Jigga is back on it with a fresh dose of what he does best. The Blueprint 3 dropped in America on September 11th, a date remembered around the world for the devastating attacks on New York City in 2001 it was also the same date that the original and best in the Blueprint trilogy was released. It’s a real hit and miss album for me at the moment and with most of it leaking early I came into it with a mind intoxicated with preconceived opinions. There’s some good and some not so good efforts on The Blueprint 3 - it’s a real roller coaster ride. Personally I love Jay for his brassy in your face swagger and unashamed self promotion which he delivers in abundance – on opening track “What We Talking ‘Bout” Jay proclaims “I don’t run rap no more; I run the map” – highlighting his finger in every pie empire built up over the last decade or so. Lyrical delivery and wordplay are like riding a bike to Jay Z it’s something he’ll never lose, highlighted with lines like…”Please don’t bow in my presence, how am I a legend? I’ve just got ten number one albums maybe now eleven. More hits than a ‘Now 11′, that is no reason to treat me like somehow I’m outta heaven.”
Jay-Z is probably one of the last remaining hip-hop pop stars, someone respected in hip hop circles and still able to make records that can crossover and be appreciated by pop music fans of all generations. Recently I caught his gig at the Old Trafford Cricket ground in Manchester – Well, I say his gig; he was actually supporting Coldplay!? This point highlights exactly what I’m saying about his crossover appeal. Jay’s performance went down well with all the middle aged mums and dads waiting to see Coldplay but something about him warming up for Coldplay got under my skin a little bit. I don’t care for all the Jay-Z and Chris Martin arse licking – probably stemming from my dislike for Coldplay’s music. Although I have to admit that Coldplay do put on a rather special live show. They don’t skimp on costs, it’s more of a specatacle than a music gig – the music seems to be secondary to the lighting, smoke, fireworks, confetti, balloons, stage changes, crowd roaming and other outlandish showman tactics. That’s all good, but I’m about the music so it was nice when Chris Martin declared it was the first time they had ever played after someone bigger than them.
Getting back to the record, it’s a real game of two halves. The first half recapturing some of the essence of The Blueprint, forging heritage hip hop sounds, classic Jay-z lyrical prowess and contemporary beat-making from the likes of Swizz Beats, Kanye West, No I.D., The Incredibles and Al Shux. In comparison to anything Jay has made since The Black album, The Bluprint 3 is light-years ahead, but it’s still no Black Album and it sure as hell doesn’t match up to the quality of The Blueprint and I can’t even speak/type The Blueprint 3′s name in the same sentence as R********* D****. Following the releases of American Gangster and Kingdom Come I thought Jay-Z was a goner. I gave both albums a once over, came close to spewing my guts up from Black Album withdrawal symptoms and suppressed all knowledge of both LP’s to the deepest darkest recesses of my subconscious. Track 9 – A Star Is Born (Featuring. J.Cole) is the beginning of the end for The Blueprint 3 and triggers the onset post Black Album depression – bursting it’s way into my consciousness and destroying the remaining listening experience. I hate to end on such a sour note but as I said earlier this album is a roller-coaster ride and for me it ends in a trough.
Jay-Z – Empire State Of Mind (featuring. Alicia Keys)
Jay-Z – Thank You
Listen to The Blueprint 3 in Spotify
