cop this album.  Hell, just check this video out.  Killer Mike is the rare educated rapper who fits in all sorts of areas of rap.  Maybe you remember him from "The Whole World" or "Poppin' Tags"...that's not the REAL Killer Mike, IMO.  This album is Killer Mike at his finest, spitting socio-political raps ("cuz free labor's the cornerstone of U.S. economics").  PLEASE COP.

4. Nas - Queens Story


I'm glad they uploaded an official video...the pitched up/down versions are blasphemies to this track.  Nas also dropped an album of the year contender in Life is Good, and I'd argue this is the best track off that album...in fact I already did.  Anyone who's from Queens or lived in Queens in the 80s can appreciate this track even more than I do, and I fucking love it.  Excellent production, excellent raps, I was really surprised that this album was so good.

3. Kanye West - New God Flow (Ft. Ghostface Killah and Pusha T)


Man.  I'm still in disbelief that two songs dropped that I like more than this.  From the "Mighty Healthy" sample to actually getting Ghostface to drop a (fucking EXCELLENT) verse for it, this track is just about everything one could hope for.  Ghostface's shit-talking on this is absolutely divine.  I had this Jesus piece since 94...I dunno what y'all talkin about...AND my eagle!

2. Kendrick Lamar - Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst


I have a subtle weakness for 10min+ songs.  In my experience, they're generally pretty damn good (this, "300 Bars and Running," "The Who," "10 Min," etc.) and generally they know when to switch the beat up.  This track hooked me as soon as the nigga died when telling Kendrick what he hoped just in case he died before the album dropped...damn.  If you didn't listen to Section .80 or good kid, m.A.A.d city, you might be a little thrown off by the verses and the perspectives of said verses, so I'd suggest listening to both (since...ya know...they're dope).  "Sing About Me" could have been a top 5 track by itself, but then he added "I'm Dying of Thirst" which, outside of my annoyance with old women's voices (regardless of who they belong to), is dope in its own right.  A very powerful song from a very strong contender for album of the year.

1. Odd Future - Oldie


For the most part, you were probably riding with me and my list, hahahahaha...this is where my personal bias comes into play.  I fucked with this track before seeing the video, but seeing the video made me LOVE it.  "You keep filming, fuck what they say!" Hahahaha Tyler is hilarious to me!  I already commented on this in my review of The OF Tape, Vol 2, but man, they really do have like 4 above-average rappers in the group. The beat is perfect...it's not trying too hard to do anything, and really it reminds me of another Odd Future posse cut, "Window" off Tyler's Goblin.  They're having fun...A LOT of fun.  There's a lot of talent in that room...A LOT of talent.  To make this even better, two of the more buzzed about artists in hip-hop are part of this group and this song; Frank Ocean and Earl Sweatshirt.  Frank Ocean revealed his first love was a man, then proceed to drop what many people consider one of the best albums of 2012 in Channel Orange. Personally, I'm not much of a singing guy, so I only liked about half of the album, but I acknowledge that it wasn't bad.  Either way, this was a GREAT year for Frank Ocean; whether it was his work on Watch the Throne or his debut album, he continued on the momentum generated from Nostalgia-Ultra.  Earl Sweatshirt, on the other hand, turned 18 and made his return to the United States of America proper.  "Oldie" was the first song I heard from him after his return, and good grief...he reminded OF fans that he's the best rapper in that group...and it's not even close.  "Me?  I just spent a year Ferris'n, and lost a little sanity to show you what hysterics is//spit til the lips meet the bottom of a barrel, son this sterile piss flow remind these niggas what embarrassed is" "Vocals bold and rough evoke a ho to pose as drum and let me hit and beat it with the stick until the hole is numb" Just so many damn quotables, and like a young Nas, it just seems so effortless for dude.  If he actually releases a proper debut album in 2013, I fully expect it to be GREAT.  Not good, but GREAT.  Blame the man of 2012 for that.

Dope.

It's your world, Kendrick.  Whether it was dropping a possible classic debut album or being the front man of one of the hottest groups in hip-hop, Kendrick was every fucking where.  As I was compiling this list, I found myself removing Kendrick songs from it just because there were already so fucking many...as if it wasn't enough that most of his album belonged on here, he also had bonus tracks and songs that weren't released on the album...not to mention his features, which appeared on OTHER good albums (Game's and A$AP Rocky's, Big Sean's mixtape, Dom Kennedy's mixtape, etc.).  In a year where we got a lot of music and a lot of artists bursting onto the mainstream, Kendrick made his presence felt in a way even better than Drake did, IMO.  I now have to judge other talented artists like Freddie Gibbs and Earl Sweatshirt off of their actual debuts, rather than mixtapes and independent releases...he proved that you can drop a quality album without a truly successful single, AND that you can still conceive and sell a complete work.  At the end of the day, you're going to be judged primarily by your catalog, and Kendrick's major debut is a shining star.  I can only hope that hip-hop's momentum continues through 2013...now I just need that Jay Electron-never fucking mind, man.

The Rap Medium

Somehow you came back from this...

If you're a The Exstatic regular, then you already know that I didn't REALLY get into rap until my freshman year in college...the summer of 2005.  Around that time, The Game had broken off from G-Unit, despite his debut album The Documentary easily going platinum.  One of the first rap tracks that I listened to from beginning to end and played on repeat was "300 Bars and Runnin"...the beef had gotten to the point where neither side wanted to reconcile.  I stopped fucking with 50 a little after Get Rich or Die Tryin' came out, and Game was just REALLY persistent.  I heard "300 Bars," "Mr. Potato Head," "G-Unit Crip," just track after track going at 50 Cent and G-Unit and was like "you know what, I like this dude."  He really put together a ton of music going at the big dog at the time, and never got put down.

Now around this same time, Cam'ron had started going at Jay-Z heavy; "Swagger Jacker" and "You Gotta Love It" hit the blogosphere and were seeing play in the dorm I was living in.  Cam'ron railed against Jay for jacking lines from other rappers, a lot of which casual rap fans weren't actually aware of (keep it 100, how many casual rap fans know any Slick Rick songs?), and I know a couple of people who permanently stopped fucking with Jay-Z over that track.  Why did I bring up Cam'ron in this?  Well, aside from the fact that Dipset was dope as fuck, the idea that a rapper can't appropriate another rapper's lines is a pretty well-entrenched idea in rap.  But what about jacking a rapper's flow?  Jacking a rapper's intonation?  Hell, what about jacking a rapper's voice?  If you listened to The R.E.D. Album, then you heard Game do a lot of that...depending on how you felt about that, you may have thought the album was OK or complete trash.  I listened to it and felt it was OK...like a 2.5-3/5.  Not really because of him jacking rappers steez, but because he had a stretch with R&B dudes that I don't fuck with.  Overall, the album wasn't bad, but it's not something that I listen to daily.  That being said, Game is one of the first artists I listened to, so I pay attention to his releases...so when Jesus Piece dropped, I got it and dedicated a work day to listening to it...

Considering their relationship...I'm cool with this.

Thought before I get into this: I saw a lot of people bitching about The Game jacking Kendrick's idea of a record cover...1. That couldn't have been the first photograph used as an album cover. 2. Kendrick exists as a rapper in large part because of The Game, which Kendrick references himself on "Black Boy Fly." Chill.


1. Scared Now (Ft. Meek Mill) - I guess this Black Metaphor guy is one of the "it" producers now, since I'm seeing his production on multiple albums/mixtapes.  For the most part, his sound isn't diverse, but he's got some joints...this is one of them, IMO.  Not a ton of energy on this, and considering the first tracklisting I had had "Blood of Christ" as the 1st track, this was a bit of a disappointment.  Taking the track as it is though...shit is dope.  A little annoying hearing the "G-Unit!" ad-lib on a Game album, but meh.  I still fuck with Meek Mill, even though his flow doesn't really fit with the track.  Not the best intro, but not terrible - 3.5/5


2. Ali Bomaye (Ft. 2 Chainz and Rick Ross) - YAAAAAAA...2 CHAAAAAINZ.  This shit bangs.  Another Black Metaphor track, and this actually sounds a little different from the ones I had heard from dude before...and yo I fuck with 2 Chainz a toooooon, dropping shit like "Gentleman attire in threads that won't expire" lmfaoo I love this guy.  This really sounds like a Ross track, but somehow Game steals the show (probably because he jacks Meek Mill and Jay-Z's flows and raps more than 2 Chainz or Ross) and makes this his track. I like this one a lot.  The French Montana "Montana" sample is great.  The outro skit is also fucking hilarious hahahahaha - 4.5/5


3. Jesus Piece (Ft. Kanye West and Common) - Sounds more like a sample of a Kanye verse than an actual Kanye hook or feature, but whatever.  One thing about Game...his production is routinely top-notch, and he continues that trait on this album.  This beat is complete flames...we also get a dope verse from Common.  I would have liked this a lot more if we actually got a verse from Kanye.  Also, Game raps a lot about Tupac...which I guess makes sense since he's from the West Coast.  I'll leave that alone.  Dope track. - 4/5


4. Pray (Ft. J. Cole and JMSN) - This actually sounds like something off of Big Sean's Detroit mixtape...I can't put my finger on it, but yea.  I think this would be a classic track if Drake got his hands on it...in Game's hands we get something else.  Does anyone else think that the "pray" ad-lib sounds A LOT like the "Dre" ad-lib Game dropped on "One Blood?"  Anyway, this is a very dope track, I like it a lot...but damn, Game COMPLETELY jacked Jay Electronica's flow from Exhibit A on this track...then later he jacks J. Cole's flow.  J. Cole really needs to get some new subject matter...a friend of mine said waaaaay back when Sideline Story dropped that he learned from J. Cole that women are problems and that student loans suck...you listen to this track and again we've got an issue with a woman.  IGNORING THAT THOUGH, like I said, this is a pretty dope track.  The vibe is real Take Care, but the last problem with that album was the soundscape.  I fucks with this - 4.5/5


5. Church (Ft. King Chip and Trey Songz) - I generally don't like songs like these, but yo!  King Chip is kinda nice!  The Juicy J ad-lib was also appreciated.  I don't know how this will play out at the strip clubs and shit (I'm a civilized young brother, I don't frequent such establishments) but I fuck with this.  Nice energy, good beat, just overall pretty dope.  King Chip saves this from being a track I'd probably skip over to being one I'll probably play.  - 3.5/5


6. All That (Lady) (Ft. Lil Wayne, Big Sean, Fabolous, and Jeremih) - Man, this track...it's good sonically, but man, I have no fucking desire to hear Lil Wayne rhymes right now.  Also, why is Fabolous randomly on the end of the track?  I don't really hate this track, but I don't really want to hear it again.  Also, if this starts another one of those 4-track "for the ladies" sequences, I'll stop listening to this fucking album. - 2.5/5


7. Heaven's Arms - Alright, false alarm, no continuous simpage.  Production maintains a strong point on this album...this is the first track without a guest spitter, so Game doesn't have a rapper to emulate or steal from.    He's actually got a couple of nice bars on here...and again he's bringing up Jay-Z.  The whole fascination with Jay is hilarious, especially when you consider how much time Jay has spent on Game.  Anyway, I'm kinda meh on this track.  Not bad, not good either, but I do like the hook. - 3/5


8. Name Me King (Ft. Pusha T) - This begins a GREAT sequence of songs after a momentary lull in the album...Pusha T is probably the best guest rapper I've heard in a while.  Maybe it's because he's used to rapping with someone else, but he's just really good at being a guest rapper.  Doesn't try to shit on you on your track, contributes a hook sometimes, and always delivers a good verse.  Just the best of all worlds, IMO.  He does an extended gay/Frank Ocean line that's pretty dope on this, and his ad-libs really are dope. The production on this is on some Just Blaze shit, which I love.  Game definitely jacked Pusha's flow on this, but you know what, I like it.  - 4.5/5


9. See No Evil (Ft. Kendrick Lamar and Tank) - This track really didn't need Tank, but aight.  Dope to see Kendrick and Game get together on a track, it was a pretty glaring omission to me on Kendrick's album.  The production on this is straight off of Kendrick's album as well (or would find itself at home on a Drake album).  Actually, the track in general sounds like Kendrick ft. Game rather than the other way around...see Kendrick is like the worst guest rapper because he makes an effort to shit on you on your track. That being said, a Kendrick track is pretty much never a bad thing, and this isn't an exception. Dope track. - 4/5


10. Can't Get Right (Ft. K Roosevelt) - Man. I love this shit.  The beat is on some true glorious shit and Game spits some real shit on here.  Cool and Dre really floated on this album, btw...I also would have liked to hear Frank Ocean doing this hook here instead of a Frank Ocean ripoff, but I ain't mad at it.  This might be the best track on the album up to this point...and LORD KNOWS Game can't get shit right when it comes to his post-G-Unit rap career.  From the beef with G-Unit to the pseudo-beef with Dr. Dre, to the arrival of Kendrick Lamar to the mainstream, Game touches on a lot of the Aftermath rap history post-2005.  Random thought: it's nice to see Game and Dr. Dre back on speaking terms and shit...The Documentary is one of the best albums since 2000 IMO. - 5/5


11. Hallelujah (Ft. Jamie Foxx) - And it gets better!  This really puts me in the mind of "Lord Knows"...I actually thought Just Blaze might have produced it (if you remember "Why You Hate The Game" you could see why), but this is a Jake One banger!  Nigga's been producing heat rock for years now.  Haven't heard Jamie Foxx on a rap track in a minute, but that nigga can still sing.  The overall celebratory vibe of this is a stark contrast to "Can't Get Right" but at the end of the album, it fits perfectly.  The bars remind me a little of that Saigon track "Preacher" in that he's speaking on the materialistic people in the church, but I kinda feel like he's not just rapping about the church on this one.  Anyway, this one is dope. - 5/5


12. Freedom (Ft. Elijah Blake) - So I guess this Elijah nigga is on the come up...he was on Ross' album too. Amadeus made a pretty dope beat for Game here...and Game is spittin.  This is a nice little outro track, even though I don't really care for Kevin Hart at this point.  Game's flow is pretty nice on this too...I could do without the possibility of Game joining Busta Rhymes and the others at Cash Money, but whatever.  Labels are on their Miami Heat shit and trying to get as many stars together as they can.  It would have been REALLY dope if he ended the album with this, but instead he put another track on here... - 4/5


13. Celebration (Ft. Chris Brown, Tyga, Lil Wayne, and Wiz Khalifa) - I already knew I wouldn't fuck with this from the guest list, but looking at it objectively, it's not absolutely terrible.  Game channels some Bone Thugs N' Harmony for this track, sprinkled with a bit of Pusha T.  Chris Brown remains someone I don't want to hear rap, Tyga is still..., Lil Wayne is someone I never want to hear rap ever again, and Wiz didn't really contribute too much to it, so whatever.  Track is wack, but I see why it's here, all of these guys are popular, blah blah blah. - 2/5


I'm going to add the bonus tracks because I think he had a couple of GREAT bonus tracks.


14. I Remember (Ft. Future and Young Jeezy) - Yo.  I have never given a solitary fuck about Future.  I don't listen to his shit at all.  The one track of his I heard, I only heard the remix of, and even that was only because Puff fucking floated on it.  HOWEVER.  This track is fucking fire because of Future!  I will never go out of my way to listen to this dude, but the whole "I remember" is fucking hilarious hahahahahahaha.  I will always think of this when I hear/read Future, but this one is dope.  I'll just chalk this up as a guilty pleasure.  I know I shouldn't like it, but I still do...can't really explain it. - 4/5


15. Blood Diamonds - Yo really...I know this is a terrible situation that has existed for years...I also know that Kanye already dropped a track on this back in what, 2005?  I'm definitely done with niggas rapping about this, especially someone like Game.  If this was Yasiin or something I might be alright, but ugh.  The song isn't even bad, to be honest, but it's just...can I take Game rapping about blood diamonds seriously?  Hell the fuck nah. - 3/5


16. Dead People - Oh shit, some Dr. Dre production!  This is basically "The Good, The Bad, The Ugly" again, but that wasn't a bad track, so I'm not mad at this.  Not really much to say about this one, Game's storytelling about a murder he committed or some shit.  Good track though - 3.5/5


17. Holy Water - SAP really gave Game some good beats on this album...I actually thought this was a Kanye beat when I first heard it.  The original track order I had had this as track 2, and I thought that was a dope position for it...as a bonus track, it's fine, just not anything special in the location.  If this had had a Kanye verse, this would have been fucking great...with just Game, it's just good.  It's dope that Game actually did a couple of 2 verse tracks on here, considering his tendency to make 8min+ long tracks.  This one is dope. - 4/5


18. Blood of Christ - Yo. So when I first heard this album, this was the first track.  Can you really say that this shouldn't have been the first album on the track?!?!  This is fucking fire...I think this is the best track on the album.  Just so much flame on this one - "I beat the G-Unit outta 40 Glocc, sue me for 40 grand, that same 40 will get you shot; iPhone in my hand doin the 40 whop, that nigga looked up and thought he saw 40 Pacs!" lmfao I was crying man..."Shyne Po ain't rich, Shyne po...all the way in Belize with Kendrick's dick in his throat" ..."blood on that yarmulke, now you really Piru"   Man, just so much hilarity within 2 verses.  The beat is just completely banging...goddamn, I don't think I have anything else produced by Dawaun, but I want to look now.  Just a very solid effort, I really wish he had used this as his album intro. - 5/5



A few pretty good bonus tracks that I can't count in what I think of the album, smh....


Overall, this is a pretty solid album.  It sounds a lot like every other mainstream album out, which is disappointing...especially when you consider Game's albums used to really sound like West Coast shit.  I had one friend suggest to me that this was a classic...nah.  I had another suggest to me that this was a contemporary classic...I'm not even sure I know what that means, but if it means one of the best albums of its period...sure, this might be a top 5 album for 2012.  There's not a lot of direction on the album, but there ARE a lot of good tracks.  A TON of features, but it's Game, so what do you expect.  He probably channeled a good 8 rappers on this album, but again, you just have to understand what Game is as a rapper and accept that.  There's no point in getting mad at him for being what he is at this point.  Game is very talented...I have listened to every MF DOOM album multiple times, but it would be impossible for me to write a song in his voice.  Game manages to do that with a number of artists, and for the most part he sounds fine doing it.  There are some missteps on this album, but overall, I like it.  I'll probably be bumping this more when I'm off my Three 6 Mafia/Project Pat kick.  I'm giving the album itself a 4/5.  Including the bonus tracks, this is a 4.5/5...this really might be Game's best album.  I'll be copping the deluxe version just to get that "Blood of Christ" track smh

The G.O.A.T. - Part 2, Jay-Z

I actually bought this...

So in honor of Jay-Z's birthday, I decided to try a little harder to get this post done today...I've been working on this for a couple of weeks smh.

This is Part 2 of my Nas/Jay/Ghostface catalog comparison.  You can read Part 1 here, which focused on Nas.  Real talk, it was difficult for me not to review Jay-Z's discography first...as you might know, Jay-Z is my favorite rapper of all time.  I firmly believe dude is the G.O.A.T.  There's literally a Jay-Z line for any situation that you're in...there's probably also an entire song that relates to almost any situation you're in.  You want to talk album classics?  He's got those.  Classic songs?  He's got those.  Pop hits?  He's got those.  Real hip-hop shit?  He's got that.  Party shit?  He's got that.  Influence on rap?  He's got that.  Just...he's got everything you'd want, and THEN some.  Wifed Beyonce.  Worth nearly half a billion dollars.  Has his name and imprint on just about everything involving the Brooklyn Nets.  Campaigned with President Obama...like...

He's dapping the POTUS?!

Dawg.

In the immortal words of The Notorious B.I.G., "You never thought that hip-hop would take it this far."  We're really at the point where the President of the United FUCKING States is brushing his shoulder off.  Even if you disapprove of shit like unmanned drone strikes, a continued defense of the status quo on Wall Street and in politics, and whatever other shit you're mad at Barack for...that picture is dope.  Simply incredible.  Anyway, all of this is to say that I came into this post VERY biased toward Jay-Z, despite my love for both Nas and The Wu-Tang Clan.  It's something I've just accepted since The Black Album, when the machine really tried to cement his status as the best rapper alive.  HOWEVER, I have tried my hardest to keep an objective mind on this...so without further ado...

Like Combat said, when'd he drop the umlaut?

If you're a hip-hop head, you've at least HEARD of Reasonable Doubt.  Similar to Nas' Illmatic, there's literally nothing that I can say about RD that hasn't been said already.  I seriously only count one musical misstep on the album (I really don't like "Ain't No Nigga") and that record was pretty much responsible for Jay-Z's entry to the mainstream.  A track with Mary J. Blige BEFORE she started ruining everything she touched.  A track with B.I.G. before he died.  The "The World is Yours" sample.  "22 Twos."  "Friend or Foe."  Just...yea.  One of my favorite albums of all time.  A classic no matter which hip-hop head you talk to.  Arguably Jay's best album.  So...yea.


Rating: 5/5

Standouts: "D'Evils," "Brooklyn's Finest," "Regrets"

Bitten by others.

It's kinda difficult to imagine this, but Reasonable Doubt wasn't a great-selling album...Jay didn't craft radio hits for that album, and in a world where others were going platinum easily, Jay needed to move further to that side if he wanted to sell records.  The result of that was In My Lifetime, Vol. 1.  Whenever I discuss Jay-Z albums, this is the one that I'm always surprised that people dislike.  I wonder if people really listen to this album...out of 14 tracks (most of Jay's albums are 14 tracks for some reason), there are 3 bad tracks ("I Know What Girls Like," "Sunshine," and I guess you could argue "Lucky Me" or "Real Niggaz").  11 good-to-great tracks out of 14...that's generally pretty good territory, right?  However, for whatever reason (probably because of how "Sunshine" was really pushed out there), people really identify Vol. 1 with those bad tracks, rather than with "A Million and One/Rhyme No More," "Streets is Watching," or "Where I'm From."  Despite what people think about the album, I actually see Vol. 1 as one of Jay's more "street" albums.  And when I'm going down the list of "classic" Jay-Z tracks...I see about 4 of those on here.  Now the bad shit on this is...REALLY FUCKING BAD.  I'll never listen to "Sunshine" or "I Know What Girls Like" ever again...in fact, I'll be deleting them from my iTunes after this post.  Overall though, I have to say this was a very solid effort, even if it doesn't touch Reasonable Doubt.

Sidebar: The remix of "A Million and One Questions" is almost as dope as the original..."In the darkest nights, I let my gun off for light"

Rating: 4/5

Standouts: "A Million And One Questions/Rhyme No More," "You Must Love Me," "Where I'm From"

Not overdoing it.

Random note: my dad didn't let us listen to much rap...I remember Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" and Mase's "Feel So Good" on repeat, and a bunch of MC Hammer.  When I started rummaging through his CDs to see what shit I could take to school to listen to, I found Paid in Full and Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life.  I didn't really care back then (I was like 14 and didn't fuck with much outside of Backstreet Boys and Shania Twain), but looking back, this nigga was holding out!  It wasn't until I hit like 18 that I realized this guy had pretty decent taste in music...now I'm mad we didn't save the CDs and vinyl we had.  Moving on from that segue though, Vol. 2 marks Jay's transition into a "pop" rap artist.  If you thought Vol. 1 had commercial shit...prepare to be disappointed by Vol. 2.  Is there some dope shit on here?  Sure.  "Nigga Who" is full of rapid-fire flows from both Jay and Jaz.  Hearing Beanie Sigel, the LOX, and Sauce Money with Jay on "Reservoir Dogs" is dope!  I dunno though, I just don't like it overall.  I know it went 5 mill, I know he has the "Annie" sample...I don't care bro.  This is a weak album to me.  I only like around 8 of the tracks on here, which is a pretty low ratio for me and Jay-Z albums.  I will note that some interesting shit happens on this though...Jay really was sending shots Mase's way on "Ride or Die"...on a track produced by Bad Boy producer-turned-reality TV star Stevie J.  Anyway, count me among those Jay fans who didn't cop this.

Rating: 3/5

Standouts: "Nigga What, Nigga Who," "Reservoir Dogs," "Hard Knock Life"

Simple.

Unlike most Jay-Z fans that I encounter, I REALLY like Vol 3...The Life & Times of S. Carter.  From the start of the album, you know you're in for something different; "Hova Song" is probably one of the best intros by Jay, and Jay has some pretty fucking good intros (btw, I maintain that the "now watch how quickly I drop 50" line is a double entendre, referencing the Michael Jordan line AND how quickly he dismisses 50 in "It's Hot").  The very next track is another link up between Jay and Premo (one of the best combinations in hip-hop IMO), "So Ghetto."  After a very commercial album in Vol. 2, it's dope to hear something so hip-hop so early.  This is Jay in his full "street rapper/pop rapper" combo mode, so while we get the "So Ghetto" tracks, we also get "Big Pimpin" (which is still dope as fuck).  As far as toting the line between pop and street, I think Vol. 3 was probably Jay's best effort to date.  A lot of rappers can't make music that's just...easy to listen to but also dope.  I think a lot of it is production, but some of it is also the rapper...Jay-Z really hasn't had that problem in quite a while, and his ability to actually craft appealing music is evident on Vol. 3.  It's not all dope music though...there are some missteps typical of 90s music, like the track with Mariah Carey and the one with Juvenile, but for the most part, this is solid.  A little on the commercial side, but again, I don't think it's written in stone that good hip-hop can't have a commercial element.  One thing that really stuck out for me when listening to this is just how much Timbaland was on the album...dude really had a lane for a few good years hahahaha.

Rating: 4/5

Standouts: "NYMP," "Come and Get Me," "So Ghetto"

Now this...is dope.

It doesn't even feel right throwing this on here...did anyone ever really think this was a Jay-Z album?  Idk, it always felt like it was a compilation, then the nigga wanted to catch Elvis, so he made it his.  Some greedy nigga shit, lol.  Roc La Familia is notable in that it was the formal introduction of both Just Blaze and Kanye West to the mainstream rap world.  It marked the beginning of a reign that in some way has lasted even until today, with Just Blaze manufacturing hits like "Lord Knows" and "Compton," while Kanye has had his stamp on both his and Jay-Z's albums since 2000.  In addition to the two beatsmiths, this album also served as the initiation of Freeway!  How nice was Free's verse on "1-900-Hustler"?!  A staple with Jay albums is a dope intro...Just Blaze crafted a DOPE beat that you've heard recently if you've seen any of those NBA 2K13 commercials.  Even 12 years later, that shit bangs.  As more of a compilation album, I feel that Roc La Familia doesn't translate to Jay's greatest strengths...unlike a lot of rap artists, Jay doesn't really need features to help him carry a track.  That being said, the combination of Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel is so fucking dope!  To this day I'm still pissed that they had a falling out; I'd really like to hear more of the "street" Jay with Beans and Freeway on a future album.  When looking at bangers and commercial hits, this album definitely has plenty of those; "I Just Wanna Love U," "You, Me, Him, Her," "1-900-Hustler," the list goes on and on.  There are also more introspective moments in "Soon You'll Understand" and "This Can't Be Life."  Overall, this is a fairly solid album, but there are some definite missteps here; "Parking Lot Pimpin" and "Get Your Mind Right Mami" haven't gotten better with age.  This album is pretty much the best and worst of Vol. 2 and Vol. 3; lots of commercial tracks, good features, and some reaches that could have been done better.

Rating: 3.5/5

Standouts: "Soon You'll Understand," "1-900-Hustler," "Intro"

Smoking a cigar in a Rocawear jacket...

Every once in a while, an artist is able to create multiple classics.  Common struck gold more than once, crafting more than a couple of classic albums. You could argue that Nas crafted 2 or 3 classic albums.  Both Nas and Common routinely released albums 2 years apart...on one hand, it did build anticipation for the albums, and in Common's case, I think it really helped him create timeless material.  However, Jay's goal from the beginning was different; he wanted to be the King of Rap.  He never sold the records that Eminem or Tupac did.  He was never really considered the best pure rapper like a Nas or a Notorious B.I.G.  Furthermore, up until this point, he was never even really the King of New York; you could argue that Ma$e had it for a bit, Nas had it for a bit, DMX grabbed the game by the throat upon his arrival, and of course the Notorious B.I.G. ran it even after death.  The Blueprint really changed that for a lot of people.  Dropping on September 11, 2001, The Blueprint fought through the tragedy and has had its praises sang for over a decade...while not as lyrically deft as Reasonable Doubt (or even as focused), from the intro track, you knew you were in for a sonic journey.  Continuing from their momentum from Roc La Familia, Just Blaze, Kanye West, and Bink! produced quite possibly the best hip-hop album post-2000.  Even the commercial tracks flow perfectly and have a true hip-hop feel; this was a hip-hop moment.  Shit-talking, beef shit, introspective raps, party shit, pop hits, this album really had all of it.  He really had Slick Rick on an album that he recycled Slick Rick's rhymes on!  The only rap feature on there was Eminem, pointing to what I said about Roc La Familia; Jay doesn't need features to carry a classic album.  The album is damn near perfect, with the only real misstep being "Jigga that Nigga" IMO, and even that track is fly!  This is the first hip-hop album that I bought (albeit bootleg), so I'm a little biased, but this is a top 5 album for me.

Side thoughts that need to be included about this album: this obviously marked the official beginning of the Jay-Z/Nas beef, with "Takeover" featuring a single verse dedicated to shitting on Nas.  You can tell how comfortable Jay was with his spot in NYC hip-hop at this point, because he's really dismissive toward someone that he honestly had admired from the beginning.  I still get in Takeover/Ether arguments to this day, so I won't jump into that here, but with the next album you can see how "Ether" knocked the wind out of Jay's sails.

Rating: 5/5

Standouts: "All I Need," "Takeover," "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)" but really, damn near every song is a standout.  These are my favorites.

Simple.

As I said in the Nas post, one of the hardest things to do as an artist is to follow-up a classic.  The Blueprint is an undeniable classic and was treated as such pretty much out the gate, so it would be Jay's hardest task to date to follow that.  Unlike the period after Reasonable Doubt, he had obtained substantial commercial success and was widely seen as one of the best rappers alive, so he had to step up and deliver.  Faced with this adversity, he delivered...the gift and the curse.  The album, The Blueprint 2: The Gift and The Curse, was aptly titled; it really was a tale of two albums to me (and it is a double disc album) and it represented that struggle to top a classic.  He simply did too much...The Gift does have its good moments; "Hovi Baby" still gets me hyped, "Poppin' Tags" is still dope as fuck, and "I Did It My Way" still bumps.  Overall though, we find Jay trying too hard to be commercial, with tracks like "The Bounce" and "'03 Bonnie and Clyde" (...Jay-Z and Beyonce have yet to produce a quality Jay-Z track IMO).  The Curse, on the other hand, has some GREAT work on it, with "Meet the Parents" and "Blueprint 2" at the top of the list for me.  Of course, there were missteps on The Curse as well...I could do without "2 Many Hoes" and I have a love/hate relationship with "Guns and Roses".  Overall though, if The Curse was released on its own, with "Hovi Baby," "Poppin' Tags," and "I Did It My Way" tossed in somewhere, it really would be a very good Jay-Z album.  However, as released, The Blueprint 2 is just too much, 25 tracks with around 8 of those being easily disposable.  It's really sad because the material is here for a great album, but after The Blueprint, I guess Jay-Z was feeling himself a little too much.


Necessary side thoughts Part 2:  Although the amount of material released initially made me think Jay was feeling cocky, when you really listen to both discs and consider what was going on at the time, I think Jay was feeling pretty vulnerable.  If you remember, on BP1 he had dropped "Takeover," one of the greatest diss tracks of all time, but Nas responded with an even more effective diss in "Ether."  When Jay responded with "Supa Ugly" (which is really one of the most disrespectful tracks I've ever heard lmao), he was lambasted for going too far and was told to apologize by his mother, etc.  I could see him thinking "wow, I can get called gay 20 times in a track but as soon as I go for the facts, I'M going too far?" and "Blueprint 2" really showcases that feeling.  I personally like the track (it's a favorite of mine), but I've heard others complain that he sounds very defensive, and when you listen to it objectively, you can understand those complaints.  The armor that he had when he dropped "Takeover" is all but gone; he's literally whining at one point ("I've been real all my life!") and there is little of the machismo that "Takeover" had.  The Blueprint 2 really shows Jay trying to salvage his title as King of NYC and just overdoing it; I think it's obvious that we get an entirely different album if Jay had unanimously won the beef with Nas.  After the Jay/Nas beef was settled, he pretty much kept away from responding directly to rappers, probably because he realized that punching down is never a good look.


Rating: 3.5/5

Standouts: "Bitches and Sisters," "Blueprint 2," "Meet the Parents"

Doesn't really try too hard, huh.

One thing I can say about Jay-Z...I can't say he's ever released back-to-back bad albums.  Really, none of the albums he had dropped to this point were bad per se, but he'd dropped some subpar albums for someone of his caliber.  After the sprawling disaster that was The Blueprint 2, he went back to what works for him; a 14 track-long album with excellent production.  When you break down the tracks on The Black Album, there actually are a couple of duds; do you REALLY like "Change Clothes" or "Moment of Clarity"? (btw can we keep Eminem far away from Jay-Z albums?  Just "go thatawaaaaaaay" Em)  Sometimes, though, an album is greater than the sum of its parts, and I think The Black Album is a perfect example of that.  It's almost completely commercial...there's no real shout-out to "real hip-hop" here outside of the lines in "Moment of Clarity" that explain his actions (you could argue "P.S.A." I suppose).  That being said, have you ever heard "What More Can I Say" and been like "yea, let's skip this and go to the next track"?  Probably not.  This is an album with a focus, and it's an album with HITS.  We really still have people doing the "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" shit almost 10 YEARS LATER.  The Blueprint is probably Jay's best mix of commercial and non-commercial hip-hop.  Reasonable Doubt is undoubtedly Jay's best non-commercial hip-hop album.  The Black Album is definitely Jay's best commercial effort.  Sales be damned, the best commercial rap from Jay appears on this album.  Whether it's "99 Problems" or "Dirt Off Your Shoulder," this was the album you really heard suburban kids bumping...it's also the one that you saw Jay performing at large venues and such.  Like I said earlier, I don't think a hip-hop album has to be devoid of commercial shit to be a great hip-hop album.  Are you going to deny "Public Service Announcement" because it comes after "99 Problems"?  I really hope not. I personally think this is a "situational classic."  I still can't really bring myself to call it a definite classic, but if you're looking for a template album, this is a template album.  If you're going to retire, this is the album you want to use as your base, IMO.  He really reminds you just how great he had been to date while also giving you new hits to remember him by.  In terms of rhymes, this is far from Jay's best work, but in terms of the overall packaging, this is a top 5 Jay album.


Rating: 4.5/5

Standouts: "Public Service Announcement," "What More Can I Say," "99 Problems"

...I actually bought this too.

The flip side of Jay's "I will never release back-to-back duds" is that he rarely releases back-to-back great albums either.  Really, despite my love for In My Lifetime, the closest he's come is probably the Vol. 3 to The Blueprint period, depending on how you feel about Roc La Familia.  This album, Kingdom Come, came out after a 3 year "retirement" that saw him working as Def Jam's president, giving us Rihanna, Young Jeezy, and Rick Ross among others.  We see Jay in a different place on this album, yet...he's still giving us a lot of the same shit.  I'll be honest; I'm a Superman fan, so after I heard the first single and heard the title of the album, I was pretty fucking hyped.  At the time that this album came out, I had finally jumped headfirst into hip-hop, and I was buying every major album that came out around then.  I copped Kingdom Come on the strength of Jay's name and the first single.  The beginning of the album features a familiar voice in Pain in da Ass, who had been on Jay's first 3 albums, and again, in Jay fashion, "The Prelude" is a pretty good track.  The tracks that follow, three straight Just Blaze tracks, are varying degrees of dope, and I was really feeling like I made a good decision in buying this album.  By the time I got to the Dr. Dre-produced "Lost One," I was calling it the best rap album of 2006.  Then I got to the rest of the album...some of the tracks really are good ("Do U Wanna Ride" and "Beach Chair"), but others are just...wtf? ("Anything" and "Hollywood")  "Trouble" is basically a much worse "Threats," and there was just something lacking in "Minority Report."  Overall, while most of the tracks aren't bad, they aren't Jay-Z caliber tracks, so it was just a disappointment. The release of an even worse Jay project kinda makes this one look better, but it's definitely not a top Jay-Z album.


Rating: 3/5

Standouts: "Lost Ones," "Oh My God," "Beach Chair"

The commercial made this look more dope.

Again, you'd be hard-pressed to find an artist who follows a pattern as well as Jay-Z does.  The year after releasing Kingdom Come to mixed reception, Jay-Z went back to the drug talk drawing board with American Gangster.  Described as a "concept album," it's not quite one IMO.  That being said, this is Jay's best overall work since The Blueprint.  It lacks the hits that make The Black Album a classic, but outside of the obligatory Lil Wayne feature (that dude was literally EVERYWHERE back then), there were no bad tracks.  This album was the soundtrack to a lot of random shit in a rough time in my life, so I really appreciate it in its entirety, from the dark sounds of "Pray" to the celebratory mood of "Roc Boys."  We find Jay spitting better bars than he had in quite some time, along with sustained production that (outside of "Hello Brooklyn 2.0" and "Ignorant Shit") really puts you back in that 70s/80s state of mind (especially for those of us who only really got to experience that through movies and such).  Considering the lack of focus on Kingdom Come, it's almost a surprise how focused Jay-Z is on this album.  It also makes me want to hear a Jay album produced solely by Puff and the Hitmen.  Really, if he didn't let Wayne on the album in exchange for dropping a verse on Wayne's album, this would be really close to a classic.  It's focused, fairly concise, and has a distinct sound that sets it apart from other albums of that year (and really the decade IMO).  As it is, it is a very good album, but not that 4th classic that a Jay-Z fan would have desired.


Rating: 4.5/5

Standouts: "No Hook," "Sweet," "Roc Boys"

It's just different...

Ah, the highly anticipated The Blueprint 3...while The Blueprint 2 wasn't exactly much to live up to, the original The Blueprint is an undeniable classic.  Considering how BP2 fell short of that, PLUS the very solid nature of American Gangster, it is understandable that Jay-Z fans were hopeful for a legendary album...the sort of album that would cement Jay as the G.O.A.T.  Instead...we got this, which in some ways is a rehash of Kingdom Come.  It starts off VERY well, with the first 7 tracks featuring a nice balance between lyrical and commercial rap ("Thank You" in particular is just a great track to me. Loads of wordplay.)  Then we get the Drake feature (like Wayne before him, Drake was popping up everywhere), some introspective tracks that I can't make myself like ("Forever Young," "A Star is Born," and "So Ambitious"), another terrible Jay/Beyonce track, and an absolutely horrid track in "Reminder."  I keep "Hate" as a love/hate guilty pleasure track since I fuck with ignorant Kanye, but it's really not a good track.  Some of the same issues that plagued BP2 and Kingdom Come afflict this album, with a steep dropoff from the beginning of the album to the middle/end of the album, and a lack of touch with the listeners.  I understand Jay's line in "On To The Next One," but if the alternative to listening to Jay's old albums is listening to "Venus vs. Mars," you'd better believe that I'm playing In My Lifetime on the iPod.  The second half of the album really comes across as a retirement sendoff, but unlike The Black Album, it just sounds really tired.  I'm actually laboring to type this while "Forever Young" plays in the background...it's just crazy to me that the same guy who did "My First Song" as a final track could believe "Forever Young" could fill a similar spot.  Just a disappointment considering the buildup, the singles, and really, the history of Jay-Z.  Overall, this is the worst Jay-Z album in my opinion...which hopefully means that the best of Jay-Z is yet to come.


Rating: 2.5/5

Standouts: "Thank You," "Already Home," "D.O.A."



So, I completed Jay-Z's discography.  Overall, it really cemented a lot of things for me...Jay-Z has HITS.  Not chart-topping hits, but if you're a hip-hop listener, you know what I mean by hits.  For whatever reason, it was difficult for him to tap into the same fan base that bought millions of 50 Cent albums or even Game's album (Game's debut really sold as much as Jay's best-selling album. Incredible), but I literally can't think of a rapper with more tracks to move a crowd than Jay-Z.  Unlike Nas, Jay's production is consistently good; I guess that when you help spark the careers of great beatsmiths, plus you maintain good relationships with others like Dr. Dre, the easiest part of crafting your projects is getting beats.  I also realized a couple of things...Jay is incredible in that on one hand, you have this pioneering artist who popularized new sounds, helped start and end trends, and is responsible for giving us multiple quality artists...but on the other hand, you can clearly tell when he's grabbing on to trends and trying to stay relevant.  For someone with such a catalog, it is disappointing to think that The Blueprint 3 is really the album that Jay-Z wanted to release at that time.  When I look at Kanye's catalog, I can see that he does whatever the fuck he wants.  After the success of Graduation, Kanye really just had carte blanche to do whatever he wanted creatively, and even before that he did things that other rappers weren't doing.  For the life of me, I can't understand why Jay-Z doesn't exercise that same creative freedom.  I think that lack of...unorthodox thinking is part of why J. Cole's debut album was so meh and why we still haven't gotten that Jay Electronica album.  Anyway, I'm rambling, so I'll get to the actual ratings and rankings.


Overall, I give Jay-Z's discography a 4/5.  He's got 3 classics by my count (RD, BP1, BA), with 2 albums being pretty close to classic (In My Lifetime, AG), but damn, he's got a pretty bad album (BP3).  Ironically, Nas' discography was pretty consistent; after Nastradamus, there weren't any terrible releases.  Jay's is a lot more bipolar, which shows in the number of 2.5-3.5 rated albums he has, so his legacy and reputation really relies on the number of hits he's created as well as the classics he's dropped.


Jay-Z's Top 5 Albums, IMO

Reasonable Doubt
The Blueprint
American Gangster
The Black Album
In My Lifetime, Vol. 1

The rating of his top 5 albums is 4.6/5.  Now that I've gotten this out of the way, I can enjoy a ton of Wu-Tang slang and shit.  I might even finish that one before New Year's Day, since I don't remember Ghostface releasing a double disc album.  Gotta say, there were some REALLY rough parts of Jay's catalog to get through...if I didn't already know that BP3 was the end, I don't think I could have gotten through it last night smh.

That Gritty Shit

Lowkey, this has been a good year for GFK

I had been hearing rumors about a Wu-Tang/D-Block collaboration album for a bit, but I wasn't entirely sure if it would actually happen, considering some other collaborations involving a certain Wu-Tang member and a certain villain.  I've actually been listening to a bunch of shit lately, but I feel like a lot of the shit I've heard this season has been REALLY emotional and on some cuffing season shit (Budden's release and Fabolous' release come to mind).  I'm not really feeling that right now, despite life changes and the season, so I was hyped to hear that the Wu-Block project was actually going to see the light of day.  Apparently it came out this week, so of course I copped that shit!

Not really a huge fan of this =/

Let me start with this...Wu-Block isn't Wu-Tang and D-Block, it's really just Ghostface and Sheek Louch.  That's not necessarily a bad thing; for me, it's really difficult to decide who my favorite Wu-Tang member is, but Ghostface is one of those top 4 (for the record, I've got it as GFK, Method Man, Raekwon, then GZA). I'd rather hear Styles P than Sheek, but it's not like Sheek is wack, so again, it's not really a bad thing. You already know what it is with Sheek Louch and Ghostface Killah...no Kirko Bangz hooks, no fluffy radio-friendly singles, just hard, gutter, smack the fuck outta a nigga shit.  One of the first things I noticed about the album was the production...definitely that boom-bap, gutter sound.  Again, no surprises production-wise.  There are a couple of more soulful sounding tracks ("Different Time Zones" and "Crack Spot Stories" come to mind), but for the most part, it's hard shit.  It was nice that they had the other members of Wu-Tang and D-Block feature on some of the tracks, especially on "Drivin Round" and "Comin For Ya Head," and I really appreciated that they didn't try to commercialize the shit.  The content is pretty predictable; lots of drug and thuggin talk, but again, this is what D-Block does, and Ghostface is also pretty familiar with that sort of shit.  Honestly, I can only point out one track that I don't really fuck with ("Take Notice"), and that's because of the production and that terrible hook.  Overall, this is a very solid work from the two.  Despite Wu-Block consisting of Sheek and Ghostface, there are features on every track but two, and since it's a collabo effort, said features don't feel out of place.

I think the album could have used more Jadakiss (and especially Jadakiss' laugh!) and Styles P, as well as other Wu-Tang members, but I guess it'd be pretty hard to do an album with all of the members from both groups.  Outside of that, I guess my only complaint would be that it's very predictable...it doesn't cover any new ground or really show much growth from the artists.  At the same time, there are those artists like Jay-Z, where you're like "nigga you haven't sold drugs in 20 years, why the fuck are you still rapping drug shit?!" and you get pissed because their content hasn't evolved to your desire.  Then there are those artists like Sean P, where you're like..."yea you're still rapping the same type of shit as a decade ago, but fuck it, it's hot" and you don't really get upset at it.  It's a double standard that I think shows what we actually think of certain rappers' skill sets, but I completely agree with it.  I don't need to hear Sheek Louch rapping about breaking up with his girlfriend or some shit.  Just give me the "her bag fell, I saw a 38 snub nose//I stole that and still fucked her when the club closed" shit and I'm cool.  With that in mind, I give Wu-Block a 4/5 and suggest that if you're a fan of Ghostface or D-Block that you cop this.


Rating: 4/5

Standouts: "Crack Spot Stories," "Pour tha Martini," "All In Together"

Honorable mention: "Been Robbed" for the most hilarious sample I've heard in a while

1st Amendment

Bro...

I don't generally dedicate posts to single tracks, but Wale's probably the artist that I'm most partial to.  I won't say he's the best guy out, or even the best guy in his age bracket, but he's from D.C. (idgaf about the MoCo bullshit) and he came into the game with a distinct go-go sound.  Dude has released quality work, even if his shit with MMG has left much to be desired.

Being a fan of Wale's work from 100 Miles and Running to The Mixtape About Nothing to The 1.1.11 Theory, I was pretty hyped when I heard that his latest work was sounding like a mix between 100 Miles... and More About Nothing.  This is the first new track I've heard from him in a bit, and...I FUCKS WITH IT.  Production credit goes to No Credit, and it's quite the beat.  Wale also teased a mixtape with DJ Clark Kent in December.  The last mixtape I remember dude doing with 1 producer was with 9th Wonder, and Back To the Feature was dope as fuck.  I'm officially hyped.


Here's the track btw