A Review of Jay-Z's American Gangster

So he was rusty, but he was back. After the admittedly mediocre Kingdom Come and a slew of guest appearances on songs by artists such as T.I. and Nas, he was definitely back. But had his roughly three year retirement eroded his relevancy, if not yet his sales? Certainly, most critics and fans did not take well to the new, more mature Jay-Z, and while Kingdom Come was, as every recent Jay-Z album has been, a hip-hop event, it was, by and large, a disappointing one.

Then word leaked out that he'd seen an advance copy of the film American Gangster starring Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas, a seventies drug kingpin from Harlem. Apparently, inspired by the film, he'd hit the studio to put together essentially a companion piece. The resulting album is not a soundtrack and not quite a standard Jay-Z album. Rather it is a recapitulation of the Jay-Z legend, loosely paralleling the film's structure.

The production, largely handled by Diddy's Hitmen, is excellent, a far cry from their offering in 1997. Heavily employing samples of soul music from the seventies, the music is at once nostalgia-inducing and refreshing. In the same vein as Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint, the often understated beats draw attention away from themselves and towards the rapper, leaving the onus on Jay-Z to captivate the listener.

Because, in many ways, this is familiar, well-trod territory, he does quite easily. He chronicles his rise-from the perceived hopelessness of his youth to the paranoia of a successful drug dealer-effortlessly. This is to be expected. After all, the man has made millions recounting his version of the American Dream. What surprises, and compels here though, is his distance from the subject matter and increasing objectivity of his rhymes. Here, he attempts to universalize his experience, which requires straightforward descriptions of those experiences, devoid of the posturing, devoid of the hyperbole, devoid of a surfeit of slang and inside references. Starting with Pray and continuing with American Dreamin' he does just that. Even Hello Brooklyn 2.0, which mirrors the film's scenes depicting Lucas' appreciation for Harlem, is quite vivid, although the song, oddly featuring New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne crooning about his appreciation for Brooklyn over a heavy drum arrangement, is a sonic departure from the rest of the album.

American Gangster recalls nothing more to mind than Reasonable Doubt, and approaches that album's level of paranoia. Sweet almost matches D'Evils level of circumspection, but given the rapper's distance from it, the inner turmoil is assessed and dealt with within four minutes, rather than resigned to. Party Life resembles his debut's excellent Cashmere Thoughts-both silky, machismo filled boasts. And No Hook is an expansion upon, and in some ways a closer, to Can I Live.

If American Gangster chronicles the exploits of Jay-Z the hustler, then where this album falters is when Jay-Z the rapper intrudes. Ignorant S--- is a full-fledged intrusion and while it features a welcome appearance by Beanie Siegel, its assault on politically correct critics is out of place here. Similarly, references to current events such as the Jena 6 are likely to feel a bit anachronistic; even though Jay-Z never situates us in time, the instrumentals do. Further, there is only one track that addresses Lucas'/the rapper's downfall, the brilliant Fallin'; because that is a focal point of the film, and because the prior tracks build to a bit of a climax, the entire narrative feels unbalanced.

If you consider Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint, and The Black Album Jay-Z's top work, then this album should make your top five. If however you prefer the anthemic, boastful, thuggish raps of a Vol. 2 or Vol. 3, then this album may not be to your liking. And while he has crafted an album as close to the purity and intricacy of his debut as he'll probably ever get-a welcome retort to critics who suggested after Kingdom Come that he should have stayed retired, he has done so by resurrecting his past once again. While ultimately a satisfying listen, Jay-Z fans may be left wondering if he has anything new left to say.

Buy Jay-Z's American Gangster here:

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Sources

Evan Serpick, Jay-Z Defends Gritty Portrayal of Street Life, Admits" Kingdom Come" and Retirements May Have Been Mistakes, Rolling Stone