He took one of the most electrifying beefs the medium has ever seen (with Nas) and turned it into a lucrative business proposition, proving first-hand that it can be wise to swallow our pride every now and then. Jay-Z was the first rapper to age gracefully, the one who embraced preconceived ageism within a subculture by confronting it head-on, proclaiming “30 was the new 20” without anyone even remotely challenging as much. Rather he has set himself apart by making forward-looking, awe-inspiring, never-been-done-before revelatory choices that have helped lead a personalized sense of transcendence throughout all of hip-hop. Because much like his roundball peer, the man born Shawn Carter has built his empire not by merely showcasing his exceptional rhyming skills. Moments - not dunks, not passes, not shots, not highlights - moments.
JAY Z THE DYNASTY ARCHIVES FULL
If there's one to skip, it's the Rick Rubin-produced '99 Problems', but Just Blaze brings it straight back up with 'Public Service Announcement', before the more obvious 'Justify My Thug' (yes, that's the chorus) and classic closer 'My First Song', which brings us full circle, linking back to Jay-Z's debut single of 1996.To try and nail down a list of the best Jay-Z songs is kind of like trying to nail down a list of Michael Jordan’s best moments on a basketball court.
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Following up the brilliance of 'Frontin", the Neptunes bring the bounce back for 'Change Clothes', before 'Threat' sees J shrug off those he receives ('I been tellin you niggas nine albums, stop fucking wit' me'). Overall, The Black Album is much more focused than its wandering, epic predecessor The Blueprint 2. He admits, 'Truthfully, I want to rhyme like common sense, but I did five mill, I ain't been rhyming like common since.' Whatever next? Undercurrents of misogyny and gang violence? As Jay-Z spells out on 'Moment of Clarity', he 'built the dynasty by being one of the realest niggas out' before 'I dumbed down for my audience to double my dollars'. I mean, imagine - hip hop chasing the dollar. Most of them will admit he rhymes and flows freer than anyone but diss him for being more concerned with record sales than pushing hip hop's boundaries. From then on in, it's self-celebratory biopic, from Ma Carter reminiscing about her 'special child' over Just Blaze's panoramic string-laden epic 'December 4', to the rhetorical 'What More Can I Say' on which Jay-Z declares, 'Pound to pound I'm the best to ever come around here, excluding nobody,' then, as the track fades, he spits, in full dextrous a cappella: 'I suppos'd to be number one on everybody's list, we'll see what happens when I no longer exist.'Īs he knows better than anyone, Jigga's also number one on a few player haters' lists. The opening interlude sets the scene, declaring, 'All things must come to an end, all things must conclude,' depicting Jay-Z as a Brooklyn tree ready to 'pass on its legacy through its seeds that drop to the ground'. The original plan was a dozen tracks from a dozen producers, and though this ultimately proved too ambitious even for J-Hova, the impressive roll call - Timbaland, Neptunes, Eminem, Just Blaze, Kanye West - includes most of the heavyweights. At a playback at his Manhattan Baseline Studios last month, the man of many pseudonyms was defiant: this is his last outing.
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Jay-Z has long talked about retiring from the game, but after nine years and nine albums, the rapper who more than any other dominated the landscape in the wake of the Twin Towers of Biggie and Tupac, is set to pass the mic for good.