1. Jay-Z - The Blueprint
September 11th, 2001 was not only a historic day that would shape international affairs - you know what I mean without getting too far into it - but was also coincidentally the date release of Jay-Z's The Blueprint, which pushed the limits of the rap game in production and direction, but still displaying classic Jay-Z that the world has already been accustomed to since the 1996 release of Reasonable Doubt.
I got a facebook inbox today from my friend Kellen that predicted that this would be the #1 pick. Was it because he knows me and my taste so well, or is it that this album truly is the best thing to happen to hip-hop in the 2000's? I'm going with both.
Hip-hop critics and aficionados credit mostly The Blueprint or Reasonable Doubt as Jay-Z's best work. Though it is difficult to for me to decide, Blueprint proved that Jay-Z could still pump out amazing material since his debut album in 1996. The Blueprint was put out at the height of the Jay-Z/Nas beef, where the two New Yorkers exchanged a number of diss tracks, and also more subliminal disses on studio albums. The track "Five to One," produced by Kanye West, samples The Doors and attacks Nas and Prodigy of Mobb Deep. Production of the album is mainly handled by Mr. West, but also features Just Blaze, Timbaland and Eminem to name a few. Like I said when I was talking about College Dropout, the Kanye beats rely heavily on soul and R&B samples from Bobby "Blue" Bland, Jackson 5 and David Ruffin. Other sampled artists include Slick Rick, Al Green, KRS-One, David Bowie and The Doors (and more...). The albums production is a clean A+, outdoing so many albums that came before it, and also albums that followed it. This being said, it is no surprise that The Blueprint appealed to everyone from the suburban, mainstream listener to inner city thugs that been on that Jay-Z shit since Reasonable Doubt. Jay's lyrics explore numerous subjects like street etiquette, fame, women and plain ol' American society - this is another clear reason why it received unanimous praise and mainstream success - there was something for everybody. "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" not only became one the albums most celebrated tracks, but also Jigga's career anthem, highlighting his younger days as kid turned hustler and his recording industry history. This track was also considered Kanye's breakthrough beat, launching him into his prolific production career.
In short, and in my opinion, The Blueprint is the best album to be released in the 2000's. Stepping up in: production quality; outstanding, bountiful lyrics; wide ranging flows, Jay-Z displays confidence in himself along with his creativity and desire to move forward with his music. Like Jigga's one time foe spit in his Stillmatic intro "... but its always forward I'm movin', never backwards stupid here's another classic..." Jay continued this trend as the years moved on, now he is arguably the greatest rapper alive.
It was a little bit of both. Mostly though, my prediction was based on the fact that, in a decade defined by extreme inconsistency and disposability amongst rap releases, BP is the only hip-hop album that truly brought the pain from start to finish. To me, that quality is what makes a classic album.
ReplyDeleteCome to think of it, imo, the Roc has been the only label to deliver urban classics in this millennium thus far.
also, the stillmatic intro is easily nas' most underrated track. it has one of the most epic opening stanzas in hip-hop history.
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