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Back again with Kanye West and Timberland productions and hooks from music elites Drake, Alicia Keys and Rihanna, not only does Jay-Z's latest effort mark the death of auto tune as we know it, but it is the birth of a new type of hip-hop. Opaque 16’s, laced with worldly alliterations will leave some rap fans cynics, yet somehow Jay-z’s latest offering, “The Blueprint 3” is sure to bring him one measure closer to Guinness. I reasonably doubt he’s lost a step.
“The Blueprint 3” is a statement record. Jay-Z strongly makes his case as for why a 40-year-old rapper should still be relevant in a young man’s game. Throughout the album, Jay-z hastily snares lines such as: “people like ‘Hov take it back’; I’m doing better than before; why would I do that?” and “they think I’m out of shape; I guess I have to jog their memory.”
A really strong suit of the album is its vast versatility; there’s a little bit of something for everybody. There’s definitely something for the haters. In fact two minutes and 32 seconds of the album are dedicated specifically to those praying for his downfall. On “Hate,” featuring and produced by Kanye West, Jay and Ye' go back and forth telling their “haters” to get lost. Radio singles “Run This Town,” which currently sits at number five on the billboard charts, and “Off That,” featuring Drake, have a strong pop presence, which unlike “D.O.A,” is for Z-100. Throughout the rest of the album, the streets will find their flavor on “Real as it Gets,” where Jay commands listeners to “put [their] sets in the air if they represent [their] click,” and Swizz Beat’s “On To The Next One.”
“Venus Vs Mars,” a gangster love story in which jeezy contrasts himself and his “sidekick,” and “Already Home,” featuring Kid Cuddi are amongst the brightest spots of the album, however, the highlight is without a doubt “Empire State of Mind.” In between Alicia Keys' uplifting hook, Jay-Z spits 48 classic bars, projecting a strong ethnocentric vibe. Jay goes on to boast that he “made the blue Yankee fitted more famous than the Yankee game.
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