By David Sutherland for
SarcasticDBag.Blogspot.comJay-Z's 11th album is a superbly produced record that's easy on the ears, but don't expect anything revelatory from this over-hyped wannabe opus.On August 4th an excited Jay-Z sat down with MTV News to explain the leaked photos of
The Blueprint 3's cover art. With a strong sense of nostalgia, Jay stated, "The whole thing about this album, how I approached it, is that I wanted to make a new classic to start that all over again — to go back to making classic albums like the ones we grew up listening to."
Well that seems noble enough.
In order to create a new classic, Jay stuck to the formula that worked for him before: he re-hired the man who laid the musical groundwork for the original
Blueprint, recruited a bunch of A-listers as guests and then added lyrics. In a perfect world that combination should have been hip-hop pay dirt, but sadly, Jay seemed to forget that art is not science and formulas are not perennial.
The end result of this experiment is that The Blueprint 3 is far from a classic, and the only connection it has to its timeless predecessor is its unworthy moniker.
Say it ain't so, Jay.
While the beats shine on
The Blueprint 3, Jay's lyrics have rusted, and the emcee's hunger that fueled his longevity is nowhere to be found. This hunger, which albums like the original
Blueprint had in droves with songs like "Takeover" and "U Don't Know" has been replaced with laziness disguised as confidence. Although Jay's attempt at sounding current on songs like "On to the Next One" and "Off That" is miles beyond
Kingdom Come throwaways like "30 Something", they still miss their mark and make you question the emotional security of a man who spends so much time insisting that he's not insecure.
On an album where the bad moments outweigh the good, the worst song by far is the sappy and self-serving album closer "Forever Young".
To paraphrase comedian Paul Mooney, the cotton candy beat and watered down rhymes on "Forever Young" makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X. This song has no place on a Jay-Z album and it will go down as one of his worst mistakes.
The most troubling aspect about The Blueprint 3 is that Jay-Z has failed to progress lyrically in both his subject matter and style. While his accomplishments in the corporate and personal world have excelled astronomically - a 150 million dollar deal with Live Nation and marriage to Beyonce to name a few - his musical career appears to be stuck in limbo, and lackluster songs like "Reminder" and "Venus vs. Mars" are the result.
The album is not all bad of course and there are some truly fantastic songs interspersed throughout the mediocre. "Empire State of Mind" is an incredibly catchy New York anthem with a guest appearance from the classy and talented Alicia Keys whose singing is a welcome change from Rihanna's warbling on "Run This Town". Kid Cudi and Jay show real chemistry on "Already Home" and on "A Star is Born", newcomer and Roc Nation signee J. Cole spits a hot verse that's reminiscent of Lupe Fiasco's introduction on Kanye West's "Touch the Sky".
The album's best song by far is the Pharrell produced and featured "So Ambitious" that details Jay's desire to succeed in the face of adversity. You'd think this familiar theme would be tired by now, but Pharrell's gifted production and infectious hook makes for a track that's quietly uplifting and a pleasure to listen to.
Despite some hints of genius, The Blueprint 3 is a sub-par effort that isn't quite bad enough to damage Jay's status as the hip-hop hegemon, but is not nearly good enough to get a pass from this die-hard fan. It's just so unfortunate that Jay's obsession with being "Off That" and "On to the Next One" caused him to forget to say anything meaningful about the present.
Strong Points:- "Empire State of Mind", "Already Home" and "So Ambitious" are absolutely fantastic and the album's beats are above and beyond standard hip-hop production.
Notable Blemishes:- The hook on "Reminder" is infectious, but in the gangrenous, cut your leg off below the knee with a hacksaw kind of way.
- Giving Drake the Ashanti treatment on "Off That" was a bad move. Give him a verse!
- "Forever Young" is an unforgivable musical offense.
Speakers or Headphones?Speakers. Jay-Z's production team make beats for a reason, so bump it.
Final Verdict:
6/10Better than
Kingdom Come but a far cry from Jay's pre-retirement days.
