I'm one of those few hip hop heads who have never quite got the huge deal with Jay and don't understand his massive success, which you would have probably realised already if you have seen my reviews of previous Jay albums on this site. I've never dug his beat selection, at times going for a whole album of beats with a poppy undertone to them, and while he can spit, his style doesn't do it for me on the whole. There are many songs where he really isn't saying anything with substance, which you need to be doing if I ain't feeling the beat.
He also isn't as creative as the best. To compare him to his former rival, he hasn't created original songs like a [One Mic/Rewind/I Gave You Power for example. You could say maybe 99 Problems, but that was jacked from Ice-T. There is no denying he has created some great stuff though, however, as far as I'm concerned, it hasn't happened anywhere near often enough for someone with his stature in the rap world.
He returns now though with another Blueprint and after five to six listens I have to say it's more enjoyable than I expected. From a production side of of things, it definitely sounds modern with some electronic influences and modern rock among other things. It ain't brilliant but I think the guys did a fairly good job with this, especially for the first half or so of the album. You can see now why the cover art is what it is with all the instruments as the beats feature many different instrumental themes.
Track Reviews: First up is 'What We Talkin' About' which is a well produced track by Kanye and No I.D. The hook is a touch underwhelming but it helps with the emphasis when Jay kicks into a verse. Lyrically it's largely about artists who have taken shots at him. "I ain't talking about gossip, I ain't talking bout Game". 'Thank You' ain't great, I find Jay annoying with his flow here. The hook is likewise and he really ain't really saying anything. 'D.O.A.', which most would have heard before getting the album, is pretty good. I really like the horns in this beat. No I.D. did his thing. Next up is 'Run This Town'. I'm not a big fan of the hook, but I enjoy the verses and production. Good but not great.
Alicia is brilliant on the hook of 'Empire State of Mind' and helps improve the track which is one of the better, if not the best song on the disc. I like 'Real As It Gets' and it reminds me of something from Jeezy's last album, 'The Recession', which I enjoy. Reading other reviews 'On to the Next One' doesn't seem to be getting much love, but I enjoy it. It is one of the better Swizz Beatz beats I've heard for a while and features his signature sound which I don't usually like. Jay rides it well but I don't think he quite matches the tribal intensity of the beat with his vocals. Lyrically though, it's a good track which many artists would relate to, when fans expect another 'Illmatic' or '36 Chambers' from artists. That's the best run of tracks this album has.
From there, the album drops off considerably. Timbaland's 'Off That' is not as enjoyable or as musically interesting as the songs that come before it. The featuring artist Drake is fairly nonexistent also. At track nine, 'A Star is Born' at first was one of my favourites from the disc but has lost its appeal. Lyrically it's just about artists that have established success. I like J. Cole's verse though. I'm going to have to check more from him.
'Venus Vs. Mars' is the next best track for a couple of songs with its sort of electronic psychedelic beat to it. Lyrically it's mostly just naming opposites through the song of what he and his shawty like. "I thought shawty like Mike, found out she like Prince". Next is 'Already Home' and if you can't pick the Kanye West beat you would have to be new to the genre. It reminds me of mix between some 'Late Registration' production and his newest 'Graduation'. I like this one except for the hook, I really can't stand Kid Cudi. He is awful!
The next track 'Hate' again is very Kanye-ish, and very reminiscent of the production used on '808s & Heartbreak'. Again it's another all right track. Listenable, but not great. Like 'What We Talkin' About' at the beginning of the album this is a bit of brag rap and dissing some artists that have had a go at him. "Remember those button-ups?, Young Hov, tell them ordinary Joes, Budden up". It's enjoyable and of the three tracks the best Timberland produced one for the album. That's where any fun ends. The last two tracks are average at best with 'Young Forever' being the worst on the album and like 'Already Home' having a similar poor chorus. Why is Kanye ruining his tracks with crap hooks?
Overall, there is nothing truly brilliant here, and the album really really falls away in the second half. Rating each track little comes close to being a 5 outta 5. Therefore, overall I think a 2.5/5 is the right rating to give to an album like this. Some fairly fresh beats, some nice features, okay lyrics, so so subject matter, and an artist who doesn't flow with anything special anymore.
Best Tracks: Empire State of Mind, Real As It Gets, On to the Next One, D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune), Venus vs. Mars
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