A Couple Jay Arguments

Memorial day weekend typically marks the beginning of summer, day drinking, outdoor partying and arguments with friends over drinks or after drinks. This weekend was full of that for me. On Sunday after a beer brunch (get those mimosas outta here) me and my boys went to this outdoor party thing in Brooklyn and ultimately ended up at my boy @JJolley's crib for more brews. During the course of the night I made a few arguments that I couldn't successfully defend because of my drunkeness lol. The first was something rather simple that can't really be argued, we just have to wait for the outcome. I said to my boy Luckose that the Thunder will beat the Spurs. I tried to make a few points to defend my pick but eventually I just settled on the bet and saying "we'll see what happens." We'll see what happens with that lol.

The next few things I argued about were not as simple and were something that everyone who listens to rap has an opinion on: Jay-Z. As we were sitting there watching the game and talking about whatever, Jay-Z came up; in particular Kingdom Come. First @TheUnjealous commented on how Kingdom Come sucks, which I disagreed with.

I like Kingdom Come

One of my supporting arguments for Kingdom Come was that two of Jay's top ten songs are off Kingdom Come: "The Prelude" and "Beach Chair". When I said that, @Run_GMC jumped in to question my top ten Jay list. Meanwhile @TheUnjealous tried to discount "The Prelude" because it's an intro, saying intros don't count. I discounted that because one of my favorite Jay songs is an intro, the "Dynasty Intro" to be exact lol. More on that later. Soon we were all reviewing Jay's discography to find ten tracks better than "The Prelude," naturally starting at Reasonable Doubt which everyone said had 4 or 5 tracks in Jay'z top 10. This led to my other major argument, that Reasonable Doubt is great but not all that great. Yea I said it.

Great no doubt, not his best though.

So there I was in the midst of 3 arguments regarding Jay-Z:

1) Kingdom Come doesn't suck
2) The Prelude is a top 10 Jay song/On my top 10
3) Reasonable Doubt is not all that great

Couldn't quite defend it how I wanted to on Sunday night. So over the next few posts I'll try to since I'm sober.

Let me take on 1 and 3 first because defending those are easier than compiling my top 10. There are certain things that we as "Hip-Hop lovers" are supposed to do or believe or else we are looked at as fakers. There are commonly held opinions about certain albums/songs that are used to gauge one's understanding of Hip-Hop. Some of these opinions are on point and tell the truth (Illmatic is a classic) but some have gained so much popularity that people think they're true. In my opinion "Kingdom Come sucked" falls into this category. It's almost as if people have to say it sucked or else other people will say they don't know anything about hip-hop. Similarly, people have to say Reasonable Doubt is their favorite and/or Jay's best album or their Hip-Hop head status is questioned. Well, I'll step outside the norm on both.

I'll admit KC is not a great album, especially not the type of album we were used to from Jay-Z. It was his first post retirement album, following The Black Album, arguably his greatest album. That was a lot of pressure and expectations. Honestly, it didn't live up to the expectations but there was no way it could. It certainly hurt but it doesn't mean that the album sucked. It did have some bad songs though. "Anything" is certainly a terrible ass song, which most people probably remember this album for. Then of course there is "Hollywood" which unless you're a lady and/or a dancer you hate. "Trouble" and "Dig a hole" are pretty bad as well. I'll say that "Oh my God" is no better than average. So by my count that's 5 songs that are skip worthy. Out of 14 songs that's a lot, especially for Jay, but fairly normal for most albums.

On the flip of these bad songs are the great, and I mean great, ones. No denying how great "Beach Chair" "The Prelude" "Lost Ones" are. On a slightly lesser note there is "I Made It" which get vastly overlooked. Those 4 are great. "Do You Wanna Ride" is a very good tribute/story telling track. The title track is pretty dope too because its a reference to the graphic comic of the same name in which an older, retired Superman, comes back to show young "super heroes" how to do the damn thing. In the 2 1/2 years he was gone he saw the foolishness that was going on and decided that he had "to take off the blazer, loosen up the tie, step inside the booth, superman is alive." I'd say those two are very good.  Then there is "Minority Report" which is tough to listen to because of the tragedy it covers but if you get past the heartache its really a damn good track. 4 great tracks, 3 very good ones and then "Show Me What You Got" and "30 Something" which are cool enough to listen to without skipping. 9/14 doesn't suck...not great...but doesn't suck.

On to Reasonable Doubt. It is a great album, certainly a classic. I don't think its so great that everyone must call it their favorite Jay album, or his best. People do though, mainly because its one of the things we're supposed to do as "hip-hop lovers" as I mentioned earlier. For me, as a relatively young cat, I can't do it. I feel like it's an album you had to have been able to listen to and understand when it dropped in '96 to truly appreciate its greatness. You had to have been "of age." For me, the time when you hear a song/album factors into its greatness. If you are in a place in life were you can vibe to it because of experience then it will add to its greatness. That's why I love The Black Album more than Reasonable Doubt. I can remember when it dropped, I went to a record store and bought the CD. I remember everyone talking about it and applying songs to their lives. I remember how those joints hit me. The album was like watching Jordan live, as opposed to just on video. The fact that I can say "I remember that" makes it better for me. I have similar feelings and memories regarding The Blueprint. Shoot, I even have very vivid memories of Vol. 3 and The Dynasty. Truthfully, I didn't listen to RD until 11th or 12th grade maybe. It's hard for me to say RD is better than other Jay albums I listened to (and understood) before it. Retroactive listening lets me see its greatness but it still won't let me put it above other Jay albums. That being said, they are only a few songs from RD that I truly love love and can remember all of the words of. Again, the album is certainly a classic, certainly great, not his best and certainly not my favorite. I wish more people would admit they feel the same way.

It's whateva though. Just my opinion but I'm still a true Hip Hop Lover though, I'm also a warrior too. Let that be known.

My top 10 Jay songs deserve its own post so...

Throwback Thursday: Hard Knock Life

I recently read an article in New York Magazine about a possible Basquiat on a Brooklyn bodega door. I'm cultured lol. Yea that's the same Basquiat that Hov and 'Ye consistently reference on Watch The Throne.

Basquiat in a Brooklyn bodega ---> Jay-Z rapping about Basquiat ---> Jay-Z rapping in a Brooklyn bodega:



Crazy how these thing correlate in my mind...

#The90s

Jay's (Future) Kids

Beyonce is preggo. Or is she?

I know I'm a little late with this but what can I say I've been busy lol.

When I found out that she and Hov were finally having a baby I was kinda sad. Not because I thought that the new born will come out like this:

But because once this youngster enters the world it will mark the end of Jay rapping about his future kids.

I'm a well documented Hov stan and I've gotta say that some of my favorite lines are when he raps about his future kids. One of my favorite songs is "Beach Chair" a will/inspirational note to his future daughter.

Jay def knew something was up as they were making Watch The Throne:

"Sorry Junior, I already ruined ya, you ain't even alive paparazzi pursuing ya...."
- New Day.

His whole verse is dedicated to his future son and it maybe my favorite verse on the album.

And then there's the line in Made it in America:

"Tryin lead a nation to leave to my lil mans...or my daughter."

Which def made me say whoo.

I can't really explain it but rhymes/songs about future kids are so dope to me. Ex: "Letter to my Unborn Child."

Now, well soon, that's all over for Hov. Maybe he'll have a few dope lines/songs post birth of the youngster like Juelz did with "Daddy" and Fab did with "Stay." We'll see what up.

A Great Message

Throwback Thursday: "Doin It" - LL Cool J

While I was in DC for the Nation's Classic I patried it up. At this particular house party that I went to I noticed that mostly everyone in there was #borninthe90s (had i know I wouldn't have went trust).

Anyway at some point two of the girls began playing "Doin it" on the iPod hookup that was providing the entertainment. Those jawns were probably 5 or 6 when that came out, way to wild for their young ears. I wasn't much older, only 9, but I remember when I first saw the video. It was like (Softcore) porn. I had to be mad secretive when I watched it.

Cole World, No Blanket

Over the weekend my boys @Larry_Draper and @Parkour_Lewis and I started to referring to unfortunate situations by saying "Cole World, No Blanket" a line J. Cole said in "World is Empty." Real funny stuff.

On Monday night me and G went to a listening party for Cole World: The Sideline Story. Cole was there giving background on some of the tracks, telling us some dope stories.

Fire

We were right in front of the DJbooth where Cole was. At one point when he was talking about how some of his tracks are deeper than people are accustomed to, I yelled to him "We got degrees too Cole" to which he responded "Then you got depth." #Respect

Throughout the evening I kept yelling Cole World, No Blanket after each track played. The album is tough and when it drops on the 27th it's really gonna be a Cole World for the rest of the rappers in the game, with No Blanket.

Watch The Throne

I've been listening to Watch The Throne just about nonstop since it dropped. Everyone's been giving their opinion. My turn: It's pretty damn good, maybe even great.

The beats are the best part of the album...each one rocks out and they're all pretty unique. The rhyming isn't the greatest (what we've come to expect)...but it's good and there are some great lines and verses. Everyone talking bout how Jay seems like an extra on the album, and that it's really a "Kanye" album featuring Jay, but I have Jay outrapping 'Ye, partly because he actually raps more.

My Scorecard:
1) Ye
2) None
3) Jay
4) Even
5) Ye
6) Jay
7) Ye
8) Jay (by default)
9) Jay
10) Ye 
11) Jay
12) Jay (by default)

Might be the Hov Stan in me scoring...who knows.

No one gets points for "Lift Off."The rapping is so subpar. That beat might be my favorite tho. With that hook it had potential. They botched it if you ask me. Cudi shoulda been on it.

"What You Need" shoulda been longer.

I wish they rapped like rapped on every track like they did on that and "Otis"

"New Day" gives me a chill.

Swizzy always makes me laugh "God Dammit" lol

I like the way the album closed out...tracks 10-12 are all excellent.

"Murder to Excellence" is powerful.

If anyone doesn't know/fuck with Frank Ocean they will now. He may be the biggest winner with his two choruses. Made It In America is one of the best choruses I've heard in a long time.

When Hov and 'Ye said #OOO at the end of "Why I Love You" so did I. #Respect

It's a pretty damn good album. Does it match the hype? Yes and no. Yes because Stans will bump it and say it's dope. No because Stans expected a whole lot and won't admit that it's good despite not reaching their expectations.

Which Stan are you?

I shouldn't condone this but you can download it here.

The Prescription

So I'm on vacation staycation this week so maybe I can get 1 post in a day...there are a lot of things to talk about...

Aight, so I love music. The actual music, notes and what not, as well as the lyrics. This is especially true for Hip-Hop/Rap music. I like listening to rappers who tell stories so well I feel like I'm watching them unfold. I like listening to songs and saying "damn that was crazy," either because the lyrics are crazy or because they make me think so hard. Naturally some of my favorite rappers are Jay-Z, Nas, Lupe and Fabolous (very long list) all of whom are capable of doing those things. The "new guard" of rappers is pretty adept too. J. Cole, Drake and Wale are very ill lyrically, something I really appreciate.

I was put onto Wale by my roommate in college (#shoutout @dueordie). He told me to listen to The Mixtape About Nothing and see if I liked the guy. I did and have been following ever since. After the success of that mixtape, and Back to the Feature, there were great expectations for his debut album Attention Deficit. It didn't really live up to the hype though. Although it received mostly great reviews it didn't sell well, only going gold. It was also easily forgotten amongst the other rap albums that dropped that year (BP 3, Deeper Than Rap, Man on the Moon, Loso's Way, Relapse). Recently I re-listened to Attention Deficit in preparation for finally listening to More About Nothing (#latepass). I just have to say that the album was indeed overlooked but Wale did warn us that that would happen, and even gave us something to prevent it: The Prescription.

The title of the CD let us know how Wale felt, and what I think ultimately happened, people wouldn't be able to pay attention well enough to enjoy the CD. The decline of hip-hop/rap over the past few years has been well known. It has been going away from the lyrical prowess that it was once known for, to the dance friendly, catchy beats/hooks, lets make something for the club era. Wale, aware of this, takes pride in his lyrics and dubs himself the prescription to the ills of the rap game. Proclaiming yourself as the "House" that's been needed to solve the rap game's rubic is bold and something that everyone has been doing of late, but Wale made a great claim on the track.

Pay Attention!

Don't let the pain getcha

I swear my lane will provide as a painkiller

A painkiller, a 16 of Percoset

Just let it chill Joe

That lil' burn that you feel, feel good don't it?

Just sit back and relax and take it easy

And let the beat play

Close your eyes, whoever uninspired

Pay me no mind, I put Adderol in ya eyes

Riddle them with Ritalin, attention deficit

Niggas start listenin', and what I'm givin' them

The drug that they brain need

Them niggas sick of hip-hop so they appointed me

And I invened but the IV inside of me

And ignorance was drug of choice but they OD'd

Couldn't alone leave 'em

I am the sole leader

The young soul that the OG's still believe in

And if you not convinced keep on promotin' them

I breathe life in the game, they are Kevorkian

They provokin' suicide but as soon as signed

I drew designs from consumer's minds so in time

I do it for all y'all, do it for all y'all

Don't gotta wait long

The doctor has arrived just be patient

please, please

Maybe I will Thank Him Later

Aubrey Drake Graham, or as I like to call him: Jimmy Brooks, burst on the scene last year with his incredible mixtape "So Far Gone." Ever since then we've been waiting for his career to officially start with his debut studio album. After much delay "Thank Me Later" dropped 2 weeks ago (although it was leaked a week before that). So I've been listening to the album for 3 weeks or so and I'm finally ready to write something.

I like the album, its solid from top to bottom. There really isn't a bad song on the album, I can listen to it straight through without skipping a track. On the flip side there really aren't a lot of great songs that I hit repeat for. Only two songs stands out as great ("The Resistance" and "Light Up"). The track layout is good. He spaces the "R&B" tracks out well, not really letting them accumulate together. The transitions of tracks is nice too. At the end of "The Resistance" he says "I'm in it til its over" and then "Over" comes on. Smooth. I think I would have liked an intro, simply because I love intros, (future post) but I do like "Fireworks," it let us know he's "going off."

There are a lot of features on the album. This is the path that hip-hop has taken though so it doesn't bother me. It does bother me that almost ever featured rapper had a better verse than the host lol. Really, Drake forces the artists to bring their A game, his verses were so good that they had to be better. Examples of this are on "Light Up" and "Up All Night." No ones got a Jay feature like that before, but Drakes verse was so tough, Jay had to step it up. Same with Nicki. Speaking of Jay, it also bothers me that he claimed to create a "Triple Entendre" and told us not to ask him how. What Jay? I'm going to ask you. Sorry I digress lol.

The most important thing about the album is the lyrical content. This is something that can be easily overlooked because Drake sings as well as raps which makes him "commercial". In addition the album can be confused to be more R&B than rap because of the smooth beats and singing (I made this mistake). In actually the album is fairly balanced and the lyrical content is very realistic and easy to relate to and his lyrics are deeper than they appear to be.

A common motif of Drake's recent songs (and this album) has been how his success has created more negatives than positives in his life. I joke with my friends that all he does is complain about how hard it is being famous and rich and how he hates it. After all, he's only getting what he asked for. His complaining can indeed be annoying but its refreshing to hear his concerns. Very few rappers (people) are secure with themselves to speak about their worries and fears. Drake does this throughout the album. He fears losing his friends, losing the women he loves, not fulfilling his promises, not meeting expectations, his poor priorities, being forgotten, partying too much, not working hard enough, wasting money and much more.

All of these things are easy to relate to for most of us even though we aren't nearly as famous or rich as he is. For most of us we are starting our professional lives and have reached a certain point of success (College degrees, new jobs). We are at crossroads with our friends, deciding who to keep and who to let go. We are missing the woman we love, thinking about how we messed it up with her and/or worried about losing her because of our new found success. We wonder if we will be able to live up to the expectations of us, if we are working hard enough, being appreciated for the work we do, if we have our priorities in order, if we're blowing our money, and so on. Of course another thing that we can relate to is the way he copes with all his fears/worries: partying, partying and more partying.

Thank Me Later is a very good album. Drake goes to a place that is unheard of for a debut album. His honesty is amazing. In many ways he is speaking to (and for) many of us with this album. He shares his problems with the world which lets us know that it is okay to open up and speak about our fears and worries. This is something that we could all use.

If you need any lyrical references or want to talk about the complexities of the lyrics/album hit me up.