The Black Album [Explicit]

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The Blueprint [Explicit]
Reasonable Doubt
The Blueprint 2 The Gift & The Curse [Explicit]
Vol.2 ... Hard Knock Life [Explicit]
Kingdom Come
Vol. 3... Life And Times Of S. Carter [Explicit]
American Gangster [Explicit]
The Dynasty [Explicit]
In My Lifetime Vol.1 [Explicit]
The College Dropout [Explicit]

The Black Album [Explicit] Reviews

The only thee albums necessary to own by Jay-Z are this one, Blueprint and his best album, Reasonable Doubt. I have to admit when I first heard this album I was blown away. I didn't need to skip any tracks. Peace. I will say that this album is a more commercial version of Reasonable Doubt. I still have my same copy with the black disc.

The rest were hit and miss with a few nice tracks here and there but not classic material. The rest were just so so. I really didn't know what to expect when I got this album because by the time it came out, Jay-Z had drifted so far from his original sound. Even though it has a more commercial feel to it, its still an excellent album. In my opinion, he should have ended it with this album. I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that Reasonable Doubt was going to be his only "great" album. This could be good or bad depending on what type of hip hop fan you are. Either way, The Black Album is the commercial counterpart to the classic Reasonable Doubt and it's worth owning.

It's also similar to Reasonable Doubt in that it is consistent. Personally, I don't really care for commercial rap artists but I make an exception for Jay-Z. All in all, The Black Album is not quite a 5 star album (a la Illmatic, Reasonable Doubt and Ready To Die) but it definitely shouldn't get any less than 4 stars.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Blueprint too but if you're really honest with yourself you will agree with me. Another good album by Jay-Z was the Blueprint but The Black Album surpasses that one. Yes I said it, The Black Album is better than The Blueprint.

However, it still shows Jay-Z's evolution as a more mainstream rap artist. This was slated to be Jay-Z's last album so I guess he wanted to go out with a bang and The Black Album does just that. If not we just have to agree to disagree.

It's similar to Reasonable Doubt in that he has some very personal songs on it like December 4th (great song) and Lucifer (a personal favorite of mine).

We all know the answer. I'm not reviewing this album because I never heard it. Does Jay-Z like black people. If this moron has so much money, then why do I see Bono in Africa helping black people.

Why do I see Brad Pitt helping black people in New Orleans. What do you think is more important to Jay-Z, helping poor starving oppressed black people in the world or buying a new Aston Martin. Don't bother answering. I do know that I loathe this rapper and all the tadpoles that follow him.

One day black america will wake up.one day.

Interlude N/R. December 4th 3/5 kinda corny but not bad. lol just kidding. 99 Problems 5/5 good single tells a small story in the second verse. 3.

Juvenile- "Way I Be Leaning" (This guy choped and screwed jay's voice for the song so it would sound more southern but I know tthe rhyme is from the second verse of "Dirt of your shoulder"). 10. Allure 4/5 by this time im usually asleep. 3. 7. aight 1. 2 T.I.- "Bring Em' Out" (sampled from the 1st verse in "What More Can I Say").

"Im not a biter im a writer, i say a BIG verse im only binging up my brother im big enough to do it.". 5. 13. Justify My Thug 4/5 not bad but not great. timbaland gives him a beat that is just bananas.

Dirt Off Your Shoulder 5/5 2nd single in the album. 1. Im sure there is more but i can't remember now. 11.

9. Change Clothes 4/5 i don't know why he would choose this song as his 3rd single when there are better choises. 8. Encore 5/5 another hot track exepct for the long pause in the middle of the track where a guy is urging people to scream HOVA well the song is "ENCORE" but after replaying it.

Interlude 4/5 hot lil freestyle. 14. I don't want to sound like a hater i mean i am giving the album 5 stars but I used to use this album to go to sleep, maybe thats why when i put this in my car I get really drowzy and actually almost fall asleep. Threat 4/5 funny small skit in the beginnig but dope. Lucifer 3/5 really anoying hook imo. what i can tell you is the alot of rappers hav sampled jay-Z from this album and have created hits.

You get producers like kanye west who does 2 tracks, the neptunes who also does 2 tracks, timbaland, eminem, dj quick, and some others like rick rubin who did surprise in the production of 99 problems. 4. 1 Cassidy- "Im a Hustla" (sampled from the 3rd verse in "Dirt Off Your Shoulder"). he should have maybe done a track with beyonce or kanye west or someone else. 2. 6. 12.

What More Can I Say 5/5 hot track. it gets anoying maybe they should have saved it for the end. Moment Of Clarity 4/5 ahh the eminem produced track good song overall. so can't talk much about it. awwwhhhh. hot hook going over his albums. My 1st Song 5/5 ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. the album is good, features no one except for pharrel in "change clothes".

1, and Vol. 2 for the best Jay-z albums. Alot of people don't agree with me on Vol. At first I wasn't feeling this CD so much but after 4-5 spins I realized this was a really nice album. 1 but it was a great CD(besides "I Know What Girls Want" & "Sunshine") It was before he went materialistic and commercial. IMO it's behind Blueprint, Vol.

Truthfully I want to rhyme like Common Sense, but I did five mil, I ain't been rhymin like Common Sense." Kweli and Common come back at him on Ghetto Show (from Kweli's excellent The Beautiful Struggle) with "If lyrics sold, then truth be told, I'd probably be just as rich and famous as Jay-Z. The best and most fun song on the album, and the lone track that earns its three stars, is Moment of Clarity where he does take hip-hop back to the battle rap, and he is the king of using backhanded compliments to ellicit a response. There is certainly no shortage of self-adulation and overproduction here that have become the unfortunate hallmarks of Jay-Z tracks.

As this is the only Jay-Z album I own, I can't rank it against his others as many reviewers have done. Surely Kweli and Common are, too. Truthfully I want to rhyme like Common Sense, next best thing I'll do a record with Common Sense." It's just too much fun to imagine behind the scenes of that good-natured (read: no gun references or idle death threats) throwdown.

I love it and am grateful to Jigga for laying it down. That said, there is also evidence that he knows what real hip-hop is all about, he just chooses to go a different route (which kinda hurts more than the ignorance of garbage rappers). He specifically calls out two of hip-hop's greats (who I'm sure he properly respects) with the lines "If skills sold, truth be told, I'd probably be lyrically Talib Kweli.

I confess that I bought it for 99 Problems and Dirt Off Your Shoulder so I'd have some of the more accessible MTV-branded "hip-hop" to add to my party mixes. They're funny songs that everyone knows and it doesn't kill me to have them in my repertiore.