Carter officially giving Roc Nation’s signee J. Jay’s confidence is at an all-time high as he quiets those wishing for the Jay-Z of old (“Hov on that new shit, Niggas like how come/ Niggas want my old shit, buy my old albums/ Niggas stuck on stupid, I gotta keep it moving/ Niggas make the same shit, me, I make the blueprint”) while also pondering his next landmark move as if bringing the late Michael Jackson on stage during Summer Jam, being text buddies with President Obama and chopping it up with mogul Oprah Winfrey in Marcy Projects was not big enough. There has finally been a Swizz Beatz sighting as he laces Jay-Z with heatrocks in the form of “On To The Next One”.
The lovely Alicia Keys laces President Carter with an eventful chorus as he dedicates “Empire State of Mind” to New York City, painting a detailed mural not through the eyes of his usual hustler persona, but through the eyes of a savvy businessman. The horn and kazoo-laced “Thank You” features shades of his now legendary debut as his nimble flow finds him contemplating a lyrical assault on enemies before proclaiming that they did it to themselves: “Not only did they brick, they put a building up as well/ then ran a plane into that building and when that building fell/ ran to the crash site, with no masks, then inhale/ toxins deep inside they lungs, until both of them was felled”. Over the foreboding backdrop, Jay-Z dazzles like an clever boxer, issuing jab after jab, touching on grievances with foes (both old and new) while echoing sentiments of an elder statesmen feeling underappreciated for his contributions to hip hop. Hefty standards are set upon Jigga’s shoulders as higher aspirations see him attempting to construct a new “blueprint” in a quest to transcend both hip hop and music as well.Īfter releasing a bevy of albums over the years, Jay-Z knows how important it is to begin an album on a high note and the synth-happy “What We Talkin’ About” is no slouch. What else does he have left to prove? Even after the release of the maligned Kingdom Come and the fairly well-received American Gangster, it appears much more as Jay-Z has returned with a new release: the third and final installment in his Blueprint trilogy. His own brand new label in Roc Nation, which was achieved through a multi-million dollar deal with Live Nation. Millions of dollars sitting in various bank accounts. A beautiful wife in singer/actress Beyonce.
It must be hard being Shawn Corey Carter.