It’s been a very long time in the making, but almost 6 months after its release (and positive reception), Jay and Kanye’s banger is given the video treatment.
The video is comprised primarily of live footage, accompanied by a mastered version of the matching live audio, which also boasts one or two new production additions, namely a new sample in the hook and an altered outro.
The key seller here is the vast number of effects used throughout the video to make it a little more lavish than the typical live video, including double and triple vision, plenty of sharp scene changes, big, bold lettering thrown in sparingly, amongst many more. It’s a fresh, unique twist on using live footage, and feeds off the natural energy of the song with a high-octane, perpetually-moving style.
Grab this, if for some reason you don’t already own it, on iTunes now.
Just a day after the world’s most famous baby was born, the proud father took to the studio to record an ode to his newborn daughter.
The lyricism is heartwarmingly simple, as Jay expresses his sheer delight and awe, whilst also once again (assumedly) mentioning to the miscarriage he referred to in This Can’t Be Life. It’s not a track you’ll get for any complex wordplay or multi-layered production, but certainly a raw, honest track from Jay that strips away the bravado and gives listeners a look into what’s probably the most emotional moment of his life. Oh, and it officially lists ‘B.I.C.’ as a feature (her cries and wails are included towards the end)-she’s 2 days old and already getting royalties!
Thug Motivation 103 is seemingly just around the corner, and the most anticipated track from the project emerges, as the Snowman grabs two of the game’s icons for one of the year’s better hip-hop lineups.
A very bright, perky sample sets a tone of positivity from the offset, with luscious bass amply supporting it throughout. Whilst it’s an uplifting production, it doesn’t overshadow the vocal work as many of these sort of productions can, and that’s just as well with three very enjoyable verses from each rapper. Each artist takes turns rapping about their siginifcant other, with Jeezy’s slow, husky raps opening things up in style, whilst Jay follows up and really throws back to the early 00′s, as his lady-centric raps effortlessly take to this soulful production. 3 Stacks closes the affair out and much like Jay, the throwback vibe is stamped all over his verse, as Dre’s subject and style slide onto this beat smoothly throughout. A very likeable slice of rap.
One of the few rappers with a brand anywhere near Jay and Kanye’s, T.I. jumps on the next single from Watch The Throne with what deserves to be an official remix. T.I. slides onto the vibrant, energetic production with consumate ease, bringing his speedy flow to the pounding beat and lacing it with some very enjoyable raps. There’s nothing about his contribution that feels out of place, and hence it undoubtedly makes for the best remix of the track to date. Having not listened to the original in quite some time (I tired of the album quickly), it’s a great refresh of what is an excellent production, and hopefully there’s more to come from Tip.
Undoubtedly the most anticipated track from Cole’s upcoming debut album (released 27th September), the much-hyped Jay-Z feature finally lands as Cole promised earlier today.
The title suggests this track is rather jovial, but the opening will immediately realign that view: a booming, bassy production bursts into life from the off, boasting electronic and dub influences that immediately inject an intensity and urgency into the track. A beat that would have slotted in nicely on Watch The Throne, Cole takes the production on well, borrowing fom Kanye West’s style in portions (particularly the arrogant closing lines on the hook), alongside some quickfire flows of his own. Jay grabs the last verse with a passable performance, and whilst some of his wordplay on the watch theme is enjoyable, his rhyming is a little lazy in places. A decent track, though one where the production dominates to such an extent that there isn’t a standout vocal moment.
Arguably the best track on Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch The Throne, Wiley is the first big name to jump on this terrific production as he throws a verse in alongside th0se on the original version for an unofficial remix.
A fairly decent verse too from Wiley as he brings a solid flow with on this bassy production, alongside flashes of quality with his lyrics, although they would have surely benefitted from a more emotional, intense delivery to add some real credence to a few of his more introspective lines. Still, it’s an enjoyable contribution to a fantastic track and certainly doesn’t affect the natural progression and momentum of the track.
Jay-Z and Kanye West-No Church In The Wild Remix ft. Wiley and Frank Ocean
The first official video from the collaborative album from the duo arrive, timed nicely as the dust settles on the album release.
Despite my slight disappointment in the album (review here), and despite already seeing criticism for this video in various outlets, I’m actually a fan of the video. There’s lots of positivity, energy and a feelgood vibe that’s been entirely absent from the careers (both visual and audio) of both men in recent years, and whilst at times they overdo it trying to convince everyone they’re still ‘young’ at various points, you’ll grin at watching the duo cut loose and take themselves less seriously for a change. It’s an infectious positivity, and works alongside the soulful audio to humanise them considerably.
Thematically the video is pretty simple, with the duo rapping in a fairly desolate environment and driving around in a ridiculously-customised Maybach. Sharp-eyed viewers will also spot a cameo from comedian Aziz Ansari, with his hilariously-awkward dancing at around 2:31 worthy of a few rewatches. A good video, and the audio can be found on the Watch The Throne album, available everywhere now.
After delays, rumours of unrest and much more, Monday saw the long-awaited release of Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch The Throne. Arguably, one of the most anticipated collaborative albums in the past decade, it’s undoubtedly one of those rare events that captures the attention of the entire hip-hop community, consequentially resulting in thousands of reviews and opinions. Add one more to that list.
There’s been no hiding my positive opinions on Kanye West and his work over the years, whilst any appreciation for Jay-Z at this stage surely goes without saying (regardless of The Blueprint 3). The collaboration of the two should theoretically give rise to one of the finest synergies in hip-hop history, with two vanguards of hip-hop cementing the genre’s dominance across music.
Well here it is. Finally a joint worth listening to from ‘Ye & Jay’s upcoming Watch The Throne (August 1st).
It’s all about the sampling on this. Kanye flips Otis Redding’s Try A Little Harder with spectacular effect, creating a looping soulful instrumental with subtle licks of drum to boot. ‘Ye and Jay’s chemistry is strong as they trade bars back and forth but lyrically the track comes up somewhat short, both in terms of rhyme content and also timing (at a measly 3:01, the sample deserved more airplay). Although even with that said, this is still top stuff and for me personally one of the best tracks either have released in a long time. I don’t think this will be an official single as such but might give us clues (hopefully) as to how the rest of the LP will sound.
The artwork was revealed 10 days ago, and now we get a confirmed tracklist to go along with it. The hype for the project is multiplying by the minute, and from the various previews floating around the web, it looks as though we’re in for a superb hip-hop album to dominate (what’s left of) the summer, if the rumoured August release is indeed correct.
No other rappers on the tracklist which is interesting, and got me asking ‘who could really feature on this sort of project?’. Eminem and Nas are the only two names that stick out for me, though you’re welcome to express opinions otherwise. Having said that, the vocalist features look good, with Beyonce and Frank Ocean alongside Curtis Mayfield and Otis Redding (naturally, the latter pair will be samples). Click below to see the tracklist. → Continue Reading Kanye West and Jay-Z-Watch The Throne Tracklist
It threatened to descend into the swampy marshes of urban myth, but the official release of the artwork and pre-order has confirmed the much-anticipated release of the collaborative album from hip-hop luminaries Kanye West and Jay-Z, set to be unleashed on August 2nd.
The artwork was designed by Riccardo Tisci, and not only looks metallic but is reputed to actually be made of metal, a clever move to treat the under-utilised impact of touch to increase physical sales. Next up: scratch-and-sniff albums.
There are a few tracklists floating around, but none have been officially confirmed. Of course, we’ll deliver that to you when an official tracklisting is provided. For now, get excited that the project is happening!
Originally leaked a few months back, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was already released, but it’s re-emergence marks the official release of the huge collaboration.
Having avoided the original leak of the video, I can’t comment on whether anything is actually different, but it is a pretty solid video from start to finish. Hovering somewhere in between the metaphorical style of his feature-length Runaway video and a regular music video, with hints of artistic flair alongside some gruesome, horror-inspired imagery that works with the more literal vibe of Monster. In particular, the oft-revisited scene early on involving Kanye rapping in front of/holding off a bunch of ‘zombies’ outside his doors has a very ‘us versus the paparazzi’ vibe, and hence makes you sympathise with the ‘monster’ that is Kanye West.
Some great fashion moments too, with Jay-Z’s rather slick smarts probably taking the win, though Kanye doesn’t exactly come up short either. Worth a watch, and I’m sure everyone has the audio by now.
The legendary Sade hooks up with Jay-Z for a collaboration that’ll feature on her upcoming The Ultimate Collection compilation.
It’s not often Sade collaborates with other artists, so this is a much welcomed and anticipated track. Produced by 40 (the man behind Drake’s biggest hits) the track is ridiculously smooth which makes for easy-listening. Jay’s verse, whilst nothing revolutionary, does compliment the track really well, with some clever wordplay and he flows well to the song.
Not familiar with Teachers? Me niether. After a little bit of research I can tell you they helped Yeezy and Bon Iver produce the original Monster (you can grab the original here if you already haven’t). I really wasn’t sure what to expect with this.
Having overplayed it so much myself, I was starting to become pretty bored of this track. However, my appreciation for the single has been taken to a whole new level. The Teachers have stripped the whole production right back leaving nothing but the original verses (minus Rick Ross’), giving it a far more atmospheric feel. It’s much eerier, in-keeping with the whole Monster theme. The drums take a front row seat on this one, leaving the guitar riffs to blend superbly into the background, building and dropping when needed to match each verse. It’s genuinely blown me away, I think I may actually prefer it to the original.
From Whoo Kid and Travis’ upcoming Let The Drummer Get Wicked mixtape (in preparation for his debut Give The Drummer Some album), Travis unleashes another intense remix of an already-fiery hip-hop track.
I’ve not taken to the original version of H.A.M. as much as I thought I would after the first listen, though that’s partly down to my recent penchant for old school tracks. Either way, this is a fantastic remix and in my (not so humble) opinion, it improves the production considerably. The addition of spiky guitar riffs works superbly with the existing production, and similarly the live drum aspect plays off that operatic, powerful and aggressive production style served up by Lex Luger. In particular, the transition from the opera style back into the track towards the end is perfectly suited to Travis’ spiky, energetic additions and for me, this trumps the original.
Kanye West has just let loose of some very interesting info, in a way only Kanye could: on Twitter, and all in capital letters. WELL, IT GOT MY ATTENTION KANYE.
‘Announcement’ 1: Watch The Throne, the collaborative album from Kanye and Jay-Z, will be released in 2 months. This isn’t really new info, but it’s nice to have it confirmed.
‘Announcement 2′: The official video for the fantastic All of The Lights will be released in just one week. Really looking forward to it, and hopefully he’s snagged all of the guest features for the visuals.
‘Announcement 3′: His next album will be released THIS summer. Now, we’ve heard brazen promises like this before (after 808s and Heartbreak I recall a similar statement), so I’ll believe this when I see it but it clearly means he’s still working on new material which is great. It’s altogether possible too, given that this album has been the odd combination of a critical success and a (comparatively) slow seller.
Busta Bust continues his renaissance with another tongue twisting and blistering verse laid upon a beat that’s certainly suited to him.
Kanye’s and Jay’s verses from the original are on this still, which further solidifies how this ridiculously immense beat really wasn’t suited to their particular styles and would have been better off in the hands of someone like Busta Rhymes.
The first single from the upcoming Kanye & Jay-Z project, Watch The Throne. Really don’t know what to make of this tbh, such was the hype it’d have been impossible for it to live up to everyone’s expectations. In spite of that I think I’m going to give it the thumbs up, the beat is one you wouldn’t expect either rapper to rap on and you wouldn’t be surprised to learn that it’s one that is produced by Lex Luger (producer of such beats like this and this one).
This track certainly has that ‘epic’ feel it that one would associate with an album called Watch The Throne, that’s for sure. Download this below.
A fair few leaks coming out from the Shady camp recently, and (purely from looking at this lineup) here we have one that will send tongues wagging.
This is a track that’s having a pop at the state of the music industry, how hit songs just seem to be about catchy hooks and contain poor lyrical content. Unfortunately this is definitely not a recent song, and is believed to be around 4 years old. This is most telling from hearing Eminem’s flow and particularly the horrible southern accent that he displayed on the albums Encore and D12 World. For that reason this track isn’t really as good as I’d hoped it to be, but I must admit his ironic chorus on this is one I enjoyed.
A little info from a fairly reputable source on Dre’s upcoming album. As of right now, the release date is early February 2011, although that will inevitably be delayed. I’d predict late March.
Features are rumoured to include Jay-Z (although not on Under Pressure, which is said to have been scrapped), La Roux (or just Elly Jackson), Game, Akon (on Kush, assumedly) and of course Snoop Dogg and Eminem. I personally expect there to be a few more features, probably from lesser-known artists, including Kendrick Lamar who he name-checked in an interview recently.
After announcing Jay Electronica’s deal with Jay-Z Roc Nation label, it was revealed that this track would be their first collaboration and it hasn’t taken long to surface, with Electronica releasing it moments ago on Twitter.
The production has that off-beat, alternative style Elect seems to favour, whilst the raps come with the memorable wordplay that has become synonymous with the Jay Electronica name. Arguably, it’s not one of his strongest verses, but that may be a harsh judgement with such great expectations and from only one listen. Jay-Z’s verse is really enjoyable, continuing his recent vein of form with an attention-grabbing delivery that is garnished with the customary Jay boasting. Gainsbourg is sampled towards the end, though I’m not sure why The-Dream is credited. Maybe slightly underwhelming overall, but we’ll see after a few listens. Interestingly, the album field has the much-anticipated (or excessively delayed) Act 2-Patents of Nobility title: when’s it coming Jay?
Great little remix for you here. The Prodigy’s Liam gives us his take on Jay Z’s massive smash 99 Problems in a rare hip-hop based remix. As I’m sure you’re all aware the track was a banger anyway, this just amps it up to another level. Definitely one to be played at full volume.
It’s been rumoured for a while, and Hammer finally responds to Jay’s reference to him on So Apalled. The first minute of this video is largely pointless, but the rest is interesting in a strange kind of way.
Over a mainstream club beat, Hammer not only heavily references Jay-Z’s Illuminati associations, but backs that up with some pretty funny visuals, with Jay depicted to be a pretty large fellow, and also the devil, in seperate clips. It all ends with Hammer baptising ‘Jay’ too, which is a bit creepy really.
I’m at a loss for words to be honest. It’s just really unusual, yet oddly captivating. Inevitably though, this will fade out when Jay decides to just throw heavily-veiled subliminals.
The most eclectic line-up since the inception of G.O.O.D. Fridays? It has to be up there.
Pete Rock serves up a deep, booming and atmospheric production that will definitely satisfy the hip-hop heads: it’s all about thick bass, pounding percussion and soul samples. It has to be said that Jay seems to have really upped his game on these GOOD Friday tracks, and both him and Kanye do decent jobs on verse duty, whilst Charlie Wilson and Cudi only really provide background vocals.
From top to bottom this is unquestionably a hip-hop track, and not the usual genre crossover you tend to find with ‘Ye’s material. Very replayable.
This list loses more respect year-by-year. If you’re not familiar, they pick the ‘top 10′ mainstream MCs based on ‘rhyme skill, flow, buzz, commercial success, business ventures, Web presence and cultural influence’.
Realistically, they don’t. Some extended thoughts on the list are available after the click, as well as a revised list using the line-up they picked. I’m not going to dare to go into who I think should be on the list, as we’ll be here all day…
Friday has come and gone, and that means one thing-new Kanye. A short snippet of a rough version of this track leaked many moons ago, and the final version is another great hip-hop effort from ‘Ye.
From the lineup, the most intriguing features by far are RZA and Cyhi: for those who don’t know, Cyhi the Prynce signed to GOOD around the same time as Pusha T, and this marks my first taste of his music. His verse is decent, if unspectacular, but you have to appreciate his range of flows. Best verse probably goes to Jay-Z, as he comes through with some memorable lines (including a great Dark Knight reference).
“Two years ago, Boogie and Urban set the music world on fire with an unprecedented mash-up (although they hate that word) of musical icons Jay-Z and Coldplay. Viva La Hova went on to garner hundreds of thousands of downloads, and receive acclaim around the world. Jay-Z himself told Mick he liked the project and Coldplay even linked to it on their official website.
As the weather gets colder and summertime fades away, it seemed like a perfect time to re-release a project that can only be described as ambient cold weather music. Featuring two new bonus songs not contained on the original Viva La Hova, this project also finds the original mixes re-mastered, non-sequenced, and without the signature “dj drops” over the songs.
After this photo surfaced from the recent Eminem & Jay-Z show in Detroit, the internets went a bit nuts as to what was said, given that 50 had thrown some shots at Jay over the last year, causing Jay-Z to tell Westwood in an interview that “nobody is scared of 50 Cent”. 50 doesn’t really divulge what was said, but you get the impression he’s patched things up with him. He also goes on to say he had a phone conversation with Diddy with whom he also clears the air, what with their recent issues too.
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