Jay-Z - American Gangster

[claaa7]

Pray - 7/10
American Dreamin' - 9/10
Hello Brooklyn 2.0 - 3/10
No Hooks - 9/10
Roc Boys - 9/10
Sweet - 9/10
I Know - 6/10
Party Life - 10/10
Ignorant Shit - 9/10
Say Hello - 10/10
Success - 10/10
Falling - 10/10
Blue Magic - 7/10
American Gangster - 9/10

Overall - 8.5/10 (really good album, especially the last half is incredible)

[PuNcH_iN_PuNcH_OuT]

He got a line on the record where he uses the old adage "what came first the chicken or the egg". Now we all know this phrase has been used countless times by everyone but, i've never heard it in a hip hop record (i could probably be proven wrong on this)

Ras Kass said it a decade ago

anyway that dude was hating on jay-z cas he is successful, which has nothing to do with talent or ability but just with the hate and jealousy

[PuNcH_iN_PuNcH_OuT]

50 over Jay? damn man. i respect your opinion and all but...damn. jay-z has mastered a style that is entirely unique to him. it's hard to compare him lyrically to other MCs because lots of times his delivery is so smooth and effortless that whatever he says comes out as gold. with jay-z there's a certain undeterminable element that just makes him straight up dope. this is not to say, however, that jay is not a formidable lyricist. i'm very critical when it comes to assessing MCs and writers/lyrical performers in general so i'm not just listening to him for the live party tracks. his songwriting is sophisticated in its crafty subtlety. if you just give a kind of half-hearted listen to jay you might not pick up on what's happening in the verse beneath the surface, and you may be convinced that he isn't all that great of a lyricist. this is how i used to feel. i had to realize that hov doesnt have the kind of in-your-face lyrical ridiculousness like, say, a ras kass or canibus or talib kweli. you hafta kind of dissect his shit. his word play and analogies can be on some next-level shit, too. but yeah junius, you seem like a music fan i'd definitely respect so i feel what you're saying. this is just why i like Jay-Z.

what he said

[DUMBO]

the egg came first, the chicken came after.

the evolved from reptiles that lay eggs.

[snakesonawiggly]

I had my doubts when AI heard Diddy produced six of the tracks and that JD did two but damn this is a really good album, esp. Party Life & Say Hello plus Idris Elba did a tight ass intro, Tooo bad must people know hiom for Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girl but he will will always be Stringer Bell to me.

[junius]

AZ "A.W.O.L" & "The Format" AND "The Memphis Sessions" > fucking destroy Jay-Z...

i'd expect Wu dudes to at least listen more closely. now i'll grant, ya'll ** can ** like both but goddamn, sooooooooo many asswipes jock Jay like he's doing something so unique or ooooh, "smart."

pay fucking attention.

[junius]

p/s: i wasn't saying 50 over Jay, tho' I like 50 ** A LOT ** more as a musician; there's no denying Jay's longevity but I am saying that, at similar levels of success/distance from the streets, 50 at his best is way more "soulful" or "moving" or "believable," however it is ya'll want to frame it.

the crazy overanalysis/appreciation of Jay's lyrics is really bizarre to me unless, again, ya'll grant equal or greater facility to PLENTY of other dudes too-- AZ, Hell Razah, Smif N Wessun (listen more closely), Ghost (who DOES make sense, too many kids don't get the references or playfulness) etc etc.

[Edgar Erebus]

p/s: i wasn't saying 50 over Jay, tho' I like 50 ** A LOT ** more as a musician; there's no denying Jay's longevity but I am saying that, at similar levels of success/distance from the streets, 50 at his best is way more "soulful" or "moving" or "believable," however it is ya'll want to frame it.

?


Aight, let's get it straight.

"Many Men (Wish Death)" or "Regrets"?
"Ghetto Qur'an" or "Dead Presidents"?

[benzo]

Ras Kass said it a decade ago

anyway that dude was hating on jay-z cas he is successful, which has nothing to do with talent or ability but just with the hate and jealousy

i figured it as.... Chicken = bird = kilo which produced the golden egg = $

[bad boy T]

2nd listen Better Roc Boys, Pray, Falling, Say Hello good tracks

[ShaDynasty]

Pray - 5/5
American Dreamin' - 5/5
Hello Brooklyn 2.0 - 4.5/5
No Hooks - 5/5
Roc Boys - 5/5
Sweet - 4/5
I Know - 5/5
Party Life - 5/5
Ignorant Shit - 5/5
Say Hello - 5/5
Success - 5/5
Falling - 5/5
Blue Magic - 4/5
American Gangster - 5/5

Its too early to say classic but its definetly one of Jays best albums. Its like the polar opposite of 'Kingdom Come' in that it really feels like an album and the production stays grounded in 70s soul. Actually it feels like Jay was trying to make another Blueprint/RD style album which is obviously the most sensible thing to do and its made an excellent album. Its got that thought provoking honesty to it that all Jays classic records have, i mean some of this stuff (Falling, Say Hello, Ignorant Shit, Roc Boys) is definetly among his best work. Average gangster rappers glamorize the shit but Jays tracks always have a message in them. There aren't really any weak tracks, although 'Blue Magic' almost stopped me buying the album cause it sounds like a Kingdom Come offcut, but in the context of the album its pretty good.

If this follows the pattern of his post 2000 career though, his next album will completely suck.

[TAURO]

Im amazed by how many people gave this album such high scores, the album varied from shit to mediocre at best. I must of liked maybe three joints at most, the rest were shit. And what the fuck happened to his lyrics, I found them to be substandard. I will admit to not being the biggest Jay Z fan but I never had a problem with his lyrics, he fell off big time on this.

[BornPower]

so what if jay managed to pick up a few hot beats? 50 consistently does this but that doesnt make him any better of a lyricist! it feels like jay is just doin it to be doin it. does he have something to prove? if so i wish he'd get to the point already. jay mentioned that he's had to dumb down his flow, otherwise he'd be spittin like common. if this was the truth, where are these "common" flows at? he's been tryin to recreate reasonable doubt since he decided to release more albums with def jam. it's gettin a lil tired. not to say that jay isn't slick as hell doin what he's doin, but with up and comers like wayne, game, and kanye pushin the envelope in other directions the same old jay doesnt cut it for me anymore. the only jay i pump on the consistent is on his first album.

[DR. NICK RIVIERA]

don't be a hater, he still got it

props to Jay for this album

[junius]

jay mentioned that he's had to dumb down his flow, otherwise he'd be spittin like common. if this was the truth, where are these "common" flows at?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

HINT: motherfuck Jay & Common... the poster is right, retard Jay jockers criticize 50 & others for the same shit they're guzzling cum for here.

i don't think Jay is slick as hell-- as dumb as Lil Wayne is ** supposed to be **, maybe, except Wayne at his best is a lot more believable, i.e. passionate, at this point.

Jay was a dealer for how long exactly?