What's going on folks?! This anniversary salute goes to an emcee that, although gets tons of love within the independent/underground world of hip-hop, most mainstream accessible fans never heard of him. Although there's a chance you may have if you ever went to a show that he was deejaying at. This former school teacher delivered a couple of singles and before long the buzz was about this emcee and the amount of writing abilities he had. Sadly, as the album was finished, label problems continuously plagued this dude with good delivery and an even better pen game. It wasn't until numerous bootlegs and internet leaks when people took notice and realized they were hearing a pure, unadulterated hip-hop album complete with a tried and true formula: bumping yet consistent production and gifted rhymes and focused rhyme structure. This album had it, and it had it in spades. Not a single moment was wasted on this album and made this emcee, once people finally heard it, among those to really keep their eyes and ears on. Ladies and gentlemen, this is J-Live and his debut album, The Best Part.
After graduating SUNY, he transitioned into school teaching in Brooklyn. Nobody knew at the time that the man born as Jean-Jacques Cadet (later renamed Justice Allah due to his affiliation with the Nation of the Gods & The Earth) was a hip-hop student himself. Writing and hitting up talent shows while also deejaying, Cadet presented a cut called "Longevity" with a stunning B-side called "Bragging Writes" that got the NY underground scene talking. Before very long, his debut, The Best Part, was ready to go. As was mentioned earlier, label problems shelved the album a couple of times and we never thought we would be able to bask in the glory that was this album, especially when the word got out that production monsters such as Preemo, Pete Rock, 88 Keyz, Prince Paul, and the Jigmastas' own DJ Spinna would handle the sounds of the effort. Originally scheduled to be released in '97, this was not the only album at that time that had been shelved due to numerous label situations as another unforgettable debut experienced the same situation with Large Professor's THE LP was another victim at this time. Shame it didn't come out when it was supposed to because this would've been a gem among a time when commercialism was still in effect but crunk was starting to become the norm as well.
From the jumpoff, Live sets the tone with a lyrical smorgasbord on "Got What It Takes", then follows on the intriguing "Vampire Hunter", the KNOCKING Preemo-powered title track, and "Wax Paper" that all show his lyrical dexterities over slapping production. On "Yes", he laments "You don't want my fist in your trap, shut your mouth/I heard you got a jones for keeping up with the Joneses/only problem is all your jones is wack". There's also the next track the standout "Them That's Not", in which the tempo starts slow then increasingly speeds up until the track is at a normal mid-tempo and then slows up like it was at the beginning of the track. Unique cut with Live definitely riding the track. Another cold cut is the jazzy and mellow "Timeless", in which he gets reflective while spitting intelligent rhymes and showcasing his ability to teach and learn at the same time.
J-Live has always been one of the unsung heroes in the game and one that doesn't get enough credit for his pure hip-hop aesthetic and him never compromising. Many wanted him to join the red hot underground movement that was Rawkus Records at the time, and yes folks, he would've fit in VERY comfortably with all that superb talent associated with the label. Could you imagine him doing a cut with Last Emperor or Black Star at that time? Wow. This album, with other stellar cuts like "R.A.G.E.", "Play", and "Get The Third", remains an emcee's emcee's album.
After The Best Part, he followed it up with an equally fantastic (in some circles even better) album with All Of The Above in '02 along with others like Then What Happened, the decent The Hear After, S.P.I.T. and other efforts since. As an entire complete album, there aren't too many that can hold this album out of position of being one of the best pound for pound albums during that time period. It had consistently dope production, dumb lyrical, good concepts, and a great feeling of just being a lover of good old fashioned hip-hop. With that, we lift our glasses to J-Live's The Best Part. Salute to this incredible piece of work. Until next time y'all!
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