With the buzz around Jeezy’s often delayed, yet soon to be released TM103 the talk of the town, yours truly decided to take a trip in the past and revisit one of 2008′s most complete projects, The Snowman’s third official LP, The Recession. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo: B.Scott

“Hov on that new shit
Niggas like how come
Niggas want my old shit
Buy my old album…” — Jay-Z from “On To The Next One”

(I guess I’m one of them niggas, then.)

The Blueprint 3 served up a glimpse of Grizzly Bear Jay. But for those who grew up on the “thug nigga ‘til the end,” the appetite for the real nigga shit wasn’t quite whetted, with the exception of “Real As It Gets.” Read the rest of this entry »

I think we’ve been petitioning for a while that Jeezy release a video for the majority of songs from The Recession & he’s almost there. For my listening Read the rest of this entry »

When the Crew and I got together to discuss the rating for Jeezy’s The Recession, I was initially one of those on the “let’s give this a 4.5” side of things. Of course, I had to digest a lot of the counterarguments & we ended up giving it a 4 Cig rating. Yet, the album still ranks high for my tastes and, as time passes, it will be one that will mark the progression of Jeezy Of The Trap to Jeezy The Actually Good Artist.

One of the main reasons is a song like “Don’t Do It,” where Jeezy continues to show in detail that either he’s got a hell of a front row seat into the goings-on of the street or enough personal experiences to translate it into song for listeners of all backgrounds to connect with. The whole first verse, when I hear it, I’m mesmerized, drifting away from whatever it is I’m doing & trapped in my own series of thoughts.

“As I’m walkin’ down the halls I feel the stress in the walls
I need to lighten up man this sh*t is too tense
Feels like I need? my heart aches so bad
When he sees my face he’s gonna be so glad…” Read the rest of this entry »

He did this one especially for LC.  Read the rest of this entry »

While the entire world was celebrating last November with Young Jeezy’s “My President” playing in the background, not too many people stop and wondered who was behind the rousing melody that made the track so monumental. Maybe because Dow Jones and Henny a.k.a. Tha Bizness let their skills do the talking opposed to talking about their skills. Read the rest of this entry »

If there’s one thing I would change on the critically-acclaimed The Recession (aside from a little beat diversity,) it’s the tracklisting. As soon as you push play, this ear drum killa should be the first thing blaring from your speakers — not that sluggish “Intro.” Read the rest of this entry »

Why go onto O’Reilly’s show, into his comfort zone, and try to challenge him? Jeezy opts out & selects the wiser choice, staying in his lane & dropping new verse just for O’Reilly & Miller.

Young Jeezy feat Jay Z – My President Is Black (Remix)

Praises due to Young

All rise for the national anthem. Read the rest of this entry »

Generally, the bickering and babbling that coincides with ranking the year’s best LPs tend to blur the focus on the overall picture.

While some albums directly catered to personal preferences more immensely than others, all the selections emerged amongst the year’s best in regards to quality, visibility and of course, durability. Behold fifteen albums deserving of all the accolades and praises heaped upon them throughout the course of 2008. And their value will only solidify going in to 2009.

No order. No bias. Just noteworthy Hip-Hop.

Nas – Untitled

“From the brooding opening piano loop of “Queens Get The Money” to the uplifting snares on “Black President,” Nas channels his inner Walt Whitman as he explores the Black Diaspora. Lyrically though, his wordplay and delivery are sharp as ever as if all the attention to the title made Nas put extra effort and focus into his words…“ — From “America” – Review Of Nas’ Untitled Album

BONUS – Get familiar with Nas & DJ Green Lantern – The Nigger Tape Read the rest of this entry »

Aside from the instant gratification that “My President” and “Put On” evokes, “Who Dat” (with Shawty Redd on the track! “Yeahhhh”) remains my personal fav on The Recession. Read the rest of this entry »

Not my first choice for a follow-up video but the song has constantly grown on me. Say what you will about Young; Read the rest of this entry »

While we were doing The Recession review, there were several of us who felt like Jeezy did his fair share of social commentary, speaking on today’s issues that would allow this album to encapsulate a period similar to how Amerikkka’s Most spoke for the unrest during its time. While I know Jeezy’s no Eldridge Clever, I feel like he did manage to keep his “all I know is trap” persona intact, satisfying the hood, while going outside of himself a little to talk about what Jay Jenkins is seeing going on in the world as well. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve been casually monitoring & trying to make sense of the whole Wall Street fiasco, paying even more attention since last Thursday. And before I said that Wamu would be my own personal panic signal. Well when I watched the news this morning & then looked @ the paper as well, my mouse finger got unusually itchy… Read the rest of this entry »

Words By David D.

Jeezy’s albums have always been similar to summer blockbusters for me – big name producers, explosions and fun listening while offering nothing to think about after the credits roll. But his verses on “Crazy World” – and Recession as a whole – shows me a Jeezy that has finally stepped out of the trap, stopped looking at his watch and taken a haze-free gander at the world around him during his meteoric rise to fame and fortune. What he sees is a situation that a good portion of us can relate to: no matter how much success we may achieve on our own, there is still a lingering responsibility to those around us. Read the rest of this entry »