And just like that the great one has returned! I swear every time Jay returns with a project itโs like when Jordan came back and laced em up again. No matter how the end product may turn out, no matter if his skills have diminished, thatโs still that guy and I canโt do anything but sit back and watch in awe. At this point Jay-Z is bigger than the game and heโs without a doubt the most successful rapper to ever do it. So every time he does come back itโs just victory laps at this point. But the thing that makes him so special is that he keeps evolving and he always comes with new gems to drop on the people. I fucking love mature Jay-Z and I couldnโt wait to hear what new ish he had to talk on 4:44.
Itโs been four years sinceย he releasedย probably one of the more divisive albums in his extensive catalog,ย MCHG. I personally loved the album but a major point of contention with many of his die-hard stans was with itโs production. It saw Jay rhyming over all kinds of modern beats, including trap variations, and it rubbed them the wrong way. I donโt know if he was conscious of that when he was making 4:44, but it took a decidedly sharp turn in the other direction. Instead of working with a large cast of top producers, the albumโs entirely handle byย the always impeccable No I.D., so things were definitely more grown this go around. Honestly, this shit was so hip-hop it was refreshing, especially in a time when the sound has become so much less genre distinctive. Iโve always loved hearing Jay-Z on soul samples and No blessed him with some straight fire ones like โMarcy Meโ, โ4:44โ, and โFamily Feud.โ Theyโre not quite on Kanyeย Blueprint level but god damn theyโre close. This is Jayโs most cohesive sounding album sinceย American Gangster, which also happened to feature No I.D. production, and No truly blessed him with this yearโs purest hip-hop fire this side of Kendrick Lamar.
โSometimes you need your ego, gotta remind these fools
Who they effinโ with, andย we got Effen too
Before we had A&Rโs, we had ARโs too
We the only ones really movinโ like yโall say yโall do
We still movinโ like yโall niggas say yโall did
Emory passed you niggas and he did a bid
Ty Ty jumped over niggas and heโs like 5โ6โณ
Got the heart of a giant, donโt you ever forget
Donโt you never forget, Jigga got this shit poppinโ
I pulled out the pot when we was outta optionsโ
At this point in his career itโs pretty much pointless to talk about his rapping ability, he is the bar you measure other rappers against, his flow, his delivery, theyโre all about as flawless as you can get. What you can criticize him on is his subject matter, but you wonโt hear too much talk about high art, his businesses, or accolades. No, heโs about as serious as Iโve ever heard him and after four years away he had a lot to get off his chest. Heโs introspective and retrospective and touches on anything and everything, including his situations with Beyonce and Kanye. And he has entire songs aimed at this new generation of rappers, whether thatโs words of wisdom or criticism. Jay-Z is our Rolling Stones; heโs the first major rapper weโve really gotten to watch grow old in front of our eyes. Heโs done it all and seen it all, and onย 4:44 he sounds like it; but he doesnโt sound tired, he sounds like heโs got another 30+ ahead of him and Iโm there for all of it.
Have you heardย 4:44 yet? Whatโd you think about it? Do you like this mature Jay? Are you happy No I.D. handled the whole album? Let me know in the comments below and be sure to leave your own ratings and reactions for the album.
