THE DYNASTY CONTINUES
Jay-Z’s Music in many ways has shaped the woman I am today. Each of his albums means something different to me & served a different purpose in my life. For the next 13 days, I will bring to life each of his albums with facts, my personal stories behind the album and my favorite cuts.
Day I: Reasonable Doubt
Dropped in ’96. Arguably his best work that he has put out, Hov came out the gate with a heat. Originally donned with 4 mics at The Source, RD was the beginning of an era. This album wasn’t made for pop-crossover, it was made for Hip Hop, from my hometown. It’s gritty, hood, all the while still extremely intellectual. I would steal it from my brothers stack of CDs in his room and play it in my room on repeat. This was the first album I had ever listen to cover to cover. RD is the reason I fell in love with Hip Hop.
Personal Top Cuts
Can’t Knock the Hustle
Brooklyn’s Finest
Dead Presidents II - Fav.
Feelin’ It
Can I Live
Aint No Niga
Friend or Foe
Day II. In My Lifetime, Vol. 1
11.4.1997, In My Lifetime, Vol.1 made it’s debut. A solid follow up tot RD, Hov continued with the same gritty form, however moved in with a more commercial approach with collabs grabbing Puff, Teddy Riley & Babyface. His word play and vivid imagery paints the Marcy projects scene all the while still schooling everyone on how the streets can birth intellects.
This album, for me, was a great coming of age soundtrack. It was in heavy rotation going into my freshmen year of college through my sophomore year. I got myself into my fair share of trouble running the streets but this album always helped me ground myself when I felt lost. These 14 tracks have saw me through failed friendships, relationships, and plenty of all-nighters in the library. The constant thread through this album is perseverance, and it was exactly what I needed to hear in those moments.
Personal Top Cuts
Intro
Friend or Foe ’98
Who You Wit II
Where I’m From
Day III. Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life
September 29, 1998, Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life was available to the masses. Commerically, this was is one of his best selling albums. His first album to debut at #1 on Billboard as well as his first Grammy win, for Best Rap Album, which he boycotted.
This album was the reinforcement, to me, that Jay had only scratched the surface. I’m taken right back to my childhood New York summers. I can still hear Jigga What? blasting out of a car stereos on Hot 97 like it was yesterday.
Personal Top Cuts
Hard Knock Life
Nigga What, Nigga Who
Money, Cash, Hoes
Can I Get A
Paper Chase
Reservoir Dogs
Day IV…Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter
12.28.99 , With less than 72 hrs until we hit the new millennium, Jay dropped Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter. This album is is like blending RD & Vol. 1, with his word play and pocket. With most of the songs having its own unique sound, Hov still managed to form a cohesive bond through the flow of the tracks.
This particular album aged extremely well. For me this project always reminds me that it’s ok take risks and to have fun. You can tell that he had fun making this album. He was enjoying the space he was in when creating it and that is how I try to lead my life.
Personal Top Cuts
Do It Again
Things That You Do
Snoopy Track
Watch Me
Is That Your Bitch
Big Pimpin’
Anything
Day V. The Dynasty: Roc La Familia
Halloween day 2000, S. Carter drops his 5th studios album. This goes on to hit number 1 on Billboards 200, and 2x platinum. Originally suppose to a Roc-A-Fella compilation album, Beanie Siegel, Memphis Bleek, Amil and Freeway heavy on the album. This is the first time that up and coming producer, Kanye West, is featured Hov’s album ( This Can’t Be Life ft. Beanie Siegel & Scarface).
Every time I listen to this, I want to be given my Roc-A-Fella chain. I Just Wanna Love U is one of my favorite tracks of his. I played this song so much, I had to replace the original CD from all the scratches. Pharrell’s vocals gliding across the Neptune track makes Hov’s pocket sound even better. This song was played so much in my house, my mom knows the entire second verse.
Personal Top Cuts
Change the Game
I Just Want to Love U
Streets is Talking
This Can’t Be Life
You, Me, Him and Her
1-900-Hustler
The R.O.C.
Day VI. The Blueprint
9.11.01 will be a day the country never forgets. It’s also the birthday to The Blueprint. Hov still sold almost 500,000 albums that week despite the terror attacks. Kanye & Just Blaze were behind the boards for most of this project. This album is included in many conversations about Hov’s top 5 albums.
The Bobby Blue Band sample echoed the halls of my apartment building when this project dropped. The city was in a terrible place, and you could still smell Ground Zero from miles away. “Ain’t no love, in the heart of the city,” was more than just a sample but a feeling across the 5 boroughs.
Personal Top Cuts
The Ruler’s Back
Takeover
Izzo
Girls, Girls, Girls
Hola Hovito
Heart of the City
Song Cry
Renegade
Day VII. The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse
November 12, 2002 Jay drops The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse. This album goes gold in its first week and is the first solo double album for him. The Gift being the more pop side, and The Curse being the dark, grungy side of the project.
This is my least favorite album he has ever put out. A double CD, from a man that has dropped work consecutively since his very first project, seemed to be a good idea but fell short of expectations. I do believe if this was consolidated down to 1, 13 tracklist; it would’ve been far better. Jay has even said that this is one of his worse albums to date, because it has too many songs.
Personal Top Cuts
Hovi Baby
’03 Bonnie & Clyde
Excuse Me Miss
Guns & Roses
U Don’t Know (Remix)
Day VIII. The Black Album
11.14.03 The Black Album drops as Hov’s final album before retirement.This was instantly dubbed a classic, sitting amongst RD & The Blueprint. When creating this album, Jay wanted to have a different produce on each of the tracks. Just Blaze produced 3 songs on this body of work. PSA was added to the album last minute after hearing the beat from Just Blaze. The completed interlude was recorded in one take, after Jay scrapped audio he originally laid.
This was the first Hov album that I purchased with my little coins. All the others are borrowed from my brother, who recently had left to go to college. I know every word to every song on this album. This is in my top 3 albums for Jay-Z.
Personal Top Cuts
December 4th
What More Can I Say
Encore
Change Clothes
Dirt off Your Shoulder
Moment of Clarity
99 Problems
PSA (Interlude)
Lucifer
Allure
Day IX. Kingdom Come
In his First album post “retirement”, Hov drops Kingdom Come on November 21, 2006. By December 14th, this album was already certified double platinum and nominated for the Best Rap Album Grammy. The vast majority believed this is one of his worse projects when it was released and Hov agrees.
This album at the time it dropped, for me, was a complete L. I thought to myself, “There is no way that after 3 years, he falls off like this.” But even Superman takes off his suit and turns into Clark Kent. Even with taking an L on this album as a unit, there are still some great cuts on this record. The instrumentation that you hear on Show Me What You Got, was a void that was missing in Hip Hop, even today. I Made It, is a song that I keep in my soundtrack to life for when I am where I want to be in life. “Hooray is the underdog / Now my feet under desk,” is the ultimate story of progression, and one day soon, I will be there.
Personal Top Cuts
Shoe Me What You Got
Lost One
30 Something
I Made It
Day X. American Gangster
Following the release of the movie of the same title, American Gangster dropped November 6, 2007. Denzel Washington pushed to have Hov do the soundtrack, however, producers decided that it would’ve been better to use music from that time period. In typical Hov fashion, he was so inspired by the project he made an album. Each track is inspired by a different scene from the film. He had the movie constantly playing while he was in the studio recording this project. Puff and his team are credited to producing 6 of the 15 tracks on this album.
First and foremost, I find it absolutely disgusting that he doesn’t have 1 song on the actual soundtrack. This album proved a modern lens to a story that took place in the 1970s. This is one of my favorite films and for this album to be inspired by it, makes it the icing on the cake for me. “Blue Magic that's a brand name; Like Pepsi, that's a brand name. I stand behind it, I guarantee it.”
Personal Top Cuts
American Dreamin’
Hello Brooklyn 2.0
Roc Boys
Ignorant Shit
Success
Blue Magic
American Gangster
Day XI. The Blueprint 3
September 8, 2009 Hov drops the third installment of the Blueprint. This album broke Elvis Presley’s record with being Hov’s 11th number one album. This was the first album he released with Roc Nation (Atlantic) after buying his way out of his Def Jam contract. Kanye produced most of the album with 7 tracks. This album had mixed reviews with critics some spouting that the album was pop-friendly while others stated it sounds like him in a midlife crisis.
This isn’t my favorite album in the last but it still had a enough bops to keep me listening. I was just about done with high school when this came out, so I had relocated from NY with my family. Every chance that I had I was back home. If I wasn’t home, Empire State of Mind helped cure me being homesick. It still does.
Personal Top Cuts
Run This Town
Empire State of Mind
On to the Next Once
A Star is Born
Venus vs. Mars
So Ambitious
Young Forever
Day XII. Magna Carta Holy Grail
His first solo project to drop in the summer, Magna Carta Holy Grail, debuted on the 4th of July 2013. This album was first promoted during the 2013 NBA Finals, during game 5. In the commerciaal, it included some of the producers of the album including Pharell, Timbaland, and Swizz Beats. Timbaland produced a majority of the album. Jay partnered with Samsung, providing one million free downloads using the Samsung App on select Samsung phones. This album is certified double platinum.
What I love most about this album is how much you can hear Timbaland’s sound on so many of these tracks. Sonically, Hov hit the nail on the coffin with the track selection, especially for one of his longer albums. For me, this album is the perfect blend of traditional Brookyn Hov and Sophisticated Hov. As the King of Interludes, Hov placed Beach is Better on this album which deserved its own 3 minutes worth of shine. Many people believed that he cheated his album sales due to the partnership with Samsung, I think it’s beyond genius. In the world of illegal downloads, he beat the internet at it’s own game.
Personal Top Cuts
Holy Grail
Picasso Baby
Tom Ford
Fuckwithmeyouknowigotit
Oceans
Part II
Beach is Better
Jay Z Blue
La Familia
Day XIII. 4:44
June 30, 2017, Hov dropped his most recent album, 4:44. In 5 short days, this album was already certified platinum with help from Sprint, who partnered with Jay for the release. Sprint and Tidal hosted several listening parties around the country on the eve of the albums release. Many critics believed that this album was Jay’s response to Beyonce’s Lemonade which debuted in 2016. However, in an interview with Dean Banquet of the NY Times, Jay shared that he and Beyonce were working on a joint album, which led to the creation of Lemonade & 4:44. No ID produced the entire album, working with Jay, sampling most of what Jay was listening to personally. Jay lead the pack with 8 Grammy nominations for his work on this album.
“Ever thought you'd see the day hip-hop grew up?” This album not only shows the grow of Hip Hop but also of the man, Shawn Carter. He very candidly opens up about how he’s not perfect but his will to work instead of walk away is what is keeping his less than perfect marriage to Queen B. In a world of mumble rap, this album is a breath of fresh air to the ever evolving Hip Hop genre. I love listening to this album directly after Lemonade. The title track reveals that their issues are deeper than the infamous elevator fight between Solange & Jay. To all the 20 something year olds, who are fighting to be at the top of our game, I deem this album one of his best works and it came 21 years after his first project. Progress is a process.
Personal Top Cuts
Kill Jay Z
The Story of OJ
Smile
4:44
Family Feud
Moonlight
Marcy Me
Legacy