A Review of Jay-Z's "The Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse"

On the heels of his undeniable second (at least) classic album, Jay-Z returned with the sequel: The Blueprint 2: The Gift and The Curse, a double album brimming with guests, beef, big name producers, concept records, and everything else you can think of. Unfortunately it's hard to sustain listener interest in any album for two hours or more. Difficult, though not impossible, but Jay-Z fails spectacularly, first by linking this album to his classic and thereby ramping up expectations, and second by leaving listeners with an unwieldy mess of an album.

Where to start? Whereas the first Blueprint was tightly focused and thematically cohesive, neither The Gift disc nor The Curse disk yields any particular insight into the title. The Gift disc starts off with Jay rapping a moving verse about a dreamed conversation with B.I.G. both on an elegant Kanye West beat and acapella along with the deceased rapper's verse from Jay-Z. This is followed by Hovi Baby, a would be anthem over an overblown beat, then The Watcher 2, a sequel to Dr. Dre's leadoff track from 1999's 2001.

Guests are everywhere: Dr. Dre, Rakim, Killer Mike, Big Boi, Twista, Scarface, Beyonce, Sean Paul, Lenny Kravitz, Rell, Faith Evans, Truth Hurts, Latoiya Williams, Kanye West, Pharell and Timbaland and Roc-a-Fella signees Memphis Bleek, M.O.P., Beanie Siegel, Young Chris, Freeway, Peedi Crakk, Neef, and Sparks. Indeed, practically everyone is here, except Nas.

Ah, Nas. The specter of the biggest beef since Death Row and Bad Boy butted heads haunts this album. Every shot taken at an unnamed rapper, from the vicious Watcher 2 to the nasty Show You How, seems aimed squarely at Nas. Jay-Z even addresses the battle on an eerie track, Blueprint 2. But the track is less a direct assault on Nas then a reflection on the battle itself, on in which he simultaneously concedes defeat but acknowledges himself the superior emcee. This may sound contradictory, but the Brooklyn-born rapper makes a strong case, discussing his opponent's inconsistencies as well as his own success. Nevertheless, the song, which also bizarrely contains some jabs at Rosie Perez, and is marred by a hokey hook, is among the bottom-half of the album's tracks.

There is plenty to like here. Jay-Z and M.O.P. stomp all over Just Blaze's U Don't Know beat for the remix. Diamond is Forever and I Did in My Way are pleasant autobiographical excursions. Excuse Me Miss is an album highlight, a smooth and mellow affair tailored to an older ("grown and sexy") crowd. All Around the World likewise showcases a more mature and well-rounded Jay-Z than the gun toting thug we last saw on The Dynasty album. There is some remarkable storytelling as well, notably Meet the Parents and A Ballad for the Fallen Soldier. Some People Hate finds Jay-Z returning to his earlier Vol. 3/Dynasty era paranoia. And Show You How is the ultimate expression of lyrical condescension and disdain.

There is also plenty to dislike. The mediocre What They Gonna Do with Sean Paul features Jay-Z rather lazily (see third verse) riding an awkward beat. F--- All Night is an inferior version of Excuse Me Miss. Neither of the Timbaland tracks, The Bounce (featuring Kanye West) and 2 Many Hoes, are as hard-hitting or innovative as earlier collaborations. As One features far too many emcees dropping too short and mostly mediocre aggressive verses over an ill-fitting glossy beat. And the inclusion of the Sean Paul-less What They Gonna Do remix here is just unnecessary.

And then there are the more minor misfires. The airy production for Some How, Some Way which reunites Jay-Z with Beanie Sigel and Scarface, undercuts the steel of their voices and verses. A collaboration between Lenny Kravitz and Jay-Z (Guns and Roses) should have yielded both a more innovative beat and hook, and more vocals from the rocker. The Watcher 2, a track over three years old, doesn't sport enough sonic revision to really warrant inclusion here. '03 Bonnie and Clyde is a catchy duet with Beyonce that might or might not be realistic, but as a cover of Tupac's Me and My Girlfriend about another subject entirely, it feels a little sacrilegious.

It's all a bit too much to take. Indeed, he might have been better off releasing a sequel to The Dynasty showcasing his ever growing stable of artists (and allowing them to run roughshod over Nas) on a double album, rather than their minimal inclusion here. Or he might have released a double album with Beanie Sigel and Scarface, anything to keep this more tightly focused.

The problem here is that most of the best of these songs do not hold up well to the best of Jay-Z's catalogue. There's no Streets is Watching or Where I'm From or Can I Live or even U Don't Know (the remix doesn't quite capture the magic of the original). No single here connects like Hard Knock Life or Big Pimpin. No diss record is as rancorous as The Takeover, no posse cut as raucous as Resevoir Dogs or Change the Game, no meditation as introspective as Regrets or You Must Love Me. In essence, this is an album brimming with lesser work, most songs making you wish you were listening to his better versions. As a complete listen, it gets tedious by the first disc.

He feels rudderless, as if the Nas beef punctured his artistic center, and here it lies splayed out in every direction. Sometimes the rhymes are lazy, other times sharp and complex. Sometimes the content is dishearteningly shallow, at other times it is captivating and deep. Undoubtedly, some of this is due to the volume of material, but it seems as though Jay-Z is trying to recapture some of the magic of his earlier albums. Whether he is trying to recapture it for the listener, or for himself, to prove that he still has it, the album as a whole isn't ample evidence of his ability.

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