I understand that I am one of the few people in the world that really like the new Jay-Z album, and I’m fine with that (consider this Taylor vs. Everyone Else, Part 2). I also understand that regardless of what I say here, few of you will be convinced. But I’ve never been the type of person to give up without a fight.
When choosing how to do his comeback, Jay-Z could have done anything, but the history of comebacks mostly presents us with two choices: over the top ridiculousness (compensating) or straight-forwardness (lack-luster but honest). He chose the latter, and he chose wisely. In a music genre where sentimentality and older age rarely make themselves available, Jay-Z is unafraid to discuss both. These things don’t make a hip-hop or rap album automatically good, but they do make it interesting, and they do make it different. Sure, the album has its weak moments — the Chris Martin track is atrocious (Pitchfork happened to think it was the best, which baffles me). And yes, pretending you’re the biggest name in rap after a hiatus is a bit cocksure. But the fact of the matter is that he’s proven himself over and over, and he’s earned that right. Of all the rappers that would have us think that they’re the best act in town, I’m still more inclined to believe Jay-Z.
But this isn’t Rolling Stone, and I’m not about to give 4 stars to any album from any veteran of any genre only because they’re a veteran. The aesthetic, the feel of the album is what appeals to me the most. More than anything, rap of 2000 and beyond is all about being flashy. The drug-dealing, crime committing lifestyle is still there, but it’s not the focus anymore. Lately it’s all about the women, the cars, the watches, the champagne that come as a result (Clipse anyone? Oh, I’ll get to them). Rap has been as much about partying and dancing as dance music. That’s all fine and good, but the fact that Kingdom Come isn’t about that is what makes it stand out to me even more. The tone is darker, heavier. This isn’t music to play in the background at a club, this is music to listen to. It may not be his forte, and it may not be what rap is supposed to be all about. But even in its flaws — indeed, partly because of them — it feels more honest and revealing than a lot of what he’s done.
Before I start hating on Clipse, let me say this: I do like Hell Hath No Fury, and I do understand why people are raving about it. Hell, the morning that I first started writing this, I had “Ride Around Shinning” stuck in my head. There’s no doubt that these two are extremely talented at dropping a clever one-liner or rhyme, and working with and against each beat. But that does not an album of the year make.
What have Clipse shown us besides their ability to spout off some well-planned lines and rhymes, bob and weave around beats and make music critics (read: men ages 18-35) swoon? What have they told us about life? Hell, what have they told us about their own lives? Nothing. If all I wanted was to hear a smooth-talker give me useless information about high-end goods, I would’ve gone to a salesman. Then I could’ve just pretended like I wanted to spend money instead of having to actually spend it, like I had to for this album.
It’s not that every piece of music needs to be riddled with deeper meaning. There are plenty of great songs that are simple through and through. But even a lot of those songs provide us with some kind of catharsis or connection, and those that don’t at least supplement themselves with a hook or refrain that nags at your brain. Very little on the Clipse record makes for a lasting impression. And despite the abundance of witty lyrics being thrown around, I can’t remember a single one of them without going back to the album — and I have a damn good memory. Speaking of which, I actually just remembered a few: “When I’m shoveling that snow, call me frosty, lover.” “My niggers say I’m p-noid. They say I’m just p-noid.” “Whamp whamp, what it do, what it do.” What poetry! What intrigue! What… crap. Look, I’m being tough on them here, and I know it. There are better lines on this album than I’ve quoted, but like I said, they just don’t stick in my memory. Believe it or not, I do like this album. I just don’t think it deserves as much praise as its gotten.
A lot of people have been saying that the beats on Hell Hath No Fury are some of the Neptunes’ best, but I don’t see why. They’re not the kind of relaxed, smooth beats that you can listen to while you’re just hanging out, and they’re not the kind of jumping, grooving beats that make you want to get up and dance. They’re hard-hitting and stagnant. You can’t really do anything to this album but listen to it, and it’s not interesting enough to spend that much time doing so. You can listen to it in short spurts, but the whole thing? Go ahead, sit down and don’t do a thing but listen to this album and see how far you get. I usually have to stop after three or four in order to save myself a headache.
Sorry, men, but you’ve been duped by two master showmen. They’ve given you nothing of themselves, and in return, you’ve given them your time, money and adoration (fyi, gentlemen, this is what it feels like to be a woman in college). You’ve been blinded by what you think is a diamond, when it’s actually cubic zirconia. And Clipse knows this. They have to “ride around shining while [they] can afford it,” ’cause they won’t be able to afford it for long.
It’s not Clipse’s fault. This is what the industry has demanded of them. This is what we’ve told them to do, this is what successful rap music has sounded like for years. And, really, the overall problem that I have with the Clipse record is the problem that I have with a lot of rap records: I’m really not that interested in hearing how amazing someone thinks they are. The world is filled with men who think they’re more incredible than they actually are. Telling everyone about it on a CD is not only self-indulgent, but redundant. What’s worse is that most of them can’t even back it up.
This kind of thing is what irks me a bit about the Lupe Fiasco record, as well. On about half of the songs, the first thing he says is either his own name or the name of the album. Doing this once or twice? Sure. But doing this all the time? It’s hard to tell whether he thinks we might forget who we’re listening to, or he just thinks so highly of himself and his record (which is my guess, considering the 12 MINUTE LONG SHOUT-OUT TRACK, ARE YOU INSANE?), but either way, it’s uncalled for and slightly annoying after repeated listens.
Food & Liquor does have some commonality with Kingdom Come. A lot of the beats are jazz and soul based, which I find more interesting as I get into those genres more and more. And, like Jay-Z, Mr. Fiasco’s attempts at sentimentality are hit-or-miss. However, unlike Jay-Z, who just sounds a bit cheesy when he misses, Fiasco’s failed attempts are positively stomach churning. Don’t even get me started on “Hurts Me Soul.” It’s awful. It’s so, so, so awful. It’s so bad that I don’t even want to waste time writing another word about it. Luckily, tracks like “Real” and “Daydreamin'” more than make up for the weaknesses. Though, lastly, I have to admit that the proud woman in me gets a little angry when he says that a woman is being a man by providing for a family. Can’t we get past that? My god. Again, I’m being too negative here, and I have to back-up. I think this is a really good album, and I like that, unlike Clipse, Lupe can broach serious topics successfully, but I think that, like Hell Hath No Fury, its lasting power isn’t very high.
I hate to say it, but after running my mouth off and being negative all this time, I can’t really explain why I like the Blue Sky Black Death album so much. It’s another dark, mysterious album that just fit my state of mind and my mood at the time that it came along, and I like it for some of the same reasons that I like Kingdom Come: it’s different and it’s interesting. I don’t listen to instrumental rap (or turntablists, if you prefer) that often, but the instrumental CD of the 2 CD set is especially great.
I would explain why I liked the Ghostface album, but didn’t love it like everyone else did, but by this point I’ve told you so many of my thoughts about rap that you could probably guess pretty accurately. Though I’ll say this: dear rappers, stop with the fucking skits already. love, Taylor T-Sides.
1. 
Jay-Z, Kingdom Come
Favorite Tracks:
“Oh My God” (download)
“Kingdom Come” (download)
2. 
Blue Sky Black Death, A Heap of Broken Images
Favorite Tracks:
“Dream of Dying” (download)
“Scriptures” (download)
3. 
Lupe Fiasco, Food & Liquor
Favorite Tracks:
“Real” (download)
“Daydreamin'” (download)
4. 
Clipse, Hell Hath No Fury
Favorite Tracks:
“Ride Around Shinning” (download)
“Nightmares” (download)
5. 
Ghostface Killah, Fishscale
Favorite Tracks:
“Kilo” (download)
“Be Easy” (download)
14 comments
jason says:
Jan 1, 2007
interesting, i’ll have to check out a couple of those, but for the most part i completely avoid anything classified as rap. the beats usually annoy me, and the lyrics are rarely worthwhile. to take a line of yours out of context, almost the entire genre is cubic zirconia 😉
the only hip-hop albums that really grabbed me this year were the roots’ ‘game theory’ & the coup’s ‘pick a bigger weapon’.
Taylor says:
Jan 1, 2007
I liked the Roots album a lot, as well, but I didn’t listen to it enough to be able to feel like I could form a really solid opinion on it. I’ll have to change that.
I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Coup album, but I haven’t heard it.
If you come back in about an hour you’ll see the rest of my picks!
some one with ears says:
Jan 2, 2007
you r the wackest reviewer ive ever read. the clipse album is top draw, the production maintains a dark edge which give a theme to the album, the lyrics you qouted were nothing short of haterlicious, there r much better lyrics on the album. Pusha Ts flow is reminiscent of biggie in his prime. nitemares, trill (BANGER). ride around shining, keys open doors are great pieces of work, this is not a sit around and dance all day album, altho ull find no difficulty in doing so with sone of them fire beats. lupes album is also fire, the production is great and lupe is arguably lyricist of the year, he also touches on serious topics without sounding preachy. i pose it to u sir or maddam, tht u are the reason y hip hop is dead, Game Theory was fire too. forgive me for being so animated, but i wudnt want ppl think ure the go to guy for music advice, ure clearly an absolute moron and disgrace. you were born a bastard baby. thank you for your time
Taylor says:
Jan 2, 2007
you’re right, there are better lyrics on the album, and if you’d actually paid attention to what I said, you would notice that I said that. I simply said that, even though there are better lyrics on the album, they’re not memorable.
and yes, lupe’s does manage to touch on serious topics without sounding preachy, as you’ve said — I didn’t say that he didn’t. but sometimes his attempts to touch on serious topics without sounding preachy fall flat, in my opinion.
look, I probably wrote too negatively, but I do like both of those albums. keep in mind, this is a list of my favorite hip-hop and rap albums from the year.
and I never said anything negative about Game Theory. I like what I’ve heard of it, but I just haven’t had the time to give it an in-depth listen yet.
also, I’m not a man, not a moron, not a disgrace, and not the reason hip-hop is dead. I even acknowledge in the very beginning that people tend to disagree with my opinions. I’m just a girl looking to stir up some rebuttal opinions, which I’ve clearly achieved. thank you.
DOM says:
Jan 2, 2007
Is Blue Sky/Black Death the one you played (tried to anyway) on the way to CT? The one we listened to on the way back on Friday? The Seattle group?
Taylor says:
Jan 2, 2007
no, that was Blue Scholars 🙂
Billy F. says:
Jan 3, 2007
Just a few thoughts using your own quotes.
“But this isn’t Rolling Stone, and I’m not about to give 4 stars to any album from any veteran of any genre only because they’re a veteran.”
Thank God. And thank God this isn’t pitchfork and you do the complete opposite and give a 4.5 (out of 10) to any album from any veteran of any genre only because they’re a veteran.
“More than anything, rap of 2000 and beyond is all about being flashy. The drug-dealing, crime committing lifestyle is still there, but it’s not the focus anymore. Lately it’s all about the women, the cars, the watches, the champagne that come as a result (Clipse anyone? Oh, I’ll get to them). Rap has been as much about partying and dancing as dance music.”
I was trying to think of an example to use to prove you wrong here, but I keep on contradicting myself. But I think I’ve got something: Not all rap post-2000 is about being flashy, or the women, the cars, the watches, etc. Post-2000 we’ve had a rise (at least to a certain extent) in the alternative rap scene. Artists like Jurassic 5, The Roots, Mike Skinner/The Streets (I call him rap), Dizzee Rascall (however it’s spelt), etc etc have downplayed those elements (the spoils of the genre if you will) and taken radically different approaches, showing political sides, urban problems and offering profound opinions on topics not often seen in rap. In fact, these artists are harping back to some of raps important pioneers, specifically Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, who used the genre to showcase the problems of the black communities. Now of course, this has gotten tainted as well, as the flashy performers took on these issues. Nas, Kanye, Jay-Z, Eminem, etc. (And here’s where I contradict myself and agree with you) These performers didnt always rap about partying, instead offered the more serious topics, but skewed them with their own flashly elements. Kanye West talked about Jesus and how he’s absent from rap songs, and that he cant get commercial success from rapping about him, yet aside from subject matter, Kanye did absolutly nothing different than Puffy. No one has made Jesus more flashy than Kanye West.
And Im pretty sure I’ve just invalidated my own point again. Look what happens when I just go rambling on. Taylor, this is why you were such a great editor: if I submitted this to you, it would somehow magically end up coherent by the following Thursday.
“This isn’t music to play in the background at a club, this is music to listen to. It may not be his forte, and it may not be what rap is supposed to be all about.”
Jay Z has always had a ballance between music made to be listened to and music for the clubs. While “Dirt off your shoulders” would be a great dance hit, “99 Problems” would be the most important and personal song of the year. It is one of his fortes; Or rather, it was.
And as I rambled on about before, rap has always had that personal and and important aspect the was meant more for the analysising than dancing. From “The Message” and “White Lines” to “Stan”. Rap has proven to be just as versitile a genre as rock and soul before it.
“dear rappers, stop with the fucking skits already. love, Taylor T-Sides.”
Here Here! Honestly, they’re just stupid and childish now. “The College Dropout” and “Behind the Front” are two of my favorite rap albums and I always have to skip ahead when ever a skit comes on. They’re not clever, they’re just bad.
This has been another installment of Billy making no sense at 3 in the morning. I hope you all enjoyed it.
Taylor says:
Jan 3, 2007
Well, I think an important difference between the flashy artists you talk about and the non-flashy is that a lot of the non-flashy artists you refer to fall more in the hip-hop category. Even though I’ve blurred the lines with this post, I think there’s noticeable difference between the artists considered hip-hop and the artists considered rap. It’s kind of become a thing now, where, hip-hop artists are deemed the more serious of the two (which is possibly why a lot of flashier artists keep calling their music hip-hop — to try and perhaps seem more serious?) I’m not saying I necessarily agree with this, that’s just how the trend seems to be working lately. Also, a lot of the flashier artists are more mainstream, which is an important note, I think. It’s absolutely possible to make rap/hip-hop music with a message — there’s plenty of it, and as I’ve written above, I tend to prefer it — but the people who do are often not the ones who rise up the charts… not that there’s anything wrong with that. I like to shake my ass as much as the next person.
You’re absolutely right about Jay-Z, and I didn’t mean to suggest that all rap is meant to be danced to at a club. What I should’ve said is that a lot of mainstream rap/hip-hop — particularly since 2000 — seems to have that aim. Jay-Z has always been good at combining the two, as you say. Still, this album is less dance-party friendly than his others, I think.
Billy F. says:
Jan 3, 2007
The difference between rap and hip-hop has always been something that I’ve been confused about. What qualifies a song in either genre? I’m starting to think the artists themselves dont know, because as you mentioned, they are jumping over boundries with their music too.
Then a group like Gnarles Barkley or OutKast comes in and combines everything and no ones sure what’s up or down anymore. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. In fact, it’s great. Mixing and playing with genres is what made David Bowie so great. It’s what made Beck the Bowie of our times, and it’s what keeps many artists fresh.
And yes, the flashy is mostly mainstream, but even some of the current mainstream flashy were once alternative and indie rappers. The best example here is the Black Eyed Peas. For those that do not know, they had two (pretty good) albums before Elephunk hit big and everyone was singing “Where is the love? (feat. Justin Timberlake)”. Now they were never a serrious group; it’s not like they were singing about how there are people on welfare or anything, but they were never the “lets sing about slapping hos and doing drugs” rappers either. They just made fun dance songs. At least not until Fergie joined the group and they released Elephunk. Then they embrased the mainstream and the flashy-ness. They recorded “Let’s get retarded” and {shudder} “My humps”. It’s almost like their whole sound changed when they went flashy. This is a shining example of an indie group going flashy, but is this the way it always is?
jason says:
Jan 4, 2007
i just want to point out that the roots (the very definition of modern hip-hop with a conscious look back to the originators) put out their first album in ’93 & their major-label debut was ’95. even though they didn’t break into mainstream consciousness until erykah badu guested on their ’99 album, ‘things fall apart’, they’ve been around for awhile. granted, their post-2000 work up to ‘game theory’ has had a harder edge (the temporary loss of malik b?), but they don’t really work for the point of the comparison.
Taylor says:
Jan 4, 2007
I think, for the most part, the terms are used pretty interchangeably, but I generally make a separation. I couldn’t describe how I would categorize either if pressed, but I do consider each to have a different aesthetic.
The Roots are absolutely a good example of a group I would call hip-hop. The Black-Eyed Peas have always seemed like a hybrid of dance and hip-hop/rap to me more than straight up rap/hip-hop.
tim says:
Jan 5, 2007
have you checked out Nas yet, and was he excluded for a reason? i’m a fan of kingdom come, but the best jay-z track of the year is on nas’s album, not on KC.
Taylor says:
Jan 5, 2007
Nas & The Game are the big rap/hip-hop releases that I didn’t get a chance to hear, but I’m planning to do so in the near future, so I may end up revising this list, hah.
T-Sides » Blog Archive » T-Sides’ 2007 in Review: Top Albums - the “Best” says:
Jan 13, 2008
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