bigd99999's Full Review: American Gangster [PA] by Jay-Z
I have been here before...
I remember being the guy who was semi-ridiculed when I said I felt Jay-Z's Reasonable Doubt was a cinematic concept album about the mafioso lifestyle. Others thought I was over-doing it a bit, but I think they fail to actually sit there and intently listen to the album and understand that every chapter is a different phase or aspect of the mafioso kingpin lifestyle. Each song told a story.
Flash forward to 2009.
When I first heard that Jay-Z's American Gangster was a concept album based on the film, I contemplated the magnitude of impact that the Denzell Washington film really had on the man. Jay saw parallels between his pre-rap activities and those of the film's main protagonist Frank Lucas, a real life heroin smuggler and gangster from New York.
It's quite ironic to me that the same rap marks who begged and pleaded for Jay-Z to go back to Reasonable Doubt-esque rhyming claimed that 2007's American Gangster was an "excuse to rap about drugs again". The irony of it is that to me, American Gangster is even less of a concept album than Reasonable Doubt, and certainly more disjointed and out of alignment than it's predecesor. There are moments where I think "yeah, I can feel this" in regards to the story of the struggle to the top of a crooked industry, but then there are moments that are terribly unfitting to the concept. The album constantly seeks balance and never finds it. Let's not forget - concept or not - this is music and has to be seen as entertaining first and foremost despite any conceptualism, specially from a seasoned artist such as Jay-Z.
The album's early moments make me smile. "Pray" and "American Dreamin' both cover the pre-successful portion of the story well, with both songs focusing on the desire to be somebody and the true roots that separates the successful folks with desire and those who are complacent with what life hands them. "No Hook" is an interesting song mainly because it's Jay's latest attempt at recreating "Rap Game / Crack Game" with the pauper to prince story embedded in both. The "I don't need a hook" gimmick is kind of played out a bit, but it works here. These three songs chronicle stories of the early era of the hustler.
One major issue I have with American Gangster is that there are songs about the pre-success dream and other songs about the actual success, but where are all the stories about the act of hustling, the struggle, and the growing pains of building an empire? OF COURSE they aren't on here! Why? Because they're already on Reasonable Doubt!!. Where's the vivid stories like "Can I Live", "Politics As Usual", "Dead Presidents" found on this album? It's these things that make the album feel incomplete. On the surface, "Ignorant Shit", seems to cover those bases; except later I found out this was a mixtape track with a Beanie verse added and modified production. The song is still hot though. "Fallin" and "Say Hello" are the only songs on here that tell the actual middle of the story. The former can be seen as a retread of"Regrets", perhaps a post-celebratory "fall from grace" retrospect track. Still, it's a certified banger. Bilal kills the hook, the production covers textures that I haven't felt in who knows how long, and Jigga's thought-provoking discourse really allow his talent to shine.
"Cause come January it gets cold when the letters start to slow ...and ya commissary low and lawyers screams appeal, only thinking about a bill And ya chances are nil, damn gravity's ill...."
Much like "Feelin It" was to Reasonable Doubt, there is a handful of celebratory tracks. Actually, more than a handful; most of American Gangster IS the celebration rather than the journey to achieve it. "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)" was the most popular single from the album and with good reason. Fun Trumpets, a Kanye chorus, and Jiggaman's charismatic flow, kinda like like "Show Me Whatcha Got" with more personality. "Sweet", "I Know", and "Party Life" all follow suit as fun, bouncy tracks that I like. But that's the problem: these songs are good and I LIKE them, but none of them I really LOVE. The album quickly begins to lose focus, to the point where I start to believe that Jay forgot that this was a supposed "concept album". Of all of the celebratory songs, "Success" is probably the one that sticks out the most in my mind because it features Jay's turn of the century rival Nas. Whenever Jay and Nas do a song together, I get giddy, but this song is slightly above average at best. The gospel production couped with Nas and Jay's uninspired rhymes doesn't make me rush for the rewind button like it "Black Republicans" did.
Most of the material on American Gangster is good stuff, but there are some songs on here that are complete trash and others that are some of Jigga's best work. "Hello Brooklyn" is probably Jay's most obnoxious piece since the crap on Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse. The song is unfitting with the supposed "concept" (see "22 Twos"), but it comes off like Jay-Z decided to put Wayne on a song just because. I'm certainly not a Wayne hater, but his prescence brings the album down several notches; plus the crappy beat and Jay's boringness. Then there's my two favorite songs on the album, which ironically, are the "bonus tracks". "Blue Magic" was the first song from the album that I consistently rewound. The Neptunes are hit and miss in my book, but the drum/organ blend is dangerous. Jay's calm flow allows his charismatic swagger to take carry the track; but don't think he's a slouch lyrically. Metaphor-heavy lines like "Baked a lot of bread and kept it off the books // Rockstar, look, way before the bars my picture was getting took // Feds, they like wack rappers, tried as they may, couldn't get me on the hook" are textbook Jiggaman wit. The "American Gangster" serves as a worthy epilogue to wrap things up nicely and compile everything from the thirst for success to the eventual happyness that it brings.
Make no mistake, American Gangster a very good album, just not extraordinary. With the jazzy production and the use of slightly more complicated rhyme schemes, it becomes obvious that Jay was trying to recapture the Reasonable Doubt vibe both lyrically and musically, but the problem is that Jigga is past that stage. It more often than not sounds like Jay-Z is forcing himself back thirteen years to fit with the concept, rather than just do the kind of album he is most comfortable with (see Blueprint 3). I respect Jay-Z for trying to be conceptual on American Gangster, but it feels incomplete. With it's abundance of pre and post hustler stories, it's almost like a companion-piece to Reasonable Doubt rather than a stand-alone "concept album", serving as both a prologue and an epilogue, not unlike the "Godfather Part II". Again... I have been here before. And remember...
...the second time is never as fun or memorable as the first.
Track List & Rating
1. Intro 2. Pray (*****) 3. American Dreamin’ (*****) 4. Hello Brooklyn 2.0 f/ Lil Wayne (*) 5. No Hook (*****) 6. Roc Boys (And the Winner Is…) f/ Kanye West (*****) 7. Sweet (****) 8. I Know (****) 9. Party Life (****) 10. Ignorant Shit f/ Beanie Sigel (*****) 11. Say Hello (****) 12. Success f/ Nas (****) 13. Fallin’ f/ Bilal (*****) 14. Blue Magic (******) 15. American Gangster (******)
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
![American Gangster [PA] by Jay-Z](http://di1.shopping.com/images1/pi/5c/90/6a/2045167739-177x150-0-0.jpg)
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.