Jay Z - Magna Carta...Holy Grail

A Jay-Z, sorry, Jay Z, release is a major event in the hip-hop landscape and following big releases by Kanye and J Cole this summer, Magna Carta...Holy Grail is no exception and perhaps finds Hova under more pressure than usual to prove he can still be relevant.

Relevance is a subjective quality but I doubt many listeners even care to relate to the rut of excessive wealth demonstrations that Jay Z has found himself in these days. As credible as it is that the currency denominations most rappers brag of are small change to the guy, 'F*** it, I want a trillion', does anyone care about the guy's art collection. I assume that Jay Z's next album will have some deal with Jean Michel Basquiat's estate given the number of references to the artist on MCHG. Jay Z has always name dropped references to fashion houses, case in point being Change Clothes from The Black Album, but the influence of Kanye, Watch the Throne and the Kanye in particular's growing relationship with Paris seems to have resulted in some bad habits. I wouldn't mind so much if the references resulted in some inspired wordplay but MCHG is bogged down by really lame, tired lyrics, repetitively name dropping everything from artists, cars, clothes, basketball teams and athletes, all used to express Jay's uber-wealth. No where is this more evident than tracks Picasso Baby and most criminally Tom Ford, which may be the most uninspired track Jay Z has ever penned, but what do you expect from a track inspired by his favourite suit designer. Only on F.U.T.W does Hov use his wealth to express the difficulties of being considered successful considering what he's come from. 

Lyrically, the above aside, overall MCHG is better than The Blueprint 3 and Jay is still capable of putting some strong wordplay together. Heaven, F.U.T.W. and Nickels and Dimes are the best evidence of this. MCHG is Jay's most personal album to date and tracks, Holy Grail, Part II (On the Run) and Jay Z Blue find the new dad discussing the impact of fame on his life, his relationship with Beyonce and his feelings on fatherhood. Maybe going back to the relevance, MCHG seems incomplete without some King of New York inspired tracks, throwbacks to the hood or shots at individuals rather than the exclusive nouveau-rich and issues with winning art auctions.

Flow wise I'm really not feeling the style Hov seems to be adopting of late, going back through Watch the Throne to The Blueprint 3. I don't know what it is specifically but more often than not he seems to be struggling to flow in time with the beats on offer and ends up extending his words to fit bars or more noticeably on MCHG, adopting a Rick Ross style 'uhh' at the beginning or end of lines. Listen to some of his old stuff, The Blueprint or his verse on Diamonds are Forever Remix, there's no denying that the guy has flowed better. Perhaps inevitably after so long in the business, MCHG is not a man at his prime.   

The production on MCHG is hard to fault. For whatever reason Kanye West and the varied cast of producers used on Watch the Throne are nowhere to be seen, No. ID contributes to only one track, and after being benched for Watch The Throne, Jay chose to re-assemble the big hitters, Timbaland (and his cohort J-Roc) and Pharell for the majority of MCHG's tracks. It was a safe option and could have backfired but the duo combine across the album to produce some lively, expansive and layered beats and truth be told its Jay who doesn't always deliver from his side. Jay Z and guest Rick Ross really waste a great beat from Boi-1da on FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt with some lacklustre rhyming.

In conclusion, while MCHG is by no means a bad album, the production alone saves it from that, but it is far from the strongest entry in Jay Z's catalogue. Lyrically, both in terms of content and delivery, Hov has been fresher and stronger but the album does have enough going for it with the beats and more relatable, considered lyrics to make it a worthwhile listen. Personally for a more personal album I prefer Nas' Life is Good and after a few listens to MCHG I found myself returning to Yeezus.

Best guest: Nas

Standout tracks: Heaven, Holy Grail, F.U.T.W, BBC

Best bars: (F.U.T.W)
America tried to emasculate the greats

Murder Malcolm, gave Cassius the shakes

Wait, tell them rumble young man rumble

Try to dim your lights, tell you be humble

You know I'm gon' shine like a trillion watts

You know a n**** trill as Michael Jackson socks

Sendin' light out to Compton and the hundred blocks

Lil' bastard boy, basking on top......

Make a million, another million, let my n****as make a million

Shit, it's just the way I'm feeling

We have yet to see a ceiling, we just top what we top

Cause the bars don't struggle and the struggle don't stop

Lyrics: 

Beats:

Overall:

Kanye West - Yeezus

Seemingly out of nowhere, with no promotion or hype, Kanye West dropped Yeezus, his sixth solo studio album. On album opener On Sight, after declaring that 'Yeezy season approaches', West warns that 'a monster about to come alive again'. As it turns out, this monster is a different kind of monster to the posse track of the same name on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy but is West at his most eclectic, self-indulgent best and worst.

Yeezus rivals 808's & Heartbreak as West's most inaccessible album to date and to the mainstream at least, comes across as a challenging, almost surreal mixture of styles ranging from acid house and electronic dance music to dancehall and Hungarian rock, all clearly designed to shock. This is West at his most experimental, and even coming from a man who gave us an album of auto-tuned warbles, it still achieves it's shock this after repeated listens. The Daft Punk produced opener On Sight sets the tone as the albums most offensive track to the ears, with it's hard, distorted acid house beat likely to strike fear into the first time listener. Mid way through the track though, West cuts the music and brings in a choir sample to bridge to the next verse. This is typical of several tracks and does lead to some of the albums highlights, notably the combination of West and Frank Ocean's singing at the end of New Slaves or the final third of Bound 2 as songs switch up and change focus.

Rick Rubin was brought in to 'minimalise' the album's production at the last minute and I would love to hear the original cut as the final one still sounds deep in layers of samples and bass lines. One thing Rubin could have done was remove the annoying end-of-bar synth that West seems to have picked up as this plagues tracks Blood On the Leaves, Hold My Liquor and Black Skinhead, the production of which is credited to West, Daft Punk, Mike Dean, Lupe Fiasco, No I.D. and Salem, to name a few. Yeezus is as sample heavy as West's previous efforts but noticeably West has ignored his typical soul samples for the electric mix of industrial electronica and dancehall vocals and it lacks a cohesive listen.    

So, the beats are a-typical, abrasive, shocking but unfulfilling. Unfortunately the lyrics are not up to West's usual standard either and for me that was a bigger disappointment. Although not the greatest MC that ever graced the mic, West is usually capable of intelligent and witty rhymes and I'm a fan of his typically goofy style. However, on Yeezus he seems so wound up that a lot of his wordplay lacks the witty, fun nature and basic quality that he is capable of. According to Rubin, he rushed the lyrics, wrote the majority in two hours and some at the last minute. If that is true, and listening to some of the lines, it seems wholly plausible, then am I the only one who wants to know why?! In what world is that a justification for a sub-par product? Yeezus isn't without good lines, 'in a French-ass restaurant, hurry up with my DAMN croissant!', but generally in between the occasionally hypocritical, aggressive social themes, and the sexually charged misogynistic lines 'Eatin' Asian p*ssy, all I need was sweet and sour sauce', there's little West left.

Thematically, Yeezus, is much closer to 808's than other albums. Break-ups and relationships , past and present, feature centrally on Blood On the Leaves, Hold My Liquor and Bound 2, and in another common trait, West digs out the auto-tuner on several tracks. He obviously wasn't listening when his 'big brother' declared it's death on The Blueprint III. The worst offender Guilt Trip sounds as if it missed the cut for 808's.

At under 40 minutes, Yeezus is a short experience, and with a couple of weaker tracks nearer the end, I'm In It, Send It Up and the aforementioned Guilt Trip, it is even shorter and closer Bound 2, the albums stand out track, really saves the day and its no coincidence that the track is the outcast of the album in being most traditionally Kanye.

According to the choir on On Sight, 'he'll give us what we need, it may not be what we want', unfortunately really what we are given in the form of Yeezus is what Kanye wants regardless of what we may need. Yet for all it's flaws, Yeezus is an undeniably fascinating beast, and sharing it's creators nature, one that demands attention.  

Best guest: Charlie Wilson

Standout tracks: Bound 2, Hold My Liquor, I Am A God

Best bars: (Bound 2)
Hey, you remember where we first met
Okay, I don't remember where we first met
But hey, admitting is the first step
And hey, you know ain't nobody perfect
And I know, with the hoes I got the worst rep
But hey, their backstroke I'm tryna perfect
And hey, ayo, we made it, Thanksgiving
So hey, maybe we can make it to Christmas
She asked me what I wished for on my wishlist
Have you ever asked your bitch for other bitches
Maybe we could still make it to the church steps
But first, you gon' remember how to forget
After all these long ass verses,
I'm tired, you tired, Jesus wept

Lyrics: 

Beats:

Overall:

E-40 - Tha Hall of Game

Released way back in 1996, Tha Hall of Game was E-40's third release (of eight) on Jive following Federal and In A Major Way, in a prolific career that would see him release a massive fourteen albums (or nineteen if you count his double and triple releases post 2010).

E-40's abstract flow and trademark vocabulary have always appealed to my ears since I first caught him and The Click on Ain't Hard to Find on 2Pac's All Eyez on Me but this is first time I've dived into his discography any further back than the turn of the century.

Looking back at Tha Hall of Game this seemed to be the time in his career that Earl started to question his lack of success, due to what he deemed as unfair treatment, outside of the West Coast, 'messy hoes got my name stuck between they teeth, just because I'm from the West and not the East'. This is a theme that would manifest itself into 40's later works as his frustrations grew (To Whom This May Concern on Loyalty & Betrayal, Why They Don't F**k Wit Us on Grit and Grind). The album starts on this basis as 40 comes hard out of the traps on Record Haters, firing shots at Rasheed Wallace, AZ and those questioning his place in the rap game. 

Although E-40 has unquestionably honed his inimitable style since Tha Hall of Game and expanded his vocabulary in later years, he was still just as original back in 1996 and every track features some 40-slang be it 'marinating on the corner' or 'sprinkle me mayne'. The first verse on the tribute song I Wanna Thank You highlights the capabilities of his flow as he jumps up, down, speeds up and slows down to ride the beat in an almost cartoonish manner. In between the partying and pimping, E-40 throws in a couple of socially conscious songs, a trait that would continue into the future. These songs, The Story (with Beastie Boys sample) and Things'll Never Change (released prior to 2Pac's Changes but with the same The Way It Is sample) are among the albums stronger moments.

Unlike some of his later releases, the guest appearances keep the album a straight Bay area jam, as the likes of Spice 1, Too $hort, B-Legit and 2Pac appear on tracks. I can't help but wonder that perhaps by not branching out to a more varied cast of guests, without compromising his style as he would do in later years with his Lil' Jon collaborations, E-40 is partly responsible for his low exposure on the East Coast.

Unfortunately, time has not been kind to the production on the album. The G-funk tracks have aged poorly in comparison with similar tracks from this era and for me quite a few of the Bay area numbers (produced by Studio Ton or Rick Rock) just aren't interesting enough to make the album a really enjoyable listen worth coming back to. The best songs come from Mike Moseley and Femi Ojetunde who are responsible for Million Dollar Spot, The Story and Things'll Never Change. The beat on Ring It is an atrocity and it doesn't help that the track itself is pure throwaway filler.

Although Tha Hall of Game has some stand-out moments, I really expected more from a much championed entry into the E-40 discography.

Best guest: 2Pac

Standout tracks: I Like What You Do To Me, Rapper's Ball, Million Dollar Spot 

Best bars: (Record Haters)
This game is so damn haemorrhaging, that I be delivering
These n***as don't understand my shit, but they surrendering
Simmering, remembering things that done jumped off
Lyrics spit on n***as like a bad cough
Messy hoes got my name stuck between they teeth
Just because I'm from the West and not the East
Graduated from the dope game, phat ass wallets
What's that n***as name, Rasheed Wallace!

Lyrics: 

Beats:






Overall:

Kurupt

Born Ricardo Brown in 1972 in Philly, Kurupt moved west to L.A. and became of a mainstay of the West Coast scene during it's 1990's heyday and subsequent decline post millenium.



Kurupt, Kurupt The Kingpin, Young Gotti

A technically proficient lyricist, Eminem named him on his list of respected rappers on Till I Collapse, 'it goes Reggie, Jay-Z, 2Pac & Biggie, Andre from Outkast, Jada, Kurupt, Nas and then me'. A hard working MC, Kurupt has made over 200 solo guest appearances since 1992 ranging from songs with Snoop Dogg and Krayzie Bone to Yukmouth and Lil' Wayne.

After teaming up with Long Beach residents Snoop Dogg and Daz Dillinger, Kurupt signed to Death Row Records and made his debut on Dr. Dre's 1992 The Chronic, appearing on three tracks.

So any n*gga that claim they bossin', why don't you bring your ass over to Crenshaw and Slauson,

I'm stackin' and mackin' and packin' a ten so,

When you're slippin', I slip the clip in,

But ain't no set trippin [Stranded on Death Row - The Chronic]

He gained further exposure on further Death Row releases Murder Was the Case, Above the Rim and in particular, Snoop Dogg's debut Doggystyle. During these years, Kurupt and Daz paired up to form The Dogg Pound, making their debut under this name on Doggystyle.

In 1995, The Dogg Pound released their debut album Dogg Food selling 278,000 copies in the first week. Following 2Pac's release from jail and subsequent signing to Death Row, Kurupt and Daz played a supporting role West Coast-East Coast beef, largely thanks to their Dogg Food single New York New York.

Now I'm a bonafide microphone technician with styles, I came to storm on these MCs like eletrical clouds [Smooth - Dogg Food]

Kurupt (middle) with Snoop and Daz

Kurupt left Death Row in 1997 to start his own imprint Antra Records under A&M. On this imprint he released his debut solo album Kuruption! in 1998 comprising of 'West Coast' and 'East Coast' discs to reflect his East Coast birth and West Coast musical allegiance. Although featuring production from Dr. Dre and Daz, away from the Death Row label, Kuruption! didn't sell in the same platinum figures of previous years. He followed this up with Tha Streetz Iz A Mutha (1999) and Space Boogie: Smoke Odyssey (2001). Streetz saw Kurupt return to the West Coast scene and was heavy with features from the Dogg Pound collective of Snoop Dogg, Daz, Warren G, Soopafly, Tray Deee and Nate Dogg, being certified Gold. Smoke Odyssey saw Kurupt produce a more mainstream effort with attempts at crossover hits, notably It's Over featuring his then fiancee Natina Reed. In between Streetz and Smoke Odyssey, Kurupt and Daz released Dillinger & Young Gotti as DPG owing to Death Row owning the rights to The Dogg Pound.

You can tell the gangster as soon as he comes in the door,

He don't wear Calvin Klein, he won't wear Velour,
He got some Cortez, or some Converse on,
All-Stars, G'd up from the hat to the floor [I Call Shots - Tha Streetz Iz A Mutha]

In 2002, Kurupt committed the cardinal sin (in the eyes of the Dogg Pound) of returning to Suge Knight's New Death Row Records. Disowned by Snoop and Daz, his next solo album suffered from the record labels delays and Against the Grain was eventually released in 2005, containing disses towards Daz, by which time Kurupt had left the label a second time and reunited with the Dogg Pound. As seemed fashionable on the West Coast at the time, Kurupt released a number of collaboration albums between 2005 and 2009, teaming up with J. Wells, brother Roscoe and most notably DJ Quik on Blaqkout.

Only one more solo album, Streetlights, released in 2010 and almost entirely produced by Terrace Martin, followed Against the Grain as Kurupt's attention turned back to The Dogg Pound. Kurupt stated that the intermittent releases, Dillinger & Young Gotti II (2005), Cali Iz Active (2006) and Dogg Chit (2007) were really mixtapes and 2010's 100 Wayz is the true second Dogg Pound album. However Cali Iz Active was the most successful of these albums, peaking at #28 on the Billboard 200.

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot: Son of Chico Dusty

After releasing the jointly individually album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, it was only a matter of time until the Outkast duo released truly solo albums. Big Boi comfortably beat his partner to the punch with the release of Sir Lucious Left Foot in 2010, despite years of legal wrangles with their label.

In comparison with his earlier solo work Speakerboxxx, Sir Lucious is definitely a more rounded and well constructed album and a more enjoyable listen as a result. Big Boi himself co-produces eight tracks himself alongside regular Dungeon Family cohorts Organized Noise and Salaam Remi, Scott Storch and Lil' Jon. He shows he has a surprisingly good ear for smooth beats as the final five tracks, on which he co-produces all of them, are some of the strongest tracks on the album. The aforementioned closing tracks and the back half of the album in general, from Hustle Blood onwards are surprisingly mellow and laid back efforts compared to what many may consider to be typical Outkast production. Crunk king Lil' Jon even gets in on the laid back vibe by producing one of the albums best tracks, Hustle Blood featuring Jamie Foxxx.

Unable to invite Andre 3000 into the studio because of label drama, Big Boi keeps the number of guest appearances sensible, Too $hort, Yelawolf, T.I. and Gucci Mane crop up, but its usually the hook duty that Big Boi farms out to good effect using George Clinton (Fo Yo Sorrows), and B.o.B (Night Night) among some female vocalists.

Best guest: Jamie Foxxx

Stand-out tracks: Hustle Blood, Fo Yo Sorrows, Be Still

Best bars: (Fo Yo Sorrows)

Just to let you know that everything is straight,
I say stank you very much 'cause we appreciate the hate,
Now go get yourself a handgun, you f***in with a great,
Put it your mouth and squeeze it like your morning toothpaste,
Kill yo'self like Sean Kingston, suicidal for a title,
My recitals are vital and maybe needed for survival,
Like the Bible or any other good book that you read,
Why are 75% of our youth readin magazines?,
'Cause they used to fantasy, and that's what they do to dream,
Call it fiction addiction 'cause the truth is a heavy thing!,

'Member when the levee scream, made the folks evacua-ezz,

Yeah, I'm still speakin about it 'cause New Orleans still ain't clean,
When we shout Dirty South, I don't think that is what we mean,
I mean, it mean the rough, the tough, the dangerous, we reign supreme,
Can slaughter entire teams with the ink that my pen bleeds,
B-I-G, B-O-I ,n****, please!

Lyrics: 

Beats:




Overall:

E-40 - The Block Brochure: Welcome To The Soil 3

After dropping a pair of albums on the same day in both 2010 and 2011, E-40 goes one better this time around with the release of his Block Brochure trilogy, all of which dropped on the same day. Now 44 years old, 40 Water deserves some serious props, not just for still producing albums, but the fact that he is producing more than ever before. Obviously these props would be dependent on the quality of the 60 songs being turned out across the three albums. Most artists probably select their album tracks from a similar number of recordings so it makes you wonder if 40's cutting floor is simply empty. I think the truth is a combination of an insane work ethic and no more filler than any typical rap album (although three times over).

Anyway, to Welcome To The Soil 3. After flirting with the Atlanta crunk scene in the mid-noughties, E-40 is definitely 100% back to the West Coast and within that his beloved Bay area. Snoop, Dogg Pound and Kendrick Lamar represent L.A. but after that guest spots are divided out to Bay area family B-Legit, Too $hort, Hieroglyphics and son Droop-E. 40 employs a wide range of producers, of eighteen tracks Rick Rock has the most input with four and there are thirteen different producers involved. As a result, the production seems uncohesive and surprisingly, distinctly similar. The best tracks hands down are those with Rick Rock or Droop-E in the studio. Too many of the beats are hard, dark and in places sinister sounding, maybe all the lighter production is found on Vol 1 or 2.

E-40 himself is on form, would you expect anything less, his rhymes and ''slanguages'' are as creative as ever. Album opener Jealous finds 40 reminding his listeners he's been around since 1988 and as with many West Coast artists he didn't ''come up under Dr. Dre, I came up under me''. He closes the track questioning why he has never received any love from the East Coast. What You Smokin' On is a classic West Coast smoking anthem featuring Snoop, Kurupt, Daz and Kokane. Other highlights include the very un-G-Funk Warren G produced What Happened To Them Days, although it is a bit cringing hearing Stevens rhyming Red Dead Redemption with PlayStation in his ode to today's generation and I Ain't Doin' Nothin'. Salute You is a heartfelt E-40 'Keep Ya Head Up' style tribute to the women of the world. 

All in all a reasonable album from E-40 but one that could easily be stripped of half of the weaker tracks and combined with the other Block Brochure volumes for a more rounded and greater album. Although loaded with some strong efforts, listening to Welcome To The Soil 3 certainly wouldn't make me reach for volumes 1 or 2 straight away.   

Best guest: B-Legit

Standout tracks: I Ain't Doin Nothin, What Happened To Them Days, Jealous, What You Smokin' On 

Best bars: (Jealous)
I do this from the heart, 
Vallejo, Calaharmonia is where I got my first start
Giant, Davis & Park
believe me when I say (say)
I didn't come up under Dr Dre, I came up under me
and the C-L-I-C
you could be MVP back in the day (day)
most valuable players way back in 1988 (88)
don't let these haters mislead you
I'm a for real street n***a, n***as be gettin' amnesia
my style is vertical, horizontal
all over the f***in' place (place)
this sh*t ain't for everybody my n***a
it's an acquired taste (taste)...
....E-40 slow it down man you hurtin' 'em
don't waste your time steppin' on these sucka's...
step over 'em

Lyrics: 




Beats:




Overall:

Kendrick Lamar - Section 80

Part of the Black Hippy group, Kendrick Lamar is seen by many as the West Coast's saviour. Section 80 is Lamar's debut independent album, released digitally.

Lyrically, Lamar is incredibly intelligent and he narrates the tale of being an 80's Compton baby born into the crack epidemic in a truly unique manner. I imagine Lamar produced Section 80 exactly as he wanted to, he seems uncompromising in his subject matter, his story must be told.

Perhaps feeling the pressure, on Ab-Souls Outro Lamar states in spoken word that 'I'm not the next pop star, I'm not the next socially aware rapper, I am a human motherf**king being over dope ass instrumentation'. He may not see himself as a socially aware rapper but his intelligence allows him to narrate stories of the inequality and struggles of Compton residents in a way most other residents haven't been able to. Keisha's Song, a tale of an ill-fated Compton prostitute is the most socially conscious song I have heard since Brenda's Got A Baby. On the other hand, he makes light of being highly regarded in the industry on The Spiteful Chant with the chorus 'I'm going big, s*ck my d*ck'. 

The production is handled by Top Dawg Entertainment unknowns Digi+Phonics and Sounwave and is largely laid back, understated and minimal and although Lamar seems comfortable flowing over it, it's hard to see that he won't benefit from some input from the likes of Dre. It would certainly help to make the album a more attractive listen. J Cole makes a surprise appearance as producer on album closer and one of the highlights, HiiiPower.

A very promising debut album that serves to increase expectation for Lamar's major label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city.

Best guest: Ab-Soul

Stand-out track: Ronald Reagan Era, HiiiPower, Keisha's Song (Her Pain)

Best bars: Keisha's Song (Her Pain)
Remember sergeant let her slide
Said if he seen what's between her thighs he'd compromise, to no surprise
she took the ultimatum round the alleyway and gave him
a warm welcome that filled him right below the navel
Though he was wired up like a pair of jumping cables
His eyes was closed shut, prior charges, he had waived 'em
It was a block away from Lueders Park, I seen a squad car parked
and in her heart she hate it there, but in her mind she made it where
nothing really matters, so she hit the back seat
cause Rosa Parks never a factor when she topping off police

Lyrics:

Beats:

Overall:

Nas - Life Is Good

I'm going to try and review Nas' latest album without mentioning Illmatic, too late, but really though, Life Is Good needs to be reviewed from a standalone point of view. It isn't 1993 anymore and times, producers and the artist himself have moved on. That said Life Is Good is  certainly the most nostalgic of Nas' post-Stillmatic work and make no mistakes this is most welcome. As well nostalgic, the fact that life is now good post-divorce finds Nas at his most candid and revealing.

Without attempting to play psychologist too much,  it seems that Nas is content at the moment, maybe now that his divorce is finalised he can focus on what he does best and he does that well. That's not to say that he doesn't have Kelis on his mind. The ex-Mrs Jones gets more than a few bars on Bye Baby and No Introduction, mostly mature and warm recollections of their time together without any vitriol.

The aforementioned nostalgia comes in the form of the albums production as well as Nas' lyrics. No I.D. and Saleem Remi share the majority of the duties and cook up nineties and earlier sounding throwback tracks with a modern angle sampling the likes of MC Shan and New Edition. Nas himself gives nods the to old school on Back Then, Queens Story, Locomotive, The Don with tributes to New York and more specifically Queens.

I've never found Nas the easiest MC to listen to, his intelligent rhymes and deserve more than a casual listen whereas his occasionally weak beats don't. Here the balance is more favourable as his lyrics are more grounded, weak beats are few and far in-between, the terrible Summer on Smash being one and there are no concept tracks, Rewind. He flows practically acapella on World is an Addiction and Stay, this works more on the former than the latter, helped by Anthony Hamilton's soulful chorus.

The front end of the album is loaded with the NY and Queens nostalgia told alongside honest recollections of some of his more regrettable juvenile activities. this run changes with Daughters,  a mature testament to parenting tribulations and regrets. Following Daughters is a Mary J. Blige collaboration and it is a welcome surprise that in comparison with their Stillmatic effort Braveheart, this one stays in keeping with the albums retro feel and isn't just an R&B by numbers effort. The back end of Life is Good consists mainly of slower tracks with Nas being supported by female vocalists, including Amy Winehouse posthumously on Cherry Wine, a description of Nas' ideal next partner.

Best guest: Amy Winehouse

Stand-out track: Queens Story, Accident Murderers

Best bars: (Bye Baby)
Bye baby I guess you know why I walked away
When we walked to the altar that was an awesome day
Did counselin', couldn't force me to stay
Somethin happened when you say I do, we go a stray
Why did we mess it up we was friends we had it all
Reasons you don't trust men that was your daddy fault
He in the grave let it go he no longer livin'
Said you caught him cheatin' with mom f***in other women
F*** that gotta do with us here's the keys to the newest truck
Bergen bags, we burnin cash now baby do it up
Now matter who you f***ed, that was before me
Wanted you as my shorty since saw you screamin' "Hate you so much right now!!!"
Should have saw the meanin, angry black women, actions of a demon, I'm leavin'

Lyrics:

Beats:

Overall:

Jay Rock - Follow Me Home

Compared with the late nineties very few West coast artists are shifting millions these days as the 'gangsta rap' scene wore itself out. That's not to say that gangsta rap is dead, albums are still being churned out routinely by the old brigade staying true to what they know best. Jay Rock must have grown up during the gangsta rap boom and stays true to what he knows best with his debut album Follow Me Home, even though he must recognise that the rap game has moved on from the top selling days of Ice Cube, Mack 10, MC Eiht and other LA based artists.

In case you were in any doubt as to Rock's locale following the drive-by intro, the bass and keys of Code Red are recognisably West Coast. Rock's gruff flow sounds like a cross between Game and Xzibit as he describes life in Watts, LA over a range of typically West Coast beats (Hood Gone Love It, Elbows and All I Know Is).

The main problem with tales of Rock's upbringing is that they have largely been heard before, for Rock and Watts read Eiht and Compton, C-BO and Sacramento or Mack 10 and Inglewood. Rock is a reasonably proficient rapper but I don't feel he has enough character to make his subject matter distinctive enough to elevate his music above the competition.

Rock is at his best when he isn't glamorising the gangbang lifestyle, which to be fair he rarely does, but when he deals with aftermath of living that way with sincere introspective lyrics on No Joke, Kill or Be Killed or Just Like Me which is only let down by a weak chorus.
At 18 tracks, the album is too long and contains too much filler, Elbows, Boomerang, I'm Thuggin, Bout That or All I Know Is among others and unfortunately the highlights are outnumbered. Street single Hood Gone Love It, No Joke, previous single All My Life and Black Hippy group track Say Wassup are all worth listening to but probably on a separate playlist.

A promising debut from Jay Rock but he and his 2012-updated West Coast by numbers music is unlikely to lead the to a renaissance of LA hip-hop.

Best guest: Kendrick Lamar

Stand-out track: Hood Gone Love It

Best bars: (Just Like Me)

But ignorance is bliss because them fists are soon gon' turn into a bullet

If the index finger pull it cameras coming for the footage

Channel 9, Channel 11, Aiming Nines, Mack 11

Another baby for the reverend, another casket

Take action in a matter of a second

Nothing matters when you reppin for your turf

Hold it down, have heart - Put in work

That's the moral of the story when you're worried and you're wicked

And your mental never get it

It's a sickness when you kill your own kind

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Rick Ross - God Forgives, I Don't

First things first, this is the first Rick Ross album I have listened to. Ross has steadily become a big player in the mainstream rap game and was named 'Hottest MC in the game' by MTV in 2012 and this is underlined by the heavyweight guests he has attracted to God Forgives, I Don't.

Ross' rap persona is almost cartoon like as the self-styled Florida drug kingpin, especially when you consider his correctional officer background. Although far from the greatest rapper to ever grace a mic you cannot deny that his husky delivery has a certain style to it that can make for enjoyable listening. Except plenty of references to bricks, keys and triple beams, Pirates and Triple Beam Dream, as Ross depicts the lifestyle of character while enjoying the fruits of his labour, So Sophisticated and 911. Ross, the character, also spends some time looking back at where he came from on Ashamed and Ten Jesus Pieces.

Ross refers to himself as 'the Christopher Wallace of my time', which if meant as comparison of technical ability may well be most delusional line of the year. What he may mean is Biggie's storytelling ability which although inferior to Biggie, Ross is at least in the same ballpark as.

Production is handled by J.U.S.T.I.C.E League, Cardiak and Jake One among others and provides some cinematic style landscapes (Triple Beam Dream and Ten Jesus Pieces) along with some typical heavy Southern style tracks (911, So Sophisticated and Hold Me Back) for Ross and his guests to work with. Helped by Ross' stories in places but let down by the tracks, vocally and production-wise, that fall flat God Forgives, I Don't ends up as a mixed bag. The mixtape style 'Maybach Music' voice-overs are a seriously unnecessary annoyance.

The eight minute duet with Andre 3000 Sixteen is definitely worth checking out.  

Best guest: Andre 3000

Stand-out track: Pirates

Best bars: (Rich Forever):
Big face Roley, rose gold cost 40
Platinum 21, it's time to go and spoil shorty
You only live once I'm screamin YOLO in the V.I.
Time flies fast balling with my n**** T.I
Ciroc, no glass, smilin women in my presence
Tall supermodels always fall in my possession
Atlanta housewives takin pictures in my section
But I only got a thing for young bitches with aggression
Show me that affection that a D-boy craves
Rich forever in my D-boy ways
So dope, blue jeans, new J's
Sold dope by any means all day

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