yinyang205's Full Review: American Gangster [PA] by Jay-Z
Sean Carter returned to the hip-hop game last year with a bang. Over the horns of "Show Me What You Got", Jigga went platinum in a down year for hip-hop and went from hustler to businessman. That's right, Jay grew up, and instead of rapping about the streets, he rapped about stock, waxed philosophic about his life, and even went political to talk about Hurricane Katrina. It was a quality, and refreshing album to hear. Now that he's back to releasing albums every years (or so it seems), Jay-Z returns with his tenth studio album, entitled American Gangster. Loosely based around the film, Jay-Z tries his hand at a concept album, with each track pertaining to a certain scene of the movie. But like my man trey always says, none a that experiment sh*t means anything if the music isn't right, so is the album any good?
Track Listing and Ratings:
Intro (No Rating)
Pray (4 Stars)
American Dreamin' (4 1/2 Stars)
Hello Brooklyn 2.0 Ft. Lil Wayne (3 1/2 Stars)
No Hook (4 Stars)
Roc Boys [And the Winner Is…] (4 Stars)
Sweet (5 Stars)
I Know Ft. Pharrell (4 1/2 Stars)
Party Life (4 Stars)
Ignorant Sh*t Ft. Beanie Sigel (4 Stars)
Say Hello (4 1/2 Stars)
Success Ft. Nas (5 Stars)
Fallin' Ft. Bilal (5 Stars)
Bonus Tracks:
Blue Magic Ft. Pharrell (2 Stars)
American Gangster (4 Stars)
Beyond being based around the movie of the same title, Jay-Z drew on memories from his childhood in creating this album; therefore, American Gangster also plays like a mini-biography for the Brooklyn emcee. The album gets off to a good start with "Pray", which sees him reflect unabashedly on moving weight over a driving, yet somewhat unspectacular rock-tinged beat. He flexes his storytelling muscle on the first two verses before getting philosophical to close:
"Anywhere there's o-ppression in the drug profession, flourishes like beverages.
Refreshin'; ahhh, sweet taste of sin.
Everything I seen made me everything I am.
Bad drug dealer or victim, my bag?
What came first -- movin' chickens or the egg?
This is why I be so fresh.
I'm tryna beat life 'cause I can't cheat death.
'Preciate the shamelessness and stainlesses that aim this is.
You know the game this is..."
The album continues with "American Dreamin'", which rocks a slick Marvin Gaye sample while Jigga flows effortlessly, giving a "crash course" in the ways of selling drugs with bits of introspection thrown in. These first two tracks serve to introduce the listener to Jay the hustler: cold and calculating as he conducts his business, yet apologetic when it's all said and done. As the album progresses, we see Jay's success grow steadily, eventually culminating in a stretch of tracks that allow him to revel in the power he's attained. "Party Life" embodies this perfectly, as the 70s feel of the song immediately pulls the listener in and the singing throughout only adds to the relaxed atmosphere; even Jay-Z's slowed down flow is forgivable here. "Sweet" is another track along this vein, as the guitar plucks and drums provide the perfect backdrop for him to spit about living the good life. However, as good as this stretch is, it’s the two closers that put the icing on the cake. "Success" is absolutely brilliant, as Jay-Z and Nas get together again and the famed No ID laces the beat. Both emcees details the ups and down of success ("Truth be told I had more fun when I was p*ss poor," Jay confesses in his opening verse), but it's Nas who ultimately steals the show:
"To receive's great, but I lust giving
The best jewelers wanna make my things
I make Jacob sh*t on the range just to make me a chain
N*ggas mention the one love
Came home with the paper in hand
They gotta brag about the FEDS young man
Old cribs I sold, y'all drive by like monuments
Google Earth Nas, I got flats in other continents
Worst enemies wanna be my best friends
Best friends wanna be enemies like Daz was in..."
This track sets the stage for the dramatic closer in "Fallin'", which serves not only as Jay's collapse and fall from grace, but also as the album's best track. With Bilal giving an assist on the hook, Jigga brings the story of the American Gangster full circle, ending things as he began: with nothing but dreams. Jay's fall from power was almost as fast as his rise and in the end, he's just another guy "Raggin' bad 'bout all the new dudes." Not only does Jay bring his A game for the end of the album, he executes the concept behind admirably well.
As much as he brings it on the mic, the album isn't without its share of flaws. The most glaring one lies with the Brooklyn emcee himself, as his much-famed flow falters from time to time in various spots throughout, with Jay talking more than actually rapping. The biggest offender is "Blue Magic", where Jay sounds completely disinterested as he delivers his lines. I'm not sure if he was experimenting with different flows or if it's still rust from his comeback, but whatever the case, it definitely detracts from the listening experience. The other major flaw is the throwaway tracks scattered over the duration of American Gangster, with the most notable examples being "Hello Brooklyn 2.0" and the already-mentioned "Blue Magic". The former sees Jay battling to be heard on his own track, as Lil Wayne makes a guest appearance and fumbles yet another opportunity to impress his doubters with a laughable verse; he seems hell-bent on squandering his career-high popularity. And really, Lil Wayne, a New Orleans native, on a track about Brooklyn? Seriously? Jay-Z couldn't even get some from New York, or even the general area, to do this track with him? Maybe he offered Wayne the guest spot to settle the beef between the two. No matter what the case was, though, the result is a black mark on an otherwise solid effort. Meanwhile, the latter track should've been left on the cutting room floor as well; really, what was it that convinced Jay to make this a single? Was it the lazy beat and strained crooning by Pharrell, or his own sleep-inducing verses? Scrapping these two songs would’ve helped a lot, as the former is a major mood-killer and the latter breaks up an otherwise impressive run of tracks that begins with "Party Life".
While Jay is generally on point throughout the album, it's the sound that makes American Gangster such a complete listen. Sonically, this album is a marriage of Reasonable Doubt and Blueprint, with the gritty element evident on songs such as "Success" and "Sweet", the more soulful element being heard through the triumphant horns of "Roc Boys", and a combination of the two on tracks like "Say Hello". Aside from the beats simply sounding good, they fit in perfectly with the overall sound of the album, from the minimalist drums near American Gangster’s beginning on "American Dreamin’", to the throwback feel of "Party Life". By the time the somber piano keys of "Fallin'" mark the end of the album, it feels like the listener's been in a movie himself. The sole misstep production-wise is on the aforementioned "Hello Brooklyn 2.0", and while producer Bigg D gets a small nod for the Beastie Boys sample he utilizes, the song sounds completely out of place with the rest of this disc. Think seeing an elephant on a farm. Surprisingly, however, the lion's share of the production is handled by Diddy and the Hitmen (who produce 6 of 15 tracks), with long-time Jay contributor Just Blaze lacing a mere two tracks, with none of Kanye West's fingerprints being found anywhere on the album. Despite these notable absences though, the production doesn't miss a beat, as the sound throughout is the most consistent Jay has had since The Blueprint.
Overall, this album makes for an enjoyable listen, with Jay's storytelling skills meshing perfectly with the soulful, gritty production. More than just being a good album, it shows that an artist at the latter stages of his career can still grow. Making the leap from street hustler to CEO on his previous effort, he aims for the concept album here and succeeds, and while it doesn’t measure up to other efforts of its ilk (all emcees should give Kirk Jones a call if they ever want to do a concept album), it's still a good disc in its own right. In the end, American Gangster stands as another good addition to the catalogue of a rapper who's already a legend in hip-hop.
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