Of good company, who loves all and hates not oneĮven when you expect the album not to click, it somehow manages to exceed your expectations. God’s got open hands homey, he in the midst
I just know that Heaven’ll open these doorsĪnd ain’t no bright side to losin life but you can view it like this “Prayin for young souls to laugh at life through the starsĪnd I’m hurtin for you dog but ain’t nobody pain is like yours The latter’s verse proves yet again why he is one of the most powerful and underrated rappers of the entire past decade:
What may catch people off guard is the surprisingly personal and emotional touch of “ This Can’t Be Life” by Jigga, Beanie Sigel, and Scarface. Any way you split it, the first four tracks of the album (including a sequel to “Streets is Watching”) will not be a letdown to his fans. Rick Rock’s chunky beat will have whips hopping from coast to coast just like “ I Just Wanna Love U” with The Neptunes already does. Most surprisingly, Memphis (previously the weakest of the three) doesn’t embarass himself on the cut – in fact he sounds most improved throughout the album. Of sixteen tracks, Jigga has five performances which could be called “solo” lyrically (he’s the only rapper) and on the rest the crew do not overshine Jay or disrupt the album’s flow.Ī good example is the album’s second track, “ Change the Game.” Even though Beans and Memph both have raps on this song, Jay starts and ends the track with the best flow and lyrics throughout. Some heads might be crying “FOUL!” to this deception, but it’s not as large or aggravating as it could be. In fact, new beginnings seem to be the theme throughout this album: a new direction for Jay Hova (call him Jay Peso), a new life for his Roc-A-Fella Records, and a new chance for his labelmates to shine.īy billing this as a “Jay-Z” album in the first place, Jay is affording Beanie Sigel and Memphis Bleek a chance to convert Jigga fans who weren’t feeling their debut albums and best believe that they take advantage of the opportunity. Perhaps “Pain In Da Ass” finally lived up to his name but if you’re expecting to hear his stank ass yell “OKAY, I’M RELOADED!” at the beginning of Jay-Z’s new “Dynasty” your ass will sadly be mistaken.