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Call
him Hov, Jigga, Jay, or just call him Shawn. Call him
whatever you like, but Jay-Z is on top of the rap world right
now. Has been since say ’97 or ’98. Arguably one of the top
five MC’s ever, and one of the heads of the $200 million
Roc-a-Fella empire, does the cat really have anything left to
prove? Not really, but after his legendary and still current
beef with Nas, Jigga is as hungry as ever. Jay went with the
double disc concept for TheBlueprint 2, claiming that
he had too much dope material to limit the album to just one
CD. Now we all know that other artists like Kurupt, 2Pac, and
Wu Tang went the double album route but had to use some not so
great tracks to fill out the two CD’s.
-The Gift
TB2’s first disc is
The Gift, and starts out with the B.I.G. and Faith
Evans-aided “A Dream”. Biggie’s first verse from “Juicy” is
on this track, but they wisely cut out the World Trade Center
reference. It’s cool that Hov is always giving tribute to the
late great B.I.G., but it seems a little hypocritical after he
said that he was better than Biggie on the 1st
Blueprint. Just Blaze comes with a cheesy, off the wall beat
for “Hovi Baby”. Just when you wonder are there any hot
tracks on the first disc, you hear “The Watcher 2”. Dr. Dre
provides his usual fire behind the boards and even adds a
verse to go with contributions from Rakim and Truth Hurts.
Rakim & Jigga on the same track makes it a must hear joint.
The album’s first single, “’03 Bonnie & Clyde” is a radio
friendly track biting the legendary 2Pac’s “Me & My
Girlfriend”. The collabo with Beyonce sparked criticism from
Toni Braxton, who has a similar song she recorded with Murder
Inc. The Neptune’s’ Pharell sings the hook for “Excuse Me
Miss” in his signature falsetto vocals. Jigga borrows again
from Biggie as he spits “I see some ladies tonight that should
be rollin’ with Jay-Z, Jay-Z”. Chad and Pharell still come
through with some heat, which should be expected from the
Neptunes. A bouncy Timbaland track is the backdrop for “What
They Gonna Do”, as dancehall star Sean Paul adds some rude
bwaay flavor to make this joint a potential club favorite.
Jay goes “All Around the World”,
and even compares himself to Seattle’s great right fielder,
saying “I’m a Tokyo Giant like Ichiro, I am”. Chitown’s No ID
produces the soulful track, and Dogg House’s La Toiya Williams
sings the hook. The Roc’s latest signee Twista, Outkast’s Big
Boi, and Killa Mike join Hova on “Poppin’ Tags”. Kanye West
combines a Marvelettes sample with a bounce track, and Twista
and Big Boi simply kill it. All the ladies who want
“attention with no commitment” should dig “Fuck All Night”,
another one of Jigga’s after the club tales. “The Bounce” is
another Timbaland joint that will get that ass movin’
in the club fa sho. The Gift ends the way it started
with “I Did It My Way”, a lukewarm summary of Jigga’s rise to
the top of the Hip-Hop world.
-The Curse
Jay preaches Roc for life on
“Diamond Is Forever” as he states he’s “Young ‘cuz I’m 32,
dress like I’m 22/Flow like I’m 18, do what I wanna do”.
Lenny Kravitz, ya that’s right, Lenny Kravitz brings some rock
flavor to “Guns & Roses”, produced by Heavy D, ya that’s
right, Heavy D. The unlikely trio blend rock and rap into a
pretty hot track that could be a potential single. Just
Blizzy more than makes up for a weak beat on “Hovi Baby” with
the “U Don’t Know” remix, featuring new Roc recruits MOP.
Bill and Fame’s high-energy style are a perfect compliment to
one of Hov’s better verses throughout TB2. A
theatrical instrumental, laced with piano, string and electric
guitar riffs complement Jay’s excellent story telling skills
on “Meet The Parents”. The hoods of Philly, Houston, and
Brooklyn are repped well on “Somehow, Someway” featuring
Scarface and Beanie Sigel. The three MC’s spit “get up out
the hood” verses, but could of came a bit more thorough, even
though Face Mob holds it down for the H. Jay compares himself
to Pac once again on “Some People Hate”. Kanye West provides
the track, and Jigga takes a few more shots at Nas.
“Blueprint 2” finds Jay telling Nas, Jaz-O, and Prodigy “Oh
behave” like Austin Powers. The opera-like vocals in the
background are nice, but the joint doesn’t pack the same punch
of last years’ “The Takeover”. “Nigga Please” and “2 Many
Hoes” are two more Neptunes-produced joints that will
definitely be get their share of play up in the club. “As
One” is a Roc posse joint with Memphis Bleek and members of
State Property. Jay and Bleek flip aight verses, but the
track is a cheap rip off of Earth, Wind, & Fire’s “Fantasy”.
Jigga compares street hustlers to soldiers on “A Ballad For
The Fallen Soldier”, a joint comparable to “Regrets” from
1996’s Reasonable Doubt. The second disc ends with
three pretty decent bonus cuts that could have replaced some
of the weaker songs on the album.
Jay-Z is like Michael Jordan coming back to the league. He’s
already accomplished a lot, he can dominate almost at will,
and his presence can make a big difference for those around
him. Jay made a mistake by releasing TB2 as a double
album. He could have omitted about five tracks, and just went
with the best songs on one disc. Jay’s 2nd mistake was having
too many guest appearances. Hov can more than hold his own on
a song, and could have left out a few of the guest artists who
contributed to TB2. The last mistake is too many
self-comparisons to Pac and Biggie. Jay is a great MC, and
probably an even greater businessman. There’s no need for him
to constantly liken himself to the two of the most legendary
and beloved rappers ever…who are resting in peace at that.
Despite its few shortcomings,
TB2 is still a hot album. Jigga has consistently dropped
albums every year since ’96 with no signs of slowing down.
Hov works with several different producers, and is still on
top of his game lyrically. TB2 definitely has its
share of joints you’ll wanna be bumpin’ this winter, so make
sure get hold of it somehow.
-Nate Money
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