Okay, seriously people, hands up for those who believed Jay-Z was going to make a comeback. Thought so. I knew I wasn’t going to be the only one.

I’m kind of bored with the Michael Jordan analogies, so I’ll say this - Jay-Z is as close to rap’s very own Sugar Ray Leonard as anyone will ever get. The only difference is that he did not retire five times, but once. Does anyone remember him stating he wanted to retire right after his classic 1996 debut Reasonable Doubt? Or when he said that his 1998 commercial breakthrough, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life was going to his last album? Well, he did finally have the liver to quit with a suitable goodbye album in 2003’s Black Album. But come on, rap without Jay-Z? Even he couldn’t deal with it, to the point that he was referring to Michael Jordan’s comeback to basketball in “Encore” – remember, the now-famous “come back like Jordan, wearing the 4-5” line? No, it wasn’t over – not even after he’s already established his legacy as a pop culture icon, a savvy entrepreneur, a music industry executive and one of the greatest rappers of all time. Oh no, President Carter wanted to come back for more. And he has – with Kingdom Come.

But as songs like 2005’s “Dear Summer” (which appeared in Memphis Bleek’s 534) whetted the appetites of an anticipative public, the comeback trail was not without some measure of concern. His recent guest verses in his beau Beyonce’s “Deja Vu” and “Upgrade U” and Lupe’s “Pressure” were, to put it nicely, less-than-stellar. Could it be rust? Possibly. Thankfully the album’s first single, “Show Me What You Got” showcases Jay-Z in better form, with his signature wit (e.g. “I already gave the summer some - It's the winter's turn!”) and cockiness (e.g. “I am the Mike Jordan of recording!/You might want to fall back from recording!”). True, not his best, but Jay-Z does a satisfactory job.

But it is Just Blaze that emerges as the star of “Show Me What You Got”; in fact, he does the best work behind the boards in Kingdom Come. A longtime contributor to Jay-Z’s albums, he provides three back-to-back bangers that surpass anything he has done for the legendary rapper so far. Take “Show Me What You Got”, for instance. Using that famous five-note saxophone loop that was used in Public Enemy’s “Show ‘Em Whatcha Got” and Wreckx-N-Effect’s “Rump Shaker,” Just Blaze surrounds the sample with triumphant horns and a hyperactive drum that successfully exudes an aura of victory, like a king returning in celebration to his realm. It makes words like “Get the f**k out the throne, you clone, the King's back!” all the more effective. “Oh My God” - with its sharp horns and a chopped sample of Genya Ravan’s wailing in “Whipping Post” looped in each half-bar - has this great stomping feel, like a terrifying giant making slow steps through his domain.

But out of the three Blaze cuts, “Kingdom Come” clearly surpasses them all. In fact, it is the best and most inventive beat in the entire album, period. Why? Listen to the song. You know the funky bass notes that appear at the end of every four bars – doooom-do-toom-doom…? Do you recognize it? No? I’ll give you a hint, a big hint – M.C. Hammer sampled it for “U Can’t Touch This.” Yep, believe it or not, Just Blaze sampled that oh-so-familiar song, Rick James’ very own “Super Freak,” only that he chopped it up and rearranged the sample! Thus those bassline notes that appear at the bar end were originally at the beginning – doooom-do-toom-doom do-toom do-toom “You can’t touch this!” Sound familiar now?

But wait, Just Blaze doesn’t even stop there. He also stretched some of the pieces, and added other parts of the song, some of which includes Rick James’ vocals. The end result is a masterful composition that is virtually different from the sampling source.

“Oh. My. God. Blaze!” Someone give this guy a special award for Beat of the Year. And producers worldwide - get out your pads and take notes on this new benchmark of sampling. That especially includes you, Diddy.

Good thing for Blaze, because Jay-Z cannot quite keep up with the sheer force of “Oh My God” and “Kingdom Come”. Rust? Again, I answer - possibly. Jay-Z just sounds less enthusiastic in these numbers (even if he does a little better in the title track). But never worry – the beautifully soulful opener, “The Prelude” is indeed a prelude of what to expect from Jay-Z in Kingdom Come – maturity. It is simply impossible for Jay-Z to remain the same thugged-out hustler of his younger years. At 37 (well, at least he will be on December 4th), he’s at a different stage in his life, older and wiser, decidedly reflective of his achievements and still looking for more fields to conquer. “Forget this rap s**t - I need a new hustle/A little bit of everything, the new improved Russell,” he calmly says. He goes into greater detail in "30 Something". Over a sparse Dr. Dre beat, Jay-Z shows that he has grown wiser with age, yet far from an “old” man (e.g. “Young enough to know the right car to buy/Yet grown enough not to put rims on it”). 30’s the new 20, indeed.

But even as big as he has become, he still vividly remembers the trials he had to go through first. For example - over the vibrant guitar pluckings and deep drums of Kanye’s beat in the John Legend-assisted “Do U Wanna Ride” – Jay-Z acknowledges his drug-dealing past, all the while starting it all off with these words: “You know why they call The Projects a project? Because it's a project!/An experiment, where in it, only it's objects/And the object for us to explore our prospects/And sidestep cops on the way to the top, yes!” It makes his triumph all the sweeter, as “I Made It” sounds like a heartwarming letter to his dear mother about his accomplishments. There’s a sense of serenity in his introspection. Even as he addresses the fall out with Damon Dash, examines a troubled relationship and mourns a lost nephew in “Lost One”, he seems resolved rather than confrontational. This is a Jay-Z the world only got a few glimpses of in his earlier years, amidst the deluge of materialism and hedonism. This is Jay-Z as a grown-a*s man. And you know what? It’s very refreshing to hear, disappointed younger fans be damned.

Too bad the comeback affair dips considerably in quality in the second half. Jay-Z dazzles with his bouncy flow in the Usher-guested “Anything”, but the insubstantial content bores, and the Neptunes’ airy beat does little to alleviate the situation. Nice analogy of superstardom addiction with “Hollywood”, but the Jay-Z/Beyonce (Bey-Z? Jayonce?) collabo does not quite generate the same level of heat as previous outings. “Trouble” and “Dig a Hole” are the requisite diss songs to Cam’ron and his Dipset crew, but don’t expect any “Takeover” magic here, most especially when Jay-Z has to repeat the phrase “lil’ n***as” again and again in the former. Besides, with Cam’ron’s latest album flopping faster than a person slipping on a banana peel, of what use are his shots? As for the producers of both songs, well…Dre certainly didn’t bring his A-Game in Kingdom Come with his primary reliance on these piano-heavy beats. But at least the simplicity of “Lost One” and "30 Something" were efficient enough due to the dense lyrics. Here, his boardwork falters. And as for Swizz Beatz, well, the monotony of his slow string-heavy beat is the primary reason “Dig a Hole” is the weakest song here.

Thankfully, Kingdom Come recovers at the end. Dr. Dre redeems himself with a soothing sonic backdrop and raindrop effects in the Ne-Yo-guested “Minority Report” Yeah, it might make some think, Wait a minute! When Public Enemy, Mos Def and others were making songs about the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, where was he with his song? Why wait a year to make one? And what is he going to say that we haven’t heard already? And that is how the song starts off, with the usual observations, until he says towards the end, “Ponied up a mil, but I didn’t give my time/So in reality, I didn’t give a dime/Or a damn!” And with that, this may be the best Katrina rap song made so far. He not only points the blame of an unresponsive federal government; as a multi-millionaire, he willingly shoulders the blame for not being in the trenches of tragedy himself. The album ends on a somber note, with Jay-Z going reflective again in “Beach Chair”, and Chris Martin of Coldplay providing the steel drums and airy tunes that comprise his musical piece. Not bad for a rookie, not bad. And Martin's beautifully understated vocals do not hurt, either.

And so it is that with Kingdom Come Jay-Z has managed to accomplish what so many rap legends, most notably LL Cool J, have failed to do – age gracefully on the mic. With a nice balance of introspection, socio-political consciousness and braggadocio, this is one of Jay-Z’s better efforts, in the second-tier alongside The Black Album. Who knows, once he gets rid of that rust and hits his stride, he just might deliver another album that equals the quality of Reasonable Doubt or The Blueprint. But even for now, it is safe to say that – with the balance of commercial appeal and lyrical substance – Kingdom Come affirms Jay-Z as the king of Hip-Hop. Yep, couldn't leave rap alone; the game needs him. Welcome back, Hov!

TRACK LISTING:

1. The Prelude
2. Oh My God
3. Kingdom Come
4. Show Me What You Got
5. Lost One
6. Do U Wanna Ride
7. 30 Something
8. I Made It
9. Anything
10. Hollywood
11. Trouble
12. Dig a Hole
13. Minority Report
14. Beach Chair



Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Listening