JAY Z THE BLACK ALBUM MOVIE SKIN
The faces and skin tones of the people doubting Shawn Carter were changing, and he morphed into something else to meet that challenge. The anger, ego and ferocity that honed the first half of Hov’s career were no longer sustainable prospects for a man dating Beyoncé who would go on to rub elbows with the President. When Jay-Z raps, “I’m from rags to riches, niggas, I ain’t dumb” it’s the crystallization of a life. Critics, radio, magazines and the police all get it, three minutes and fifty-four seconds of Jay being a petty god. Vicious, succinct, perfect, no Hov song since has reached that height of fury tempered by effortless control. “99 Problems” is the only true retirement on The Black Album. His mom reminisces about his childhood on “December 4th,” while Jay reckons with his father’s death on “99 Problems.” Even a song like “Change Clothes” serves a clear purpose, the trading of throwback jerseys for collared shirts seemingly a test to see how far Hov could push the “grown and sexy” shtick before it buckled under its own pompous weight. The Black Album also ostensibly marks the first time Jay-Z has written down his lyrics before recording his verses, rather than keeping them in his head. He asked if we wanted an encore, but before anyone can answer he places his name next to Michael Jordan and The Grateful Dead. Jay’s eighth studio is a king’s tantrum masked as a moment of lionization. From Ron O’Neal’s desperate deal in Superfly to De Niro’s high-risk heist in Heat, pimp-gangsta-mack lore is littered with last scores, tall. Eminem was about to run into a creative wall he’d never recover from, 50 Cent hadn’t reached the zenith of his commercial power, Kanye West was far from being a lyrical peer, Aubrey Graham was still a teen soap opera star. In 2003, Hov was operating in a space where social media was barely in its infancy, stealing digital files was more of a concern than streaming, organizing discs into a binder was still a thing. “There’s never been a nigga this good for this long / This hood or this pop, this hot or this strong,” Jay spits over the “Something for Nothing” sample. Jay pleads with the audience, “What more can I say to you? You heard it all,” which is severely depressing and darkly humorous when you consider how bored the world’s most successful rapper has to be in order to make an entire song about the subject. The Black Album is a work of sheer disgust at the excess of success. According to him “The game ain’t hot,” and hip-hop was now “corny.”
His stated reason for leaving the genre behind was clear. Everybody was spittn hard, and Jay had a point to prove. Following the death of Big the 'King of NY' role was to be filled. 'This record ain't a record,' Chicago rapper and producer Kanye West says of 'The Black Album' midway through the film as he and Jay-Z collaborate in the recording studio. And yes I love Reasonable Doubt and The Black Album too lol.
Every piece of major label music is a publicity stunt by necessity, wrapped in an artistic package. Paramount Classics presents a documentary directed by Michael John Warren. He was asked if his retirement was a publicity stunt. I could think of other ways to get attention,” Jay-Z defensively told Touré in a 2003 New York Times interview.
0 kommentar(er)
