And I don't think Jay-z makes music to teach ignorant people about what they should know.
He's not gonna try to teach us about Trayvon Martin's case when he's not got a law degree, he'll leave that to the smart dumb conscious rappers to mislead the youth.
He's never been one of these dumb smart rappers saying shyt that anyone who reads the papers and got a c or more in history already knows like these other rappers. That's what some people like and that fine.
If you ain't really really down like Pac or Common, socially conscious rap is 9/10 dumb smart shyt. I still don't understand the dweebs crying for Jay to engage in it. He actually cares, he's actually doing shyt in society, he's not about to use other people's misery to sell records. Very few people like Ghostface who makes up a whole dream world, Nas and Face who talk about other people can still talk street shyt and that's their niche.
He's more The Beatles than Bob Marley.
Yey you stay in his threads like plague.The problem is whenever someone levels that line if criticism against him, y'all respond by saying "You want Jay to be/rap about ______" or "that's not who he is."
No, we don't want him to be anything else and we critique him who he is. And his lack of vision and depth and ability to effectively make songs of substance is a legitimate knock on his artistry.
Jay's most profound moments come when he's talking about his own personal experience. He seems to have artistic myopia and can't see the world outside himself and manifest it in rhymes. And that was interesting and compelling when he was talking about his life as a drug dealer. He brought an element of putting a human face and in terms of describing the full range of emotions that come with that life early on, not just bragging and it was kinda groundbreaking.
But now he's mostly just rapping about hanging around rich white people in Europe and being part of high society with the occasional flash of profundity.
Camel stans: "You just don't like him anymore because you can't relate to his life. That's your own issues."
NO. It's the artistic myopia I referenced earlier; his inability to get outside himself and make substantive music. Nas just showed you a rich man pushing 40 can still make quality music at a high level that isn't rooted in narcissism.
And the Beatles comparison is horrible. They had plenty of substance and depth.
The Beatles..... Lol. Can you explain this?? This is horrible.
I'm a Jay fan and all but a lot of people don't realize his music is really music of the moment. What I mean by that is that it's very forgettable. Yeah it might be really hot now, but 5-10 years from now it's very forgettable. That's the issue with a lot of hip hop music. Music doesn't necessarily have to be preachy and so thought provoking, but some kind of depth needs to be there. Some chance taking and groundbreaking shyt in the genre needs to happen.
Can you please elaborate on The Beatles comparison???? I mean they changed the way people write music and their melodies were groundbreaking. They took chances. Sgt. Peppers is one of the oddest albums I've heard. What chances has Jay-Z taken to change the face of music again?
I always said placing the title of greatest ever on someone as shallow and vapid as Jay-Z does a great disservice to the culture...The pre-release hype over this dud is just another example of that.. Trayvon's killer is about to go free and the "biggest figure and living legend" is rapping about European art and Miley Cyrus twerking..Whenever I hear someone say Jay-Z is the greatest, I know they don't love hip hop and more than likely hate Black people...
I always said placing the title of greatest ever on someone as shallow and vapid as Jay-Z does a great disservice to the culture...The pre-release hype over this dud is just another example of that.. Trayvon's killer is about to go free and the "biggest figure and living legend" is rapping about European art and Miley Cyrus twerking..Whenever I hear someone say Jay-Z is the greatest, I know they don't love hip hop and more than likely hate Black people...
That's what these people don't understand.Black people hating themselves or people that grew up their entire lives listening to nothing but hip hop not liking hiphop? You are an idiot if you think that the whole album is about Miley twerking or European art: even the Miley line isnt really about Miley.
Took the easy way to go plat but I'm dying to see what them first week sales look like
Yea, pop music isnt a bad thing per SE, its just that it doesnt even sound like dude is trying.those you saying Jay is pop music, that's not necessarily a bad thing. He's made pop directed tracks. He's one of the few who can do pop tracks and still keep respect.
I have no problem with "Change Clothes", "Empire State.....", etc. They have good production, he still spitting entertaining lyrics, they have memorable hooks.
I also like "American Gangster" Jay. "Reasonable Doubt" Jay.
MCHG is just not a very good album. And to me, ppl who go around calling him the GOAT, just dont wanna admit itPeople who see him as the leader of rap and black culture(to a degree), dont wanna admit it.
Wait, are people really saying this isnt a pop album???
This is exactly what it is!!!!
The reason people like this, and critics dont (not sure, just saw someone said critics arent into it) is because this shyt is like someone else said, "the music of the moment". He got dope producers, and JT to open the album.
Its easy to ride to...you dont even have to pay attention to what he's saying.
This dude is 43 rapping about the same dumb shyt...its just lame as fukk.
I dont see how he's the GOAT, and has had the safest career of any cat that is considered a legend in hip hop.
The same reason most people like this album is the same reason 2 and a Half Men was the number one show for so long.
Most people are fukking brain dead.
Marketing is Hip Hop's bread and butter. .
Samsung delivered Jay-Z his 5million dollars...and Jay-Z delivered Samsung an effective advertising campaign to sell mobile devices and in depth data mining opportunities from a key demographic (the million-plus jay-z fans who downloaded the app) which they can track and sell to whatever third party down the road...after already proving themselves to be an industrious sort, in tune with the new hot gadgets and prone to be moved by glitzy ads and slick slogans, there's no doubt the info mined from their phones will be prove valuable
It was never about providing any stage for "hip hop"
#NewRules that are kinda the same as the #OldRules when hammer was jumping off the top of fast food joints to sell people Taco Bell in the early fukking 90s ("hey rapper, here's some money...help us squeeze some money out of those people that like your hippity hop")...but yet they got the marks thinking they're apart of some kind of "revolution" or some silly shyt that's a bright new day for hip hop... it's a work people