Friday, May 31, 2024

Hustla To Icon: Ranking Jay-Z's Discography

 


Say what you will about Jay-Z, but there's no denying how he has impacted not just hip-hop, but music in general.  The billionaire emcee (among other titles) is credited for having help inspire generations of emcees after him, just like he was inspired by emcees such as Big Daddy Kane and mentor Jaz-O.  While he amassed many controversies over the span of his career, whenever there's talk of a Jay-Z album on the horizon, people immediately stand up and take notice.  He's among the highest selling artists in hip-hop history as well, with over thirty million albums worldwide to this very day, as well as numerous awards such as Grammies, AMAs, BET, and Billboard.  The native Marcy, Brooklynite is looked upon by many as a legend and possibly even an icon to younger emcees that know about the same type of rough living he spoke about constantly on wax.  With that being said, let's rank his discography and see why many contemporaries put him among the top emcees of all-time.  Let's go folks!


15. Magna Carta Holy Grail

Production: Boi-1nda, Pharrell Williams, Hit-Boy, Mike Dean, Timbaland, No I.D., Vinylz, Mike WILL Made It, others

Guests: Justin Timberlake, Rick Ross, Frank Ocean, Beyonce

We start with the least regarded album of Jay-Z's discography.  Released for Samsung users at first, the project would eventually made its way to retail, and it was a mixed reaction at best. Sounding somewhat uninspired and unfocused, Hov pretty much spitting like he had paid the mortgage off so there was no need for urgency.  Production as a whole was in consistent and uneven.  While a few cuts on here are dope from a production standpoint such as "Jay Z Blue" or "Oceans", others such as "Crown", "Picasso Baby", and "Beach is Better" are decent to average at best.  There are some cleverly written cuts on here such as the aforementioned "Oceans", as well as "Nickles and Dines" and "Heaven", but for the most part, Magna Carta Holy Grail is a flat effort by an artist who's anything but, historically.  This album just sounded like a hobby instead of an album aimed on continuing his legacy. The few glimpses of promise were quickly and overwhelmingly overtaken by lackluster production, underwhelming delivery, and basically an album that appeared as a vanity project for Samsung customers than another example of the iconic status so many have placed him in.  While some have stated that Kingdom Come or Blueprint 3 were arguably his worst albums, this album had almost no hope out the water, and is easily the worst album of his nearly thirty-year career.



14. The Blueprint 3

Production: Kanye West, No I.D., Pharrell Williams, others

Guests: Kanye West, Rihanna, Drake, J. Cole, Alicia Keys, Pharrell, Kid Cudi, Swizz Beats, others

Following up the excellent American Gangster, Jay dropped the third edition of The Blueprint, The Blueprint 3 in 2009.  This was an album in which 50% of the album was blasted on commercial radio and/or mis shows.  The album produced six singles from this thirteen-track album.  The world was more than familiar with cuts including the Grammy nominated due with Alicia Keys, the monstrous "Empire State of Mind", the Swizz Beats-assisted & produced, "On to The Next One", the Grammy Award-winning collab with Rihanna and Kanye, "Run This Town", "Death of Auto-Tune", and the mix show favorite, the J. Cole-assisted, "A Star Is Born".  While there's no denying the mega appeal of these singles, they're also mostly generic for what they're worth.  At this point in the game, Jay wasn't trying to move any needle creatively or thematically.  Other cuts on the album such as the Drake-assisted "Off That", the opening cut, "What We Talkin' Bout", and the Jeezy-assisted, "Real as It Gets" are average lyrically and production-wise, but at least they're good for the party and the whip.  Jay designed The Blueprint 3 almost like he did his Roc La Familia album, in which he only does three cuts by himself with no guests.  In any event, Jay was riding his mega successful stardom to nothing to write home about, except that the album had multiple hits and, by all accounts, is among his most rotated albums by Hov loyalists. However, there's nothing here that screams game changer. While not a terrible album, it's not among his finest moments either.



13. The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse

Production: Kanye West, Just Blaze, Dr. Dre, No I.D., The Neptunes, Timbaland, Heavy D, Digga

Guests: Dr. Dre, Truth Hurts, Rakim, State Property, Scarface, M.O.P., Lenny Kravitz, Faith Evans, Twista, Killer Mike, Big Boi, Beyonce, others

After the overwhelming critical and commercial success of his first Blueprint, Jay decided to provide a sequel in the form of Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse in 2002.  While the Blueprint was the most definitive statement about his career at that time that he could provide, BP2 was more of a means of a self-imposed victory lap.  Knowing that he was among the rotated artists in not just hip-hop but music at large, everything was catered to fit the build of being the biggest hip-hop act in music.  Don't get it twisted: there were definitely fire starters on this double album.  He divides this album just like he states in the title of his album: a gift side and a curse side.  The "gift" side has him obviously celebrating his legendary stature in all its lavish with cuts like the all too familiar "Excuse Me Miss", the Big Boi/Twista/Killer Mike-assisted "Poppin' Tags", the truthfully very underwhelming opener with Faith Evans (that incorporates Biggie's first verse from "Juicy").  Where he shines the most is when he actually spits and rhymes like he still has something to prove and having production match it.  On this side, the sequel to Dr. Dre's "The Watcher" from his 2001 album may be the best example.  Alongside Dre and then Aftermath artists Truth Hurts and the almighty Rakim himself, Hov sounded like '99 Hov during his In My Lifetime era.  We see more consistency in the curse side, as cuts like the Lenny Kravitz-assisted "Gunz N Roses", the remix to crazy Just Blaze-crafted cut from Blueprint "You Don't Know" (featuring those Brownsville bullies M.O.P. on here), the vivid "Meet the Parents", and the introspective collab with Beanie Sigel and southern rap god, Scarface, "Somehow, Someway".  We get more Streets Is Watching Hov than Lifetime Vol. 1 Hov with this disc.  He stirs the pot a little more in his issues with Nas and former mentor, Jaz-O, on the title track, but pours out a little liquor on the Neptunes-created "Ballad for the Fallen Soldier".  As a single disc, this would've been higher up on this list, but the overabundance of cuts and the inconsistency of this double album makes this too in and out of an effort.  While BP2 has its fair share of great notables, it has almost as many hangups and fumbles.




12. Kingdom Come

Production: Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Just Blaze, The Neptunes, Swizz Beats, DJ Khalyl, others

Guests: Chrisette Michele, John legend, Beyonce, Usher, Pharrell, Ne-Yo, others

After delivering his tremendous "retirement" album, The Black Album, in '03. and a couple of other side projects (his collab albums with R. Kelly and Linken Park), Jay reemerged with his ninth album, Kingdom Come.  Aiming to deliver a more grown appeal than albums prior, he has more introspective joints here in some cases, but as a whole, it just sounded like a regular, average Jay-Z album.  The biggest difference here is the inclusion of the mighty D-R-E on four cuts, including the second single with Chrisette Michele, "Lost Ones", which highlights his splits from former Roc-A-Fella partner, Dame Dash, his breakup with Rosario Dawson, and the death of his nephew in one of the very few highlights and notables on this album.  The first single, "Show Me What U Got" was a very bland cut for Hov standards, but other cuts like "30 Something", the Just Blaze-ripped title track, and another Dre-blessed track, "Trouble". Perhaps the lone standout of the album is the Ne-Yo-assisted, "Minority Report", in which Jay goes fully into socially conscious mode and how his position within hip-hop is needed, but also addresses the troubles he and others in his position face.  Truly one of the most compelling cuts he's penned within his career.  If only we had more of these moments, or similar.  Other cuts such as the Beyonce-featured, "Hollywood", "Do You Wanna Ride", "Dig A Hole", and the Chris Martin of Coldplay-assisted "Beach Chair" are near dreadful and belong on the lower tier of album cuts post-Black Album.  In interviews, Jay stated this was his worst album, or at least his least favorite.  Either could be a decent argument.  While this wasn't the worst album he's done, this wasn't far from it clearly.  Uninspired, average, and run-of-the-mill, Kingdom Come was another commercially successful Hov album, but critically, this was overall a snore and nothing to write Brooklyn about.



11. Watch The Throne (w/ Kanye West)

Production: Kanye West, Mike Dean, 88-Keyz, RZA, Q-Tip, Hit-Boy, The Neptunes, others

Guests: Frank Ocean, Beyonce, The-Dream, Mr. Hudson

After signing to the Roc in '03, Kanye West was quickly becoming the next big star within the Roc la Familia just based upon his outstanding production talents.  When he picked that mic up, he showed he wasn't bad in that department either, thus '04's stellar debut, The College Dropout.  He was till, however, manning the boards from his fellow Roc-mates such as Cam'ron, Beans, Freeway, Young Gunz, and of course "big brother" Jay-Z.  throughout the thousands, Kanye would be a megastar and Hov was starting to be more of the elder emcee on the sidelines watching his craft continue to influence the world.  They decided to come together in 2011 to do a joint album and called the album, Watch The Throne.  Fresh off his exceptional My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album the prior year, Kanye provided some of his best board work here likewise.  The two of them showed surprisingly good chemistry together on several tracks including the outstanding "Try A Little Tenderness" sample, "Otis" (the irony, right?), "Murder to Excellence", and "Welcome to The Jungle".  On the exquisite, RZA-crafted, Nina Simone-sampled, "New Day", both emcees speak to the sprits of their unborn sons at the time in such poignant manners that this may be the most transparent we hear from them all album.  Meanwhile, on the cut, "Made in America", with the ever-allusive Frank Ocean on the chorus, while Kanye's verse is more so about living out your dreams and making it in spite of haters, Jay's was very gripping, provoking images of being around crack cocaine but leery of having it around his grandmother in what's easily the most telling verse from him this entire album.  While there are some misses such as the otherwise acclaimed "Niggas in Paris" and the slightly underwhelming opener, "No Church in the Wild", Watch The Throne was a dope project. Although it was not the classic everyone was expecting (and rightfully so) the chemistry between Hov and Ye was evident here on this album. EPMD, Mobb Deep, and Outkast they're not, but for this project, they did just fine.



10. Everything Is Love (w/ Beyonce)

Production: artist, Mike Dean, Cool & Dre, Boi-1nda, Vinylz, !llmind, others

Guests: N/A

Arguably the most notable power couple in all of music is The Carters, Jay & Beyonce.  Beyonce is one of the most captivating and successful entertainers of all-time, and Jay is among the highest selling and influential emcees of all-time. Both extremely powerful and influential behind the scenes and as businesspeople.  It's only right these two did a husband-and-wife effort at some point. After appearing on numerous projects from the other, the couple deiced to surprise fans around the world in 2018 with their joint album, EVERYTHING IS LOVE.  Ironically, the album dropped the very same weekend Nas dropped his greatly underwhelming, Nasir, project with Kanye.  nonetheless, the album was basically everything you'd imagine a joint album between them to look and sound like.  themes on the album were mostly about love, its highs, lows, and complications, fame, stardom, and haters. You might get the occasional socially conscious or Black empowerment cut on here too.  Cuts like "Nice", "Heard About Us", and the opener, "Summer" reflect these themes very accurately.  On the trap-heavy single, "Apeshit", we hear The Carters (along with vocals by then-Migos members, Quavo and Offset) flaunting their statuses and shine gratuitously, and similarly on "Boss", they make it known they're in control of this game. It's their world and we all live in it.  However, they bring it to the community with "Black Effect", in perhaps the sole cut with any slight bit of substance on here that's consistent. the production is fairly dope as a whole, the likes of Cool & Dre, Boi-1nda, and !llmind provide a formidable soundscape for them to handle their respective business over, especially on cuts like "Black Effect", "Friends", and the solidarity cut "Lovehappy".  This is clearly mor a Beyonce album, more than an album they both equally dominate. It could very well have been designed that way. However, in any case, The Carters delivered a sonically pleasing effort with EVERYTHING IS LOVE. Bey's vocal talents, when she's totally tuned in and not trying to be ratchet or anything but Bey, is fantastic, and Jay, for what he contributes, is sharp and poised lyrically.  Much like Watch The Throne, this was expected to be an immediate classic and completely overtake the music world.  Although it wasn't of that stature, it was a good listen and, while it further solidified their image of being THAT power couple and being able to enjoy the finer things in life materially speaking, they also showed why, in music, they're among the most commercially successful artists of their crafts ever as well.



9. Vol. 3: The Life & Times of S. Carter

Production: Rockwilder, DJ Premier, Swizz Beats, Timbaland, Digga, Clue & Duro, others

Guests: Amil, Mariah Carey, Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Juvenile, UGK, Dr. Dre

After the runaway commercial success of the previous Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life, the pressure was on the keep up the momentum with the final part of the In My Lifetime series, with Vol. 3: Life & Times of S. Carter.  While there was smash after smash on Vol. 2, there aren't quite as many with Vol. 3. However, this doesn't take away from how dope this album is.  From the offset, the first single, the Beanie Segal/Amil-assisted, Rockwilder-thumped, "Put Ya Hands Up". you knew this was going to be more of a rugged feel, although definitely full of what made Hov the biggest selling hip-hop artist (next to Eminem) at the time.  Once the album dropped, and one pushed play on their CD or tape deck, we get hit early with the Preemo-blessed, "So Ghetto", that recaptures previous magic like they did on cuts like "Friend vs. Foe" and "A Million & One Questions".  From there, cuts like "Dope Man", "There's Been a Murder", and the Dr. Dre-assisted "Watch Me" are dripping in Marcy Projects sauce.  On this album, he also takes a trip down south as he collaborates with New Orleans all-star at the time, Juvenile, on "Snoopy Track", and of course he links up with Port Arthur, TX legends, UGK, on the now legendary "Big Pimpin'", where the previously little-known southern veterans got exposed to a worldwide audience via Jay and commanded the track.  Also, the Mariah Carey-assisted "Thing That U Do" and the Roc posse cut, "Pop 4 Roc" are greatly balanced for the streets, the radio, and the club, much like the majority of the album.  With Swizz Beats and Timbaland making up nearly half the album, this album has a number of strong moments that fit the feel of the album.  If Vol. 1 was the commercial crossover and Vol. 2 was the breakout smash, Vol. 3 was the most street-oriented of the trilogy.  Although there were certainly anthems and certified hits, this was a bit grittier than his prior two. We wouldn't get something quite like this from him for the next few years to come.



8. The Dynasty: Roc La Familia

Production: Kanye West, Just Blaze, Rick Rock, Rockwilder, Bink!, The Neptunes, others

Guests: Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Amil, Snoop Dogg, Scarface, R. Kelly, Freeway

In 2000, Jay followed up the aforementioned Vol. 3...Life & Times of S. Carter with The Dynasty: Roc La Familia, which was originally designed to be a compilation album for his Roc artists of Beanie, Freeway, Bleek, and Amil.  Instead, plans were changed to it being another Jay album, but heavily featuring his Roc artists and some outside friends and colleagues.  The first single, the Pharrell-collaborated radio darling "I Just Wanna Love Ya (Give It to Me)", was an indicator of what was to come in terms of how much the formulaic pattern of commercially pleasing production and super catchy hooks were the keys to a smash.  While this was definitely the case with other cuts on this album such as "You, Me, Him, & Her", the west coast flavored, Snoop Dogg-assisted "Get Ya Mind Right Mami", and the R. Kelly-collaborated "Guilty Til Proven Innocent" (the irony), this isn't always the case, and that's the great thing.  Cuts such as "1-900 HUSTLA", "Stick 2 The Script", and "Streets Is Talkin'" are cuts for the street dwellers and those that prefer their hip-hop grittier and grungier.  However, it's when we get beneath the surface where the album shines. On the Scarface-assisted, "This Can't Be Life", we see him, Beans, and Jay all reminisce over the struggles each has had to overcome through the streets and their upbringings.  Also, on "Soon You'll Understand", we hear Jay in one of his most gripping cuts spit a virtual apology letter to the mother of his son, as well as to his mother for all the bad decisions he made regarding the streets and the drug game.  On the slick "Squeeze 1st", he gets vivid with his drug fantasies in the eyes of a youth and his days as a hustler, while proclaiming himself a menace to society with his gun fetishes. However, it takes a next level turn on the painful, "Where Have You Been", in which we hear Jay and Beans get at their absolute most raw and vulnerable, especially Beans. Over a brooding and melancholy beat, Jay delivers poignant and anger-filled rhymes about his absentee father, while Beans delivers the most verbally distraught verse of his career, going in and out of weeping and raging over the actions of his abusive father.  It really gets no more transparent than this, folks.  Jay's Roc La Familia is a very dope project that doesn't get mentioned enough among his best works, and the performances of his Roc crew are to be commended, especially Beans.  Don't let the syrupy commercial hits like "Give It 2 Me" fool you. This was an album that hit depths and explored the streets more than almost any prior Jay album, or for that matter albums since.



7. In My Lifetime Vol. 1

Production: DJ Premier, D-Dot, Prestige, Nasheim Myrick, Diddy, Amen-Ra, Buckwild, Stevie J, Teddy Riley, Ski, Trackmasters, others

Guests: Diddy, Foxy Brown, Babyface, Blackstreet, Sauce Money, Lil Kim, Too $hort

After the very high critical acclaim of Reasonable Doubt, the pressure was on for Hov to come correct and deliver something as great or better than his debut.  However, much like Nas did with It Was Written in comparison to Illmatic, Jay went with a more polished, yet less raw, sound for the next album.  The album came in the form of In My Lifetime Vol. 1, the first part in one of the most decorated trilogies in all of hip-hop.  This first part was way more commercial sounding and almost deliberately crossover, to which many of his fans were disappointed with.  Gone were the grittiness and thugged-out realism of Reasonable Doubt, and included were the overly flashiness of what was considered the Bad Boy era, where it was about Moet, Cristal, and commercialism at its peak.  Cuts such as the Blackstreet-crooned remake of Glen Frey's "You Belong to The City", "The City Is Mine", the Foxy Brown-assisted, Babyface sung, "Sunshine", and the borderline horrid Lil' Kim-assisted, "I Know What Girls Like" are examples of the style that somewhat encompassed this album.  The want to appeal to a bigger audience was coming at the expense of his core audience, which is often the struggle within the music industry.  The flossed-out, sample/remake heavy production hampered a lot of this album, as it was painfully obvious this was a move strictly to go with the wave.  However, when he dips back into Reasonable Doubt bag, the results are excellent. The Rene & Angela-sampled, "Imaginary Playa" is very much lyrically another commercialized cut, but the production here sounded so smooth, the lyrics and the theme was forgivable.  With tracks like "Rap Game/Crack Game", "Friend or Foe II", and the underground favorite, "Streets Is Watching" (which also spawned an independent, straight to video movie with a soundtrack to partner it with) come straight from the aura of his debut, and makes you want way more moments like these.  While others such as the Sauce Money-assisted, "Fasce Off" and "Where I'm from" sound like they could've been from the RD cutting room floor, it's his closer, "You Must Love Me", that serves as the album's true highlight.  Addressing his mother, brother, and presumed girlfriend, he expresses remorse and guilt for a lot of his thoughts and actions, especially the shooting of his brother.  With In My Lifetime Vol. 1, Jay starts to dive into the glossy, shiny-suit era months after the superbly tragic and untimely death of close friend The Notorious B.I.G., but it's when he snaps out of it and remembers who the blocks he came from where we see Jay gives the streets his blood, sweat, and tears on the album. It's certainly a very underappreciated album, but one where we could tell he had the formula to get love on the radios and Billboard, while still staying true to the streets that made him.



6. Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life

Production: Mark 45 King, Erick Sermon, DJ Premier, Irv Gotti, Timbaland, Swizz Beats, Jermaine Dupri, Rockwilder, Stevie J, others

Guests: Too $hort, Amil, Jaz-O, Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, The Lox, Sauce Money, Foxy Brown, Ja-Rule, DMX, others

With Jay-Z climbing up the ladder in terms of star appeal and becoming the biggest act to come from the NY area, Jay also knew he had a lot of critics based on his prior album, In My Lifetime Vol. 1.  Critics scoffed that he was dipping into the gloss and floss that Bad Boy was so becoming (ahem) notorious for.  Enter '98's Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life.  Based off the DYNAMITE single of the same name, "Hard Knock Life", Jay took it back to the streets, while keeping it goods for the radio and clubs as well without sounding so Billboard deliberately.  With the CRAZY Annie-sample living in our heads rent free, we also were treated to numerous other singles from the album such as the DMX-assisted anthem, "Money, Cash, Hoes", the Amil and Jaz-O-assisted, "Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originator '99)", and another Amil-assisted cut, "Can I Get A...", with then-new Def Jam signee, Ja-Rule, that would make this the most in-demand album of his discography at the time just based off all the singles. In fact, there were only a few cuts that only stuck to being mix show faves such as the Too $hort-assisted, "A Week Ago", "If I Should Die", and "Ride or Die".  We can't forget the thunderous Preemo contribution, the Memph Bleek-guested, "Hand It Down".  The album also features previously heard and frequently bumped via radio and BET singles such as "Money Ain't a Thang" with Jermaine Dupri and the celebratory cut with Kid Capri, "It's Like That".  For a thirteen-track album, about 95% of the album had already flooded radio and BET before and during the rollout of the album. Thus, likely making it the reason it became the highest selling album of his career at around seven million units and counting to this day.  It's no surprise Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life is his most commercially successful album, but it's also one that truly and officially put Jay-Z on as a worldwide name within hip-hop and music at large. He had emerged as a superstar, and he would never let his foot off the gas from this moment on.



5. The Blueprint

Production: Kanye West, Just Blaze, Bink!, Timbaland, Trackmasters, Eminem

Guests: Eminem

It's accurate to say Jay was indeed running the rap game around 2000.  His albums were all platinum-plus (especially the aforementioned Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life), any single he put out was guaranteed to get heavy airplay all over the place, plus he was continuing to keep his street respect as well and continuing to influence the culture.  With this being said, he was also becoming public enemy number one in many people's eyes. People still wanted that Reasonable Doubt Jay. The corner street hustler. Jay was becoming bigger than the streets, and it showed more and more with each album.  Aiming to remind people why he was among the most in-demand emcees in the business, he delivered 2001's The Blueprint.  Although the album would be released on the worst day of our nation, 9/11/01, that was the only thing that stained the album's initial rollout.  Going into the album's release, he dropped one of the scathing diss records of that time in "The Takeover", in which he took stage at Hot 97's annual Summer Jam, and publicly dissed and embarrassed Nas and Mobb Deep's Prodigy, especially P and the photos that could've been potentially career-ending for P.  Once he dropped "The Takeover", it was time to go to bigger matters in the form of crafting an album for the next several generations.  The official first single, "H To the Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" was a pleasant track that set the scene for what to expect from the album. He keeps on the same carefree, non-heavy run with other favorites such as "Hola Hovito", the ode to the various ladies he encountered around the world, "Girls, Girls, Girls", and "Jigga My Nigga".  He hits moments of introspection and depth with cuts such as "Never Change", the touching single "Song Cry", and especially the title track, that has him once again giving shots to his mother for putting up with his street life and never wavering with her love to and for him.  This album also became the album that officially established Kanye West and Just Blaze as production heavyweights, as they made up 90% of the album's sounds.  Complete with soul samples all-around backed with mostly snapping drums and bass, Jay sounded as comfortable and whole as we had ever heard him lyrically over this incredible production.  It's been said The Blueprint is one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all-time. It was elected to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress, which only culturally impactful and shifting recordings find their placement in.  It's certainly his most complete body of work, and the album that, besides Reasonable Doubt, is the go-to for any Jay-Z fan to hear and witness his rise into legendary status.



4. 4:44

Production: artist, No I.D.

Guests: Beyonce, Kim Burrell, Frank Ocean, Damien Marley, James Fauntleroy, The-Dream

As years had gone by, we had seen the emergence of Shawn Carter, the billionaire businessman, executive, mogul, entrepreneur, and overall success story (not to mention the husband of Beyonce).  While he was making landmark corporate moves including bringing the New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn in the NBA and having his Roc Nation management/entertainment company be Lead Music Supervisor for the NFL and their Super Bowls, he never forgot about his love of hip-hop.  As a far more grown near fifty-year old at the time, Jay had seen a ton and done a ton. He had become an elder statesman. One who knew the ins and outs of the both the streets and the boardroom.  In 2017, he dropped quite the anticipated album in the form of 4:44. It would mark his first album since his prior surprise effort, the very underwhelming and lazy, Magna Carta Holy Grail.  This was the polar opposite.  The rollout of the album was cryptic in nature, plus there were no singles to present before the album dropped.  Once it dropped, we heard way more Shawn than we did Jay.  The album is unquestionably his most personal and most honest, as well as his most socially conscious and community-centered album to date.  With "The Story of O.J.", he dissects racism, stereotypes, and other subjects that have dictated our identity negatively over the generations.  He gets compelling on tracks like the coming out of his mother being lesbian, "Smile", the "death" of Jay-Z and the attributes that were associated with this hip-hop alter ego "Kill Jay Z", and the social commentary of "Moonlight". The album hits its most intriguing and transparent moments when he addresses Beyonce. While he gives innuendos and moments of clarity on the otherwise community-structured theme of "Family Feud", it's the title track that is more or less an open letter of apology to his megastar bride.  Beyonce had addressed her moments of shame and embarrassment from his infidelity on the track "Sorry" from her venomous Lemonade album. He addresses this and other issues that were quite brave and vulnerable.  He reminisces on his childhood and his adolescence on the excellent "Marcy Me" and closes with the stirring "Legacy".  Former Kanye mentor and Common collaborator, No I.D., was put in charge to handle production duties of this album and what an outstanding job he did.  Samples are littered throughout the album as if Kanye and Just Blaze were on the boards all throughout this album.  It can be highly argued that 4:44 is Jay's most important album, from a human standpoint, as well as from a grown man standpoint, more than as an emcee per se.  Simply a stellar piece of work, Jay put Jay the emcee to bed, and allowed Shawn to be his speaking piece, and the results are powerful and significant.



3. American Gangster

Production: Sean C & LV, No I.D., Diddy, Just Blaze, The Neptunes, Jermaine Dupri, DJ Toomp

Guests: Nas, Pharrell, Beanie Sigel, Lil Wayne

The story of notorious gangster, Frank Lucas, was well known and quite studied.  Multiple Oscar Award winner, Denzel Washington, portrayed him in the movie American Gangster.  From his troubled upbringing to becoming one of the most ruthless figures to emerge from the tristate area, Lucas' life and drug dealing career was one of both infamy and grandeur, depending upon your perspective.  Jay-Z was inspired by the movie and the concept enough to construct an album of not only the same name, but the same spirit as the movie in terms of his drug dealing past, hustling, and the streets.  The album also has production that resembles the sounds of the seventies courtesy of the likes of No I.D., Just Blaze, Sean C & LV, and The Neptunes to give this a feel similar to a hip-hop version of Shaft or Superfly.  Sounding soulful without sounding dated or too retro, Jay glides with the greatest of ease over these tremendous beats.  The first single, "Roc Boys", is a very dope, horn-laced track that is celebratory and one to lift your glass for.  Portraying the very hustler Frank Lucas made himself out to be, cuts like "Blue Magic", the stellar "No Hook", and the snapping "Pray" all have him seemingly encompassing Lucas' spirit by doing both, celebrating the AmeriKKKan dream and the fruits of obtaining it, yet also detailing the troubling and rough trials that got him there.  On the bumping Nas-assisted, "Success", Jay lays out how it isn't all glitz and glamour at the top of the food chain.  From lawsuits to extortions, fame and fortune can come at a price.  Meanwhile, on the knocking DJ Toomp-produced, "Say Hello", Jay appears erratic and borderline paranoid, letting off desperate attempts to let whoever is out to get him that he's ready to go in a blaze of glory if need be.  Jay-Z very successfully conjures the spirit of Frank Lucas here in American Gangster, and you can basically picture and imagine him playing Frank easily as great as Denzel did.  This was fantastic audio cinematic experience of Jay portraying the very guy he somewhat emulated, whether he realized it or not, only without nearly as much violence and infamy.  With his long coat, scarf, and top hat being worn, an Uzi in one hand, and a glass of Asti Spumante in another (or Ace of Spades of course), Jay sat very comfortably in a throne of this magnitude with this album, and rightfully so.



2. The Black Album

Production: Kanye West, Just Blaze, 9th Wonder, The Neptunes, Timbaland, DJ Quik, Eminem, Rick Rubin, others

Guests: Pharrell

After the overwhelming commercial and critical success of The Blueprint just two years earlier, followed up with the very modest to underdelivering Blueprint 2, Jay had contemplated hanging up the mic.  With multi-platinum albums since In My Lifetime Vol. 1, he had done it all in the game and didn't feel the urgency to accomplish anything more.  He revealed that he was dropping his "final" album in the form of The Black Album.  The concept was to have a different producer for each song (although the rumor was that Biggie had thought of the concept first but that's neither here nor there).  He figured that, if he was going out, he would go out on top in the finest imaginable way possible. He already got us open with his singles of the Pharrell-assisted "Change Clothes", the Rick Rubin-produced, heavy rock influenced, "99 Problems", and the thick Timbaland served, "Dirt Off Your Shoulder", but little did we know that only scraped the surface.  The first full track, "December 4th", is a crazy Just Blaze-crafted autobiographical cut narrated by his mother and it has him going through all phases in his life that made him the man he became.  Already, the album started off with quite possibly the best cut on the album.  Similarly, on the Eminem-produced, "Moment of Clarity", he recalls certain moments of his life from the death of his father to the shifts and changes of his career in music.  Jay's pen game is next level throughout this album, even though according to many, there were several cuts that they were no observed paper and pens in their presence and were done in only one take.  Cuts such as the dumb dope DJ Quik-produced, Madonna sampled "Justify My Thug", the 9th Wonder-crafted, "Threat", and the ultra-cold closing cut, "My First Song" are all spectacular standouts that exemplify Hov's immense lyrical talents that seemingly come second nature in many regards.  Others like the Kanye-crafted "Lucifer" and the dazzling "Allure" put Jay in an elite class only made for the most superb emcees on the planet.  It's clear that The Black Album didn't retire with this album, but it's also clear that this album is easily as wonderful and stellar as anything he's done in his career and has been argued that the album even goes a level higher than his most acclaimed effort, The Blueprint.  This was clearly an album that was among the most well put together and structured albums of his career and deserved all the accolades it earned.



1. Reasonable Doubt

Production: DJ Premier, Ski, Clark Kent, Irv Gotti, Sean C & LV, others

Guests: Memphis Bleek, Mary J. Blige, Foxy Brown, Sauce Money, Jaz-O, Notorious B.I.G.

The album that started it all.  The album that brought Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z into our consciousness.  In a year that saw stellar albums get released such as Mobb Deep's unbelievable third outing, Hell On Earth, Outkast's otherworldly ATLiens, Redman's Muddy Waters, The Roots' classic outing, Illadelph Halflife, and Nas' excellent follow-up to Illmatic, It Was Written, Jay dropped the most outstanding album of his career, and like many, it happened to be his debut album. The album, Reasonable Doubt, was a hustler's manual in every way possible.  With its mafioso themes and the fascination with the drug culture and the riches it brings, Jay was a modern day Al Capone of sorts here, but only if Capone expresses the dark side of obtaining his power and the mental stress it can all cause.  With cuts like the opener, the Mary J. Blige-featured, "Can't Knock the Hustle", the freestyled stylings of "22 Twos", and especially the Preemo-pounded "Friend or Foe" all detail the struggles and downfalls that are potentially faced when dealing with that kind of lifestyle.  Similarly, another Premier cut, "D'Evils" and the cautionary "Regrets" express the consequences, whether mental or physical, of being a boss in the streets.  However, everything isn't consequences and repercussions, as other cuts like the frequently rotated singles, "Dead Presidents", "Feelin' It", and the neck-bobbing standout, "Cashmere Thoughts" are about the riches and materialism that can get one caught up.  He delivers with precision and complete lyrical excellence on other cuts like the sick collab with former mentor, Jaz-O and former associate, Sauce Money, "Bring It On", the debuting Memphis Bleek-assisted, "Coming of Age", and the ever-legendary duet with Biggie Smalls' "Brooklyn's Finest", while illustrating the power of being a boss on the tremendous "Politics as Usual".  The impact and influence this album have had throughout the decades ranks among the highest in all of hip-hop to this day.  As if we were listening to Black audio versions of Superfly, Casino, and Godfather Pt. II all in one, Reasonable Doubt was the mafioso album emcees wanted to recreate but couldn't pull it off as effectively as Jay-Z did due to its authenticity.  This remains his best album and ranks among many emcees and fans' lists in the GOAT discussions.  You could call it a 'mafioso' album, you could call it a hustler's album.  Whatever you call it, don't forget the most important term: CLASSIC!




Thursday, May 23, 2024

The Coming Of The Dungeon Dragon: Ranking Busta Rhymes Discography


When one mentions charismatic, vibrant, energetic, and influential emcees over the past three decades, one of the names mentioned on a consistent basis is "The Mighty" Busta Rhymes.  The Long Island emcee is an original.  Since his days with Dinco D, Charlie Brown, and Milo, aka Leaders of the New School, Busta has always been the standout with his hyped up, volume at ten delivery and style.  His breakout moment came in the form of his show-stealing verse on A Tribe Called Quest's legendary posse cut, "Scenario", in which he commanded everyone's attention from the moment he started his verse with "As I combine all the juice from the mind", it was ON! Considering the fact that every single person on that cut DELIVERED (most underrated verse goes to Dinco without question), Busta's verse changed his career, and ultimately his life. He became a star, and to the dismay of his groupmates, it caused enough friction between he and Charlie to where LONS disbanded.  Where one door closes, another opens. In his case, he became the guest verse king, appearing on cuts from Boyz II Men, Tribe, and especially the ever-memorable remix to the late Craig Mack's "Flava in Ya Ear".  Along with other bits of buzz, Busta finally dropped his debut of '95 (another amazing year in hip-hop), The Coming.  From there, an unforgettable career took off.  Through several highs and some unfortunate lows, Busta has been a made man and his discography is one that overall kept you moving and kept the dance floor on fire. We won't the album with his group, Flipmode Squad, as it's more an entire group, but their album, The Imperial, was a fabulous album that showed how each of them had chemistry with each other, while still realizing Busta was the captain of the ship.  After numerous Grammy nominations, BET Award wins and other career award achievements (including a much-earned Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards in 2023), Busta is forever an icon and a folk hero to all of us in hip-hop, and hasn't slowed down yet, as he will be behind the first Flipmode Squad album in over two decades this Fall.  For now, we will break down his discography and present why, although not flawless, his series of albums will still be formidable with anyone's in the past few decades. Let's go shall we!




 11. Blockbusta

Production: artist, Swizz Beats, Timbaland, Pharrell Williams, Cardiak, Focus, DJ Khalyl, Mike N Keys, Cool & Dre, others

Guests: Yiung Thug, Coi Leray, BLXST, DaBaby, T-Pain, Quavo, Bia, Burna Boy, Chrois Brown, others


We start with the latest album from Buss-A-Bus.  His 2023 offering, Blockbusta, comes off the heels of arguably his most incredible effort in 2020, Extinction Level Event 2.  Unfortunately, this didn't receive nearly as much acclaim.  Undoubtedly an album for the clubs, as the album was executive produced by Swizz Beats, Pharrell Williams, and Timbaland.  What should've been a monstrous club classic turned out to be an uneven album that was minimized of direction.  Were there good hits on it? Sure, there were.  Cuts like "Slide", "Homage", and "The Hive" are decent at best, and the Coi-Leray-assisted "Luxury Life" is good for what it's meant for: something for the youth.  That's more or less the premise of the album. It's certainly an album for this generation of TikTok and social media rappers to almost try and prove his relevancy when that's not needed in this way at all (Nas is the most fantastic example of this).  While he does shine in typical Busta fashion on cuts like "Hold Up" and "The Return Of Mansa Musa", as a whole, this album massively underdelivered. With names like Swizz, Timbaland, and Pharrell as EPs, you'd expect an album that would be hit after hit after hit, but this instead was an attempt to keep up with youthful trends rather than be comfortable where has been throughout his career, which is move on his own standards and in his own ways.  We all know Busta can do better, and he most definitely has as you'll continue to see throughout this rundown.  Here's to expecting way better from Busta than this one.



10. Back On My B.S.

Production: DJ Scratch, Jelly Roll, DeNaun Porter, Cool & Dre, Pharrell Williams, Ron Browz, others

Guests: Mary J. Blige, Common, Jamie Foxx, John Legend, T-pain, Lil Wayne, Akon, T.I., Pharrell, Jadakiss, others

Busta's '09 offering, Back On My B.S., was not an extraordinary work of art either necessarily.  Although the production from the likes of Ron Browz, DJ Scratch, Pharrell, and Cool & Dre were a bit better than the aforementioned album, it wasn't by a whole lot.  There were highs here in the form of the strangely addictive lead-off single, "Arab Money", the Lil Wayne/Jadakiss-assisted, "Respect My Conglomerate", and "Shoot for The Moon", as these cuts sound like minor throwbacks to sounds that would've belonged even better on albums like E.L.E. or even Genesis.  One does wish cuts like these would continue their momentum, but it gets hit or miss the rest of the way.  While other cuts like the reggae-saturated "Kill Dem" and "Imma Go & Get My..." are somewhat enjoyable, others like "Sugar", "We Miss You", and the T-Pain-assisted "Hustler's Anthem '09" make you hit the skip button and never go back to them.  There's no denying Busta's ability to handle his business whenever he wants to, but the times in which he gets too comfortable during this time is where he swings and misses badly.  This isn't as garbage some others have reviewed it, however, it's definitely not an overall shining moment within his career, and Back on My B.S. was way more capable of being a very good album than it was.



9. Year Of the Dragon

production: Boi-1nda, Jahlil Beats, Bink!, DeNaun Porter, Ty Fiffe, Focus, others

Guests: Lil Wayne, Robin Thicke, Cam'ron, Gucci Mane, Vybez Kartel, Rick Ross, Trey Songz, others


In another example of "What is Busta trying to do here?", we have his Google Play free release, Year of the Dragon, from 2012.  There's not a whole lot to say here.  It's a mediocre, yet at times listenable, album from an emcee that knows what it takes to create a winning album and doesn't deliver the goods here.  We'll go with the decent ones first, as cuts like the Rick Ross/Trey Songz-assisted "Til We Die", the Gucci Mane-collaborated "Make It Look Easy", and "Pressure" with Lil Wayne. All of which do an okay number of repeated listens.  One can include "Sound Boy" with Cam'ron and the Focus...-produced "Do Ya Thing", which is possibly the best overall cut on this album and Busta sounds like he's having more fun here than in most of the other cuts.  Unfortunately, it doesn't go beyond this, as other cuts like "Movie", the dreadful strip club-esque cut, "Grind Real Slow", and "King Tut" all suffer from mediocre production and honestly nothing about these cuts (and other similar ones here) bring anything fresh out of him.  Not only does the production sound bland on these cuts, but Busta himself just sounds like he's there, not adding anything to these cuts to make them special.  Then there are cuts like "Crazy" and "Doin' It Again", which are just no-nos honestly.  While the closer with Anthony Hamilton-crooned "Bleed the Same Blood" is pretty good, overall, Year of the Dragon is a subpar project by someone that historically has delivered some of the most energetic and dynamic albums of his generation, and that's not acceptable.  Trying so hard to keep the radios happy can backfire, and as we've seen these past few albums we've reviewed, this is having been the common element: trying so hard to get spins, even if it's all formulaic and to a degree, dated.  This was another disappointing example.



8. It Ain't Safe No More

Production: J Dilla, The Neptunes, DJ Scratch, Megahertz, Swizz Beats, DeNaun Porter, Rick Rock, others

Guests: Mariah Carey, Flipmode Squad, Carl Thomas, Sean Paul, others


Off the heels of the dope Genesis, Busta brings forth his second album on Clive Davis' J Records, It Ain't Safe No More.  This album, in a word, was...FUN. Busta was the radio kingpin with this album again, but with this album, unlike the previous albums mentioned, there were stuff that were thrown at the wall and stuck.  Obviously, the singles of the infectious "Make It Clap" and the Mariah Carey-duet with Flipmode, "I Know What You Want" were the high-selling points going into the album's release, and how was the rest of the album? We get the answer soon with the Dilla-crafted title track that works as only Dilla and Busta together could make it.  They continue their beloved chemistry on the cuts "What Up" and "Turn Me Up Some", and both make you wish that there was an entire Busta/Dilla album (there was a Busta x Dilla mixtape called Dillagence that was quite dope, but the instrumentals were not mixed nor fully mastered so we don't get the true fullness of how crazy these cuts could've been).  He keeps the party going with other cuts like "Hop", the Rah Digga-assisted, Swizz Beats-produced, "Together", and "Call the Ambulance".  On the flip side, there were some missteps here as well that can't be ignored.  Cuts like the somewhat bland "Hey Ladies" and the underwhelming "Taste It" are a couple of examples of this.  Also, "We Goin' To Do it To Ya" and "Struttin' Like a G.O.D." are okay, but ultimately suffer from lack of distinction from your usual Busta-esque cuts and this point some of the cuts start sounding the same.  This changes with cuts like the conscious collab with Anthony Hamilton, "The Struggle Will Be Lost" and the dumb dope "Til it's Gone".  Many have said It Ain't Safe No More was the start of the last cohesive Busta albums for years (with The Big Bang being his last wall to wall fire effort for several years), but regardless of everything else, this was a patented Busta album and this was a good one to bump in the car on the way to the club for the night or for that good old fashioned house party.



7. Genesis

Production: Dr. Dre, The Neptunes, Nottz, Just Blaze, Mel-Man, DJ Scratch, J Dilla, Diamond, Battlecat, Pete Rock, Yogi

Guests: Diddy, Flipmode Squad, Jaheim, Mary J. Blige, Kelis, others

One year after the uber dope Anarchy dropped, Busta returned in 2001 with Genesis, his debut on J records.  This album was quintessential Busta, as there were plenty of sizzlers for everyone, absolutely everyone.  For the night wilders, you'll lean into cuts like the Nottz-crafted banger, "Bad Dreams" and the fire Just Blaze-created, "Everybody Rise Again". For the backpackers, he delivered the Pete Rock-blessed, "Shut 'Em Down 2002".  Of course there's the flammable collab with his Flipmode Squad, "Match The Name With The Voice".  However, most of the album involves a LOT of body moving.  He set the stage with the singles of the Kelis-assisted, "What It Is Right Now", "the neck-cramping, double time phonetics of "Break Ya Neck", and of course one of his most successful singles, the Pharrell/Diddy-assisted, "Pass the Courvoisier".  That's not the end of the party, as other cuts like the shoulder- bouncing, Dilla-crafted "Make It Hurt", Bounce", and the headache casing, Dr. Dre-molded, "Truck Volume".  While there are a couple of missteps, notably the Mary J. Blige-assisted, "There's Only One", the Jaheim-assisted, "Wife In Law", and the slightly underwhelming "Holla" (another Dre production), however others like the simply bumping "As I Come Back" make up for them.  This wasn't a frenzied, overcooked album.  That's what make Genesis one of his finest efforts.  It did just enough, not too much, in terms of the radio aspects that weren't just formulaic, trendy, uninspired pieces.  These were definitely signature Busta cuts, and ended up being quite the enjoyable album. 



6. Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front

Production: artist, Nottz, DJ Scratch, Rockwilder, Swizz Beats, Nasheim Myrick, others

Guests: Flipmode Squad, Mystikal, Ozzy Osbourne, Janet Jackson

The third in the three part trilogy was Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front.  The theme of the first three albums was that of an end of the world picture. A foregone apocalypse the world would never be prepared for, thus the subsequent end of the world (The Coming, When Disaster Strikes, and  E.L.E. although one could argue Anarchy should be included as well).  The intro alone is creepy and comes right out of a sci-fi flick, only in hip-hop form (although When Disaster Strikes intro cut is even better).  After the intro, we get it in, as the riotous "Everybody Rise" is enough to turn your volume up as loud as it can go.  Of course, everybody was familiar with the eerie strings from the timeless horror movie, Psycho, that eventually transformed into a fast tempo, shoulder bouncing, Grammy Award nominated anthem, "Gimme Some More".  People were also extremely familiar with the delightful and sexy duet with THE Janet Jackson, "What's It Gonna Be" and the Swizz Beats-bouncing "Tear Da Roof Off".  While other cuts like "Where We Are About To Take It", the mean collab with his Flipmode soldiers, "Against All Odds", and the other Swizz Beats-rocker, "Just Give It To me Raw", it was the super high-powered frenzy of a cut with Mystikal, "Iz They Wylin' With Us & Gettin' Rowdy Wit Us" that will likely cause the most headaches to get produced.  Over a super, ridiculously hyper track, both emcees spit in double and triple time pacing, resulting in one of hip-hop's most quick-timed rhyme cuts ever.  If you think you can interpret what they're saying in the uncanny speed of how they were going, go right ahead and try.  In what could be considered the most unique collaboration, he teamed with iconic metal performer, Ozzy Osbourne, for the rock-indulging "This Means War".  Is it for everybody? Probably not, but we have definitely seen far worse rap-rock collabs, and this wasn't one of them.  With the dark "Burial Song" closing this album out, E.L.E.. was the third straight triumph for Busta, and rightfully so.  



5. Anarchy

Production: artist, Nottz, DJ Scratch, Large Professor, J Dilla, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, Swizz Beats, DJ Shok, others

Guests: Flipmode Squad, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Roc Marciano, DMX, Jay-Z, M.O.P., Lenny Kravitz

It was hard to match or top the prior album, E.L.E.: The Final World Front, but in 2000, Busta definitely attempted to do so with Anarchy.  Released just in time for the summer, the album was as hot as the day it was released.  Continuing the theme of apocalyptical ideologies, especially to introduce the album. While quite as riotous overall as some of his other ones, that's just fine here.  In fact, it's arguably the strength of the album.  Of course, the HIGHLY infectious lead off-single, "Get Out" set a great tone for what was to come.  The second single, "Fire" was another dope venture into what was to come for the album, and the rest of the album was very much in tune with these cuts, and even took a left turn or two.  From the first full cut after the excellent intro, the bumpin' "Salute Da Gods" is a repeat-worthy track to get it going correctly.  We then move into the melodic bump courtesy of Dilla on "Enjoy Da Ride" and other dope cuts such as another Dilla track, "Live it Up", "Street Shit", and "We Put It Down For Y'all".   Aiming to fit in more street elements into the fray, he recruits Raekwon, Ghostface, and Flipmode's newest soldier at the time, Roc Marciano for the stellar cinematic, Large Professor-crafted, "The Heist" for perhaps the album's highlight.  Likewise, he gets assistance from Brownsville's finest, M.O.P. for the gun-clapping "Ready For War" and the all-star collab with Jay-Z and the late, great DMX, "Why We Die" for an enormous cut.  He gets reflective on the somber, "How Much We Grew", but that's short-lived as he gets back in the fight with the Lenny Kravitz-assisted "Make Noise".  As the spooky sounds of the title track close the album, Anarchy is definitely a slight change of pace for Busta.  While there were plenty of cuts for the clubs, this was more for the jeeps and the streets more than previous albums, or any other one from him for that matter.  Busta came through and presented what has been called his most underrated album, but in reality, it was also one of his single best.



4. The Big Bang

Production: Dr. Dre, J Dilla, DJ Scratch, Swizz Beats, Just Blaze, Sha Money XL, Green lantern, Erick Sermon, Timbaland, DeNaun Porter, will.i.am, others

Guests: Stevie Wonder, Missy Elliot, Marsha Ambrosius, Nas, Q-Tip, Rick James, will.i.am, Kelis, others

When Busta departed from J Records, his next home was the house that Dre built, Aftermath.  With Dre already providing him with heat prior to this album, it was only right that the good Doctor and The Mighty Infamous one collab, and The Big Bang was the result.  As an overall album, he hadn't had a more cohesive album in his career up to this point in '06.  With Dre providing over half the album's production, we knew this would be quite the stellar album alone off that, but when you include a posthumous Dilla track, as well as contributions from the likes of frequent collaborators such as Pharrell, Scratch, Swizz Beats, and Just Blaze, this had all the makings to be a Bussa Bus classic. Did it hold up to the hype? Let's break it down.  From the thumping, Swizz Beats-produced first single, "Touch It" to the cheeky-love cut with Kelis, "I Love My Bitch", one would think, this could be fun already.  Obviously "Touch it" took off so far there were quite a number of remixes with various guest contributors such as Mary J. Blige, Lloyd Banks, Missy Elliott, and more.  he keeps the parry going and continuous with cuts like the Missy Elliot-assisted, "How We Do it Over Here" and the Timbaland-produced, "Get Down".  He also provides some tremendous moments away from the club as well.  Case in point would be the stunning collaboration with the iconic Stevie Wonder for "Been Through The Storm", in which he highlights his struggles growing up and failed friendships and betrayals.  He also shines on more street-lore cuts like the Raekwon-assisted "Goldmine" and the delightful sounds of Marsha Ambrosius on "Cocaina".  He likewise conjures up the vocals of the late, great Rick James for his reworking of James' old smash, "In The Ghetto" and the mellow sounding mid-tempo groove of the Swizz Beats-assisted, "New York Shit".  With other tremendous cuts such as the Nas-assisted, "Don't Get Carried Away", the Q-Tip/Marsha-collaborated, "Get You Some", and the wonderful Dilla-rework of Minnie Ripperton's "Inside My Love" (similarly used  by Tribe Called Quest for "Lyrics To Go") "You Can't Handle The Torch" (ironically Tip is on this cut as well).  It is the closing track, however, that people take notice of.  The dark and ominous Dre-crafted, "Legend Of The Fall Offs" is an ode to those that put themselves in the proverbial ground by not putting in the work to keep their legacies in tact. Quite possibly the darkest cut in Busta's career.  Folks, The Big Bang could be mentioned as Busta's best album, if not for anything else for the stellar work Dre did to produce and curate this excellent album.  Not too party/club-happy, but not too street either.  A burner of an effort.



3. The Coming

Production: The Ummah, DJ Scratch, Easy Mo Bee, others

Guests: Flipmode Squad, Def Squad, Zhane, Leaders Of the New School, Q-Tip

One of the most anticipated debuts in recent years was in '96 when we finally got Busta's debut album, The Coming.  After his numerous guest appearances and frequent speculation about his relationship with L.O.N.S., The Coming arrived, and it definitely was worthy the wait and the hype.  His signature rah-rah, "dungeon dragon"-style was in full effect over the majority of the album.  The dynamite opening intro set the way for the neck-snapping, "Do My Thing", and from there he gets into one of the true standouts of the album, the tremendous "Everything Remains Raw", where he reminds us of why he was one of one, both lyrically and charismatically over a very engaging beat from the one and only Easy Mo Bee.  Of course we were all open with his unforgettable, and signature, cut, "WOO HAH! Got You All In Check", and his entertaining delivery and hyper-animated cadence.  While this may be far and away the most excited we hear Busta on the whole album, he's still the most unique persona in hip-hop at the time (save for the late, ODB) and his very distinguishable emceeing ability shows up profoundly on dope cuts like the trash-talking, "Abandon Ship", the lyrically gliding "Hot Fudge", and the searing posse cut that has two crazy crews together on  one cut, "Flipmode Squad Meets Def Squad", as Redman, Keith Murray and then-Def Squad member, Jamal of Illegal, joined Busta, Rampage and the enigmatic Lord Have Mercy for one of the most underappreciated posse cuts of the entire nineties. Sure, it's quite long, as it's over eight minutes in length, but a single minute is wasted as every single emcee shows their ass on this blazer.  Along with the incredible Dilla-blessed, "Still Shining" and the crazy "Finish Line", he gets mellow in a couple moments with the R&B-flavored, Zhane (remember them?)-assisted, "It's a Party" and the Q-Tip-guested, "Ill Vybe", but as a whole, The Coming was a fantastic debut and one of the single best albums to get released during quite the strong year of '96 (It Was Written, Hell On Earth, Reasonable Doubt, The Score, Bow Down, ATLiens, Illadelph Halflife, etc.). Many have regarded it as a classic, and honestly, that's not a terrible argument.



2. When Disaster Strikes

Production: DJ Scratch, Nottz, Rockwilder, J Dilla, Didy, Easy Mo Bee, others

Guests: Flipmode Squad, Erykah Badu, Diddy, Mase, Anthony Hamilton, Jamal

Following up such an excellent debut like The Coming would require hard work, but Busta was well ahead of the task at hand.  With even more demands for guest spots from the industry, Busta's star power was continuing to get bigger and bigger.  This meant that he had to come back with an album that would match the star power he was starting to amass.  Enter, When Disaster Strikes.  Starting off with the timeless classic, "Put Your hands Where My Eyes Can See", we knew this was going to be a next level album for Busta, and quite likely his breakout album.  It was that and then some.  With quite the harrowing intro warning us of impending doom come the upcoming millennium, we get into the unbelievable "The World's Looking At Me". The dark grooves provided by DJ Scratch continue into the title track and "Survival Hungry" to create a certain ominous atmosphere.  Once we reach the KC & The Sunshine Band-sprinkled "Get High Tonight", the vibe is uplifted, and we start filling the dance floors a little bit courtesy of the aforementioned "Put Your Hands..." and the Al Green-sampled "Turn It Up". His Flipmode regime slices up "We Can Take It Outside" and Lord Have Mercy gets his signature haunting baritone to the forefront on the dark and atmospheric knocker "Get Off My Block", but it's the fiery "Rhymes Galore" that could easily be the most impressive lyrical performance from him on this album. Over a fast paced capable of excessive neck cramping courtesy of Rashad Smith, Busta just goes for his and doesn't let his foot off the gas for an instant.  We slow it down with the sultry reworking of Stevie Wonder's "As" with Erykah Badu, "One", but go right back to the radio with the Bad Boy-collaborated, "The Body Rock".  Once we get to the brooding closer, When Disaster Strikes served as his benchmark moment within his career. A true classic in every sense for Busta, a star was officially here with When Disaster Strikes, and it was from this album Busta became a household name if he wasn't before.



1. ELE2: The Wrath Of God

Production: artist, Swizz Beats, Nottz, Pete Rock, DJ Premier, Rockwilder, 9th Wonder, DJ Scratch, Focus..., Hi-Tek, Terrace Martin, others

Guests: M.O.P., Flipmode Squad, Rakim, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Anderson.Paak, Rapsody, Rick Ross, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, others

It had been eight years since we had last heard anything from Busta.  the last effort we heard was his aforementioned Year of The Dragon in 2012 to underwhelming results.  When word got out he was doing a sequel to one of his most critically and commercially acclaimed albums, the pressure was on to repeat it all, only update for 2020.  During the middle of the pandemic, he dropped Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath Of God, and it couldn't come at a better time for more than one reason.  We get a phenomenal intro with Chris Rock introducing Busta (who hilariously narrates and guides us through this album), but we also get a verse from the almighty god mc himself, Rakim, with also the incomparable Pete Rock providing the same keys he did on Nas' "The World Is Yours" and making it a candidate for the best opening intro cut in his entire discography.  We get into the brooding "Purge" and the Dilla & Pete Rock-blessed "Strap Yourself Down" that has an older, yet still rah-rah Busta, feeling at one with the mic again on this dual beat cut.  He gets near riotous with his delivery on "Czar", and goes into glide mode over the futuristic trap vibes of "Oh No".  As we all know with him, it wouldn't be a Busta album without the club and the ladies in mind, and he delivers as only he can do.  He does one HELL of a job with cuts the like the BBD "Poison" reworked, "Outta My Hand', and does his thing with past collaborators Mariah Carey and Mary J. Blige on "Where I Belong" and "You Will Never Find Another Me" respectively for the R&B presence.  Just for the sake of shit talking and showing he's still THAT emcee, he spits flammable bars over an excellent DJ Premier-crafted "True Indeed", but also he manages to bring the honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan to speak his wisdom and his jewels on the powerful Nottz-crafted title track which has both  men angrily talking down on the Trump administration and other socio-political topics and issues that affects our community.  He gets with his smooth flow on the mid-tempo shiner with Q-Tip "Don't Go", while getting things off his chest with his woman there for him on the slightly intoxicating "Deep Thoughts" and addresses a fictional argument with his baby mother (played by the dynamite talents of Rapsody over an ever soulful beat provided by 9th Wonder) on "Best I Can" that many a father can identify with.  Another scintillating standout is the nasty collaboration with Kendrick on the sick Nottz-produced "Look Over Your Shoulder", as Kendrick delivers another insane performance, but so does Busta during his mind-blowing verse.  The last two tracks are striking, as he gets conscious on the amazing "Freedom" (featuring a spectacular performance of R&B singer, Nikkie Grier) and the spooky "Satanic", in which he tackles how today's society plays with spirituality and blasphemous imagery and ideology. There are simply too many highlights on this album and not only does E.L.E.2 match its predecessor, it may actually outdo it.  This is perhaps the most complete Busta album of them all and, in his fifties, he delivered quite possibly the album of his career, and we haven't heard him this reinvigorated since at least Genesis. Focused and an elder statesman, Busta realizes his role as an OG for this generation, so although he loves making people feel good and loves seeing people enjoy themselves, he also educates and drops jewels for this generation as well, and with Extinction Level Event 2, he triumphantly accomplishes both in seminal fashion.


 

Monday, May 20, 2024

Bed-Stuy Brilliance: Ranking Skyzoo's Discography



We all know, through the decades, Brooklyn has been a massive hub of talent within hip-hop.  names such as Biggie, Jay, Kane, Foxy, Kim, Ol' Dirty Bastard, M.O.P., Boot Camp Clik, Joey Bada$$, and many others have laid BK as their home.  As one of the most heralded boroughs within New York, Brooklyn has seen its fair share of emcees come and go throughout the ages of hip-hop.  One of the more consistent and tremendously talented emcees to emerge over the past two decades is Skyler Taylor, aka Skyzoo.  The Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn native has a penchant for jazz and hip-hop to where he knows how to blend the two of them excellently, while still keeping the boom-bap New York is fully patented by and the lure of the streets as well.  Clearly influenced by two of his favorites ever in Jay and Biggie, Sky exudes the aura of Brooklyn, and his damn near undefeated discography represents this.  From his earliest mixtapes dating back to '04 with I'm For The People to later ones before his full-length album debut, Cloud 9: The 3 Day High including Back For The First Time, The Greatest Flow On Earth, and the acclaimed, Corner Store Classic, Sky was shown to be someone to proudly hold the Brooklyn flag down, and that he has continued to do within his twenty year career.  Among the most underappreciated emcees around, Skyzoo is most likely on the list of your favorite emcee's favorite emcee. Without question, he has among the most consistent discographies in all of hip-hop, certainly of his generation.  He has collaborated with the likes of Griselda, Heltah Skeltah (RIP Sean P), Wale, Styles P, Talib Kweli, and Rapsody among others and even can brag about winning Best Emcee for 2002 and 2008 in the Underground Music Awards.  Clearly, Sky has been nobody to play with, and his discography reflects this and then some.  With that being said, let's get into it.



 15. The Bluest Note

Production: Dumbo Station, artist

Guests: N/A

We get it started with his 2020 offering, The Bluest Note, with Italian jazz ensemble, Dumbo Station.  The album is a clearly a love note to jazz music, with some boom-bap behind it. Still reflecting on his Brooklyn roots and his love of hip-hop, he does so over tremendous jazz outputs by the Italian ensemble and makes for an interesting and intriguing combination. This EP has some pretty good offerings here such as "The Caveat", "Sing Comfortably", and the ode to Roy Ayers, "We (Used To) Live in Brooklyn Baby, all of which are very enjoyable listens. When one mentions jazz rap classics over the years and decades, albums such as Blowout Comb, the Jazzamatazz series, August Greene, Reachin', Illadelph Halflife, Do You want More?!??!!, and the god of the jazz rap albums, The Low End Theory. However, The Bluest Note EP is not a farfetched idea to out this somewhere within the top twenty over the past two to three decades.  Sky always wanted to a jazz-esque album, as the genre is his other favorite style of music, and with The Bluest Note, he and Dumbo Station crafted an album he can be very proud of and adds to his very formidable legacy.



14. Cloud 9: The 3 Day High

Production: 9th Wonder

Guests: N/A

After several mixtapes to create buzz around him, it was album time, and in 2006, he linked up with NC's legendary 9th Wonder to present, Cloud 9: The 3 Day High.  9th's soulful chops and nicely sampled loops mixed Sky's highly talented pen game was a great marriage for this effort.  Mr. Douthit had already been establishing himself as one of the true greats at this time fresh off efforts such as little Brother's exceptional, The Minstrel Show, his collab with longtime collaborator, Murs, Murray's Revenge, and his own excellent Dream Merchant compilation album.  He continued his momentum with this project, and this EP was something that was a welcomed introduction officially to Skyzoo.  Practically every cut on here was a bumper such as the bangin' "Way To Go", "the neck-snapping "Mirror, Mirror", and "Live & Direct".  Although not a completely perfect release, there's no reason to not give Cloud 9: The 3 Day High a damn good B+ as a grade here.  Sky went in and 9th had tremendous production to match his eloquent NY bravado.  Both achieved wins here.



13. The Salvation

Production: !llmind, 9th Wonder, Just Blaze, Nottz, Black Milk, others

Guests: N/A

Fresh off his aforementioned acclaimed mixtape, Corner Store Classic, Sky officially delivered his debut full-length album, The Salvation.  Much of this album was pretty much autobiographical and letting people into his world and his upbringing.  Clearly seeing things from a young man's point of view becoming an adolescent, the album is honest and poignant, and definitely backed by some of the best production Sky has ever spit over.  From the intro of a group of young women being presumably on a street corner singing the old Black Gospel song, "Jesus on the Main Line" is very nice A Capella and transitioning over into a beautiful sounding piano piece provided by Cyrus The Great to start the album off very dope. From there, the tremendous nature of this album begins with the introductory cut, then goes into the Just Blaze-produced, "Return of The Real", then catapults into the soulful samples of "The Beautiful Decay" provided by previous collaborator, 9th Wonder.  The album doesn't let up in terms of quality with other burners such as "Popularity", the introspective "Dear Whoever", and "For What It's Worth", as these cuts all show him being open with his thinking through his pen with no frills or any shyness.  He lyrically glides over a rugged Black Milk-produced, "Penmanship", and goes the softer route on "Easy to Fly", but no less engaging.  Skyzoo made his impressions known way more apparent with The Salvation, and the results are truly wall to wall satisfying.  He would deliver even better albums than this as you'll see, but this was a great way to set his own standard and it was a high bar.



12. Barrel Brothers (w/ Torae)

Production: DJ Premier, Apollo Brown, Marco Polo, !llmind, Khrysis, Antman Wonder, Black Milk, Oh No, Jahlil Beats, others

Guests: Random Axe, Blu, others

The pairing of Skyzoo and Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY emcee Torae goes back to Sky's mixtape days. Their single, the Preemo-powered, "Get It Done", had been making rounds and the pairing was an instantly successful tag team.  The two highly skilled emcees finally brought their talents together to become the Barrel Brothers.  They released the self-titled album in 2014, and this was a whole knocker.  The two feed off each other like other legendary pairings like EPMD, Mobb Deep, Outkast, or Nice & Smooth, and sound excellent together. Sky's technical prowess and conversational tone mixed with the aggressive, to the point style of Torae and this album was as classic boom-bap NYC as it got at that time.  Nothing deep on this album folks. Just hard-ass beats from the likes of Antman Wonder, !llmind, Khrysis, and Apollo Brown (including the monstrous Preemo-blessed "Aura") and stinging rhymes from both guys.  The Barrel Brothers album contains plenty of bumpers such as the Random Axe (the short-lived supergroup consisting of Guilty Simpson, producer/emcee Black Milk, and the late, great Sean Price)-assisted "All in Together", "The Hand Off", "Tunnel Vision", and "Memorabilia".  If you miss that old mid-nineties boom-bap flair within hip-hop, try Barrel Brothers on for size. This is a big highlight for both emcees.



11. A Dream Deferred

Production: !llmind, Jahlil Beats, Focus, 9th Wonder, DJ Khalyl, Black Milk, others

Guests: Jill Scott, Freeway, Raheem DeVaughn, Talib Kweli, others

With the critical success of his prior albums of The Salvation and his collab with !llmind, Live From The Tape Deck, he delivered A Dream Deferred, and it was absolutely a worthy follow up to both.  Where The Salvation was more or less a story about a young child that fell in love with hip-hop and knew it's what he wanted to do yet still had moments of insecurity and honesty, A Dream Deferred sees him growing into his adolescence and further exploring his future place within hip-hop, yet still having moments of complexity and anxiety.  The album is intricately narrated to exhibit his high, lows, and in-betweens just trying to come up in the game.  From his humble, yet hungry, ambitions on the Jill Scott-assisted, "Dream in A Basement" to stardom hope with cuts like "Range Rover Rhythm" and the Freeway-assisted "Pockets Full".  As most starving artists tend to do, they hit hangups, and question the desire to keep pressing. Examples of this include "Glass Ceilings" and "Realization", but with "Jansport Strings", he looks to one of his childhood lyrical heroes, Chi-Ali, as inspiration to succeed in the game.  Whether he acknowledges the types of sacrifices needed to maintain on cuts like "How To make It Through Hysteria" and "The Cost Of Sleep" or shouting out heroes that he hopes to aspire to be, especially as a product of Brooklyn, like the Talib Kweli-assisted "Spike Lee Was My Hero", A Dream Deferred shows Skyzoo now coming to terms with being an emcee, whereas The Salvation had him questioning whether this was what he wanted to do or not.  Based upon this excellent album, we are glad he made the choice to stick it out.



10. An Ode To Reasonable Doubt

Production: Antman Wonder

Guests: Torae, Sha Stimuli, others

It's no secret that one of the most iconic albums to ever emerge from those Brooklyn streets is Reasonable Doubt.  What Jay did for Brooklyn at that time in '96 was easily identical to what Biggie did for them in '94 with Ready To Die and what Kane did in '88 with Long Live The Kane. These albums redefined Brooklyn as the borough of kings.  Skyzoo was one such person that was heavily influenced by it. As an homage to Reasonable Doubt, Sky linked up with Antman Wonder to present An Ode To Reasonable Doubt.  Similar to Elzhi's rendition of Illmatic, ELmatic, Sky recreates the scene of Reasonable Doubt with identical production from the album, however, instead of it being an album mostly revolving around the drug game and the streets, AOTRD is mostly about hip-hop and his love of it while coming up in the game.  While "D'Evils" was a Premo-powered monster that highlighted the ills of the coke game, Sky presented "Praying Against D'Evils", he gave big ups to Jay and how he managed to survive the streets to become who he eventually became.  Likewise, Jay's "Regrets" was about the pitfalls of what that life can bring, Sky's "The Truth About Regrets" is more motivational and is about regretting things in your life is a waste.  With a philharmonic musical feel to it, again much like ELmatic had composer Will Sessions, Antman Wonder, although hip-hop producer, is also an arraigner and composer himself and provided the live instrumentation for the project.  One has to imagine Jay gave Sky props for recreating this remarkable album, and definitely An Ode To Reasonable Doubt is a valiant tribute to one of the greatest albums hip-hop has ever produced.



9. Music For My Friends

Production: Apollo Brown, !llmind, Thelonious Martin, MarcNfinit, Antman Wonder, Jahlil Beats, others

Guests: Black thought, Bilal, Westside Gunn, Jadakiss, Saba, others

Staying with how hip-hop impacted his childhood through adolescence left off with A Dream Deferred, Skyzoo presented the even more autobiographical, Music For My Friends.  This is more of a conceptual album than an album that's specifically themed, where a thirteen-year-old Sky is chronicling his life in Bed-Stuy in a way so many of us can identify with growing up in the hood.  It isn't necessarily an album that revolves around tons of drug deals, violence, and unrelentingly disturbing imagery, but more so the eyes of a kid growing up somewhat like Chris did in "Everybody Hates Chris" to a degree.  On cuts like "Suicide Doors" the Westside Gunn-assisted "Luxury", and "Civilized Leisure", we see him observing people rolling through the upper sections of Brooklyn and how he wishes those moments were him.  This extends into the wonderful Black Thought/Bilal-assisted "Money Makes Me Happy", in which both emcees spit about the beauty of money and how money can bring about friendships and bonding.  We get more sentimental moments and moments of introspection on cuts like "The Moments That Matter", "Meadow of Trust", and the intriguing "The Experience".  He presents a very nicely executed ode to his mother on "Women That Can Cook" in which he measures whatever future girlfriend he has to be able to have the same skills as her, however the one and only Jadakiss assist him on "See A Ki", and the two of them spit about street dreams and making it big in those regards as well.  There's no doubt Misic For My Friends is a relatable album to everybody in some sort of fashion, especially the thirty and over crowd that came up roughly the same way he illustrates on this album. Over engaging and fitting production that is mostly jazzy boom-bap from the likes of Thelonious Martin, frequent collaborator MarcNfini, Antman Wonder, and !llmind, Skyzoo delivers and a refreshing and poignant look at how most of us did when we were his age on this album and how we yearn for days so simple today.



8. Retropolitan

Production: Pete Rock

Guests: Pete Rock, Styles P, Griselda, Elzhi, Raheem Devaughn

When it comes to legendary NY producers throughout the past few decades, names like RZA, Marley Marl, DJ Premier, Havoc, and Da Beatminerz come to mind immediately.  Another name that fits right in with this group is Mount Vernon's own Pete Rock, who along with CL Smooth, were one of the most acclaimed duos of the early to mid-nineties with their highly acclaimed albums of Mecca & The Soul Brother and The Main Ingredient being heralded as two of the most influential albums to come out during that time period.  Pete rock has continued to bring forth excellent musical boardwork contributing to projects from the likes of Inspectah Deck, his late, great cousin Heavy D, Smif-N-Wessun, Nas, AZ, and even more recent stuff including his work with Griselda, Smoke DZA, and Flee Lord.  Sky linked up with "The Choco Boy Wonder" in 2019 to bring forth Retropolitan, and this was a tremendous showing between this emcee/producer duo.  Aiming for a nineties feel with the style and production for the album, they deliver and deliver very nicely on highlights such as "It's All Good", the Styles P-assisted "Carry On Tradition", "Penny Jerseys", and "Homegrown".  They put together a posse cut of the year candidate with East Coast All-Stars" featuring the Griselda gang of Westside Gunn, Benny The Butcher, and Conway The Machine, along with Detroit rhyme animal, Elzhi, while "One Time" has Raheem Devaughn guest croonig over what has somewhat of a R&B feel to it and comes off still very dope.  One thing about Skyzoo is he's an old soul, and with Retropolitan, he and Pete Rock conjure up NY in the nineties with an updated, modern edge to it.  Sky clearly is having fun on this album but shows no less skill on this highly dope album.  As far as Pete Rock, one has to imagine how the forthcoming album with another hip-hop legend, Common, will turn out in July!



7. Milestones EP

Production: MarcNfinit, !llmind, others

Guests: N/A

One thing we don't hear about enough of in hip-hop (or music in general if we are being honest) is praise of active fathers.  While Chris Rock's old joke about "the big piece of chicken" is funny, it tends to fit within hip-hop. Aiming to change that, Skyzoo gave his father, and all other active fathers, their own Father's Day gift of 2020 in the form of Milestones, an EP strictly for fathers.  The theme of the EP revolves around the relationship between Cuba Gooding Jr and Lawrence Fishburne's characters in the all-time classic movie, Boyz In The Hood, Tre and Furious Styles.  They were father and son and had a stern and disciplined, yet loving, relationship.  Very similar to Tre's upbringing, Sky's parents were divorced when he was young and at one point, he was sent to stay with his father.  Every cut on this project reflects this upbringing and his experiences with his father and puts special emphasis on fathers in young boy's lives.  Cuts like "At Least I Got One", "Duffle Bag Weekends", and the celebratory "Father's Day" all exemplify the positive influence and impact fathers can have on their children, and especially how much his father had on his.  He also reflects on himself being a father and dropping jewels to his own son.  On perhaps the album's highlight, "Turning 10", he directly infuses himself as Tre and how it was with him when he was the same age as Tre when he went to go live with Furious.  Not a long EP (well, duh it's an EP), but Milestones is such a welcomed project for those fathers that think and rightfully feel they deserve more than the proverbial "big piece of chicken".  No disrespect to all our mothers out there. We rightfully salute you, however, at this moment, and with this truly excellent project, it's about the fathers, including himself.



6. The Mind of A Saint/TMOAS: Deluxe Edition

Production: The Other Guys

Guests: N/A

One of the most acclaimed series over the past few years is Snowfall. The show revolves around Franklin Saint, a one-time nine to five worker who turned drug dealer and subsequently a street kingpin in Los Angeles.  The story is set in the mid-eighties, when the crack epidemic was crippling the ghettos of the nation, especially within big cities such as Los Angeles.  As fascinating as the show can be, Skyzoo imagined himself as Franklin.  His premise was to capture how he envisioned Franklin as a hustler turning into a rapper during this time period.  He turns this premise into an album entitled, The Mind of a Saint.  Sky transforms into Franklin, and he details his mountains and valleys, while trying to break into the industry, yet having a hard time leaving his ways alone.  Very much like the show, Franklin gets tired of friends getting killed, friends turning on him, and him amassing a body count of his own, not to mention he became a father and wanting to be a better example for his child, but the streets kept calling him.  Very descriptive cuts on here such as "Straight Drop", "Eminent Domain", and "Brick by Brick" has him spitting like they personally came from Franklin's rhyme book if he were to have one.  He hits his home run with "Apologies in Order", where he actually gets reflective and realizes his ways have costed him people and have amounted in consequences that he wishes he could change.  This makes the way for "purity", which is more or less an extension of "Apologies in Order", however it's a pretty innovative track as well due to Franklin meeting up with the father of late emcee, Nipsey Hussle, and they have a rather candid encounter. Sky bringing Franklin into our modern, current world was a brilliant move, and put such a balance with the eighties' mindset with today's world.  Earlier in 2024, he delivered the deluxe version of this already fantastic effort, and this keeps us in Franklin's head, as well as tackle rather complex situations and gets just as revealing and honest with stellar cuts such as "God Bless the King", "My Creshendo", and "Recipe for Desire".  For a hustler and kingpin, Sky has Franklin in vulnerable moments throughout this album, and pouts a bit more humanity and depth into this otherwise cold-hearted, money-hungry hustler.  Production was handled by Washington, D.C. duo, The Other Guys, who incorporate a sound that's jazzy, boom-bap, and mid-tempo at times, but found a way to bring these elements into the what the eighties would sound like. What Skyzoo and The Other Guys did with The Mind of a Saint, along with its seven-track deluxe edition, is beyond impressive. Sky delivered one of the most exceptional character transformations to appear on wax for a whole project in years, and this easily ranks among his most memorable efforts.




5. Peddler Themes EP

Production: !llmind, MarcNfinit, others

Guests: N/A

To prepare us for his 2018 effort, In Celebration of Us, he dropped an EP entitled Peddler Themes.  Simply put, Sky was in his lyrical bag with this one.  Fresh off his dynamite 2016 album, The Easy Truth (see shortly), Sky is as hungry as we've ever heard him. Two things that we've covered he's about: jazz and old school.  Growing in the birth state of hip-hop, Sky's love of the game is as obvious as a tattoo on an arm, and tracks like "For Real'er", "Finness Everything", and the THUMPING "Let It Fly" are all showcasing Sky's ability to just let loose with his lyrical gifted wordplay and way above average penmanship.  The image of "peddling" still has him in an era of growing seeing the drug pushers and hustlers growing up around his way, but also bring the nineties into his aura with cuts like "'95 Bad Boy Logo" and the quite dope "Bamboo".  The EP is only eight tracks long, but not a single track is wasted or beneath what it could be.  With stellar production from the likes of Apollo, !llmind, and MarcNfinit, Peddler Themes was a virtual shoutout to his nineties days, both in the cool and the not-so-cool.  While he was preparing In Celebration of Us, he gave us one hell of a treat to chew on.



4. The Easy Truth

Production: Apollo Brown

Guests: Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine, Stalley, Joell Ortiz, Patty Crash

Detroit production wizard, apollo Brown, has been an entire sizzler for about a decade and a half now, but he started to come into his own within the early to mid 2010s with projects that saw him collaborating with the likes of O.C., Guilty Simpson, Planet Asia, Locksmith, and Joell Ortiz.  Not to mention his own compilation albums of Grandeur and especially the ridiculous, Sincerely, Detroit.  It was only a matter of time before the two worked with each other for a full project, especially since Apollo provided tracks on previous Sky albums Music for My Friends and Peddler Themes.  In 2016, the two dropped The Easy Truth, and Apollo provided not just some of the best production of his career, but certainly of Sky's career as well.  Apollo's brand of thumping snares with typically soulful samples in the same type of nod with 9th Wonder works in several places here on The Easy Truth. In other areas here, he just provides thumping 808s with meticulously layered production that will bump yet keep that neck going.  Sky excels over both of these formulas on cuts like "Jordans & A Gold Chain", the Joell Ortiz-assisted " A Couple Dollars", and "Spoils to The Victor".  Temptation and its urges are a common element here, as well as the vital need to stray true in spite of things that will lure you away from who you are.  One such example of this is possibly the best produced cut on the album, "Visionary Riches", in which Sky battles himself against the luxuries of fame.  Similarly, tracks like "Care Package" and the 90s-spirited "On the Stretch & Bob Show" have Skyzoo's niche of underground hunger with vivid nostalgia front and center.  Sky's ability to have that Brooklyn aura about him places him in a category only the likes of Jay, Big, Kane, and maybe even the likes of the aforementioned Ortiz can be a part of. Those cats that, no matter who's production they're over, they're unapologetically Brooklyn, and with The Easy Truth, Sky and Apollo display a chemistry that make you believe they're in a late nineties time warp, but with a modern listening atmosphere. This is without question career high points for both guys. 



3. Live From the Tape Deck

Production: !llmind

Guests: Heltah Skeltah, Torae, Styles P, Buckshot

We've mentioned Sky's fondness of him growing up as a hip-hop child, especially within the nineties.  The nineties have been said to be the start of the commercial era of hip-hop, but also among its most diverse and breakout.  Aiming to bring back that type of era and feel, Skyzoo collaborated with frequent collaborator, !llmind, to bring forth Live from The Tape Deck, which according to him was NOT his follow-up to his very dope aforementioned full-length debut, The Salvation. Instead, it was just more of a street appetizer for A Dream Deferred.  This is just a simple formula of beats and rhymes here, and frankly, that's all that's needed.  Sky's flow and delivery is so full of confidence and eloquent wordplay throughout this album, as !llmind provided him with top to bottom outstanding boom-bap from the word jump.  Cuts like the dope collab with Heltah Skeltah, "The Burn Notice", the graffiti themed "Krylon", and the bangin' "The Winner's Circle" are just as repeat worthy of Sky cuts as you'll hear.  Your speakers will likely receive damage from the bass of the KNOCKING "Speakers on Blast", but you'll get neck braces out for the likes of "Kitchen Table" and the Torae-assisted "Barrel Brothers". The album concludes with the fabulous "Langston's Pen", which has Sky just going for his with no hook until the tremendous production fades out.  Sky and !llmind wanted to construct an era with Live from The Tape Deck that's no longer around. An era where, you bought cassettes. When you bought a cassette, the whole thing had to be dope because doing a bunch of rewinds and fast forwards was too time consuming.  Best believe this was a very worthy album to be a cassette, as there isn't a blemish on this album production-wise nor lyrically.  No heavy concepts. No thinking man rap. It's just Sky showing his superb lyricism over !llmind's equally excellent production. Whether it's a tape deck or your preferred streaming sub service, Live from The Tape Deck is everything you need for just raw hip-hop.



2. In Celebration of Us

Production: !llmind, MarcNfinit, Apollo Brown, Cardiak, others

Guests: Raheem Devaughn, Jake & Papa, others

In previous albums from Skyzoo, it mostly centered around his growing up in the NY streets while becoming immersed in hip-hop and discovering who he was as a young man as well as a young artist.  He would also bring us into his love of nostalgia and vivid memories of why he fell in love with hip-hop in the first place.  Following up 2016's aforementioned The Easy Truth, he dropped In Celebration of Us, another autobiographical album that also highlights our successes (as well as soke our flaws) as a Black community and how he relates to them.  He starts off excellently with the opener, "Everybody's Fine" (which includes a poignant conversation between two men and one of them having a moment discussing his need to change his ways for the better good of his soon to be son).  Long track, but the cut is a bumper and certainly starts in the right direction.  he follows suit with other very highly enjoyable cuts such as "Forever in A Day", "Parks & Recreations", the mean "Hoodie SZN", and "Remembering the Rest", all of which have commanding lyrical performances from Sky with guest spots from Saba Abraha and WordsNCurves.  He gets conscious and thought-provoking on cuts like the utterly dope, "Black Sambo", the touching "Love Is Love", and the alarming "The Stick-Up Tape from Menace". He hits a particular high point on the Jake&Papa-assisted "Collateral", in which, as tremendous of a performance as he gives throughout the cut, he starts to name drop every single stereotype associate with the Black community as a means of how we appear to others within various sectors of the society.  Also, he conures up the thematic spirit of Common on the crazy "The Purpose".  Concluding with the upbeat and neck-moving, "Honor Amongst Thieves", Sky hit a knockout with In Celebration of Us.  Arguably the most community-centered album he's delivered, In Celebration of Us is a stellar piece of work that shows his success and failures that all of us within the Black community can identify with in some way.  We may not be perfect in any way, shape, form, or fashion, but as Sky points out in his own way, pat of realizing our beauty, is experiencing the ugly, and Skyzoo demonstrates that with all kinds of precision here.



1. All The Brilliant Things

Production: STLNdrms, MarcNfinit, Thelonious Martin, JR Swiftz, others

Guests: Raheem Devaughn, Al Skratch, BJ The Chicago Kid, others

If there's one thing that Skyzoo bleeds, it's New York. More importantly, his proud borough of Brooklyn.  He has never strayed from keeping it all Brooklyn, no matter who he guests with or what album he delivers.  With his prior album, the aforementioned In Celebration of Us, Sky provided praise and commentary on the Black community with our highlights and our growth.  He goes another route with his superb offering of 2021, All the Brilliant Things.  He brings us to New York, not just as a child or adolescent. Not even just as an emcee coming into his own, but as a grown man that sees changes going on within his home state and his own borough.  Some are celebratory, some not so much.  Either way, he's reflective of everything on here like a man that's seen it all throughout his life.  He starts off with the knocking "Free Jewelry", in which he spits words of wisdom and schools the younger generation various items to reflect on.  He then takes us on a stroll through his Brooklyn streets with the returning Al Skratch-assisted "A Tour of The Neighborhood" and also the tremendous coming of age cut "St. James Liquor".  Sky has seen plenty of contemporaries sadly leave this world including the likes of Prodigy, Phife Dawg, and past collaborator, Sean Price. Thus, on the BJ The Chicago Kid-crooned "Bodega Flowers", he expresses how much he wants to be respected and appreciated while he's still around and not when he's dead and gone. While other standouts include the Raheem Devaughn-assisted, "Something to Believe In", "Rich Rhetoric", "The Scrimmage", and especially the FANTASTIC, STLNdrms-produced, "Plus & Connections", which has Sky cautioning people the price of not taking advantage of opportunities that come your way and also not being more aware of real estate agents wanting to take what you've earned and therefore gentrifying.  Speaking of gentrification, the most sobering cut on the album is the horn-laced knocker, "Bed-Stuy Is Burning".  This cut details the angers and frustrations over his Brooklyn neighborhoods being whitewashed and shames those of the community that allow that to happen for the dollar.  He begs various cities across the country, "Speak [insert city here] don't let this happen to you", but sadly this is happening more and more throughout the years.  Other important cuts such as the ode to Black community spending/investing in "Culture-ish", the essential nature of saving money "What Money Showed Us", and the surprising "I Was Supposed to Be a Trap Rapper", which has Sky GLIDING over a not bad trap beat on the closeout of the cut.  Skyzoo is New York tried and true, and All the Brilliant Things is a testament to what that means.  With his most exemplary and exceptional album to date, Sky has showed his dedication to his craft as a witty and insightful emcee, as well as an honest and open one as well.  Important and necessary, All The Brilliant Things will make you revisit not only how it was growing up in the good way, but also see changes that may not be great either.  


Skyzoo is clearly a generational emcee that should be mentioned among the very greats that he idolized and wanted to pattern himself after from "The Big Apple".  Only because he emerged during a changing time within hip-hop is the reason he's not a bigger household star today.  Many have said he came in the wrong era, however, to his fans and those that have kept him in constant rotation know he's among the best around within his generation.  Twenty years deep and his discography is as consistently crazy as anyone in current hip-hop, and with other future projects in the works, Sky will only continue to cement his legacy in the game as one of the most gifted spitters and writers hip-hop has produced within this century.


Peep some of his finest cuts:

Apologies In Order (production: The Other Guys)

Bed-Stuy Is Burning (production: Rashid Hadee )

St. James Liquor (production: Kenny Keys)

Speakers On Blast (production: !llmind)

Way To Go (production: 9th Wonder)

Money Makes Us Happy feat. Bilal and Black Thought

The Truth About Regrets (production: Antman Wonder)

The Cost Of Sleep (production: Tall Black Guy)

Visionary Riches production: Apollo Brown)

Let It Fly (production: !llmind)

Sing Comfortably feat. Dumbo Station (production: Dumbo Station)

Bamboo (production: MarcNfinit)

Could've Struck the Lotto*

The Hand Off feat. Torae as Barrel Brothers (production: Khrysis)

Popularity production: Nottz)

Duffle Bag Weekends (production: Tuamie)

It's All Good (production: Pete Rock)

Memorabilia feat. Torae as Barrel Brothers (production: Antman Wonder)

The Mirror (production: 9th Wonder)

The Stick-Up Tape From Menace (production: Avenue Productions)


*from his mixtape, The Great Debater Revisited *