Let me just say that it was a total coincidence that I happened to listen to Young Jeezy after listening to Lupe.
Man was THAT a mistake. But not for the reasons you might be thinking of…life is NEVER that simple or easy.
Nooooooooo! (R.I.P ODB)
Unlike the Lupe review, this one will be much shorter. (Again, not for the reasons you may be hoping for) The Inspiration is a project of a totally different nature than Food & Liquor. They really cannot be compared concept wise…except to compare the EXECUTION of those concepts.
And its the execution of Jeezy's album that is REALLY causing a dilemma for me right now.
Is Jeezy an 'ill spitter' like Lupe, no.
But…(and ya'll know how much I love big butts)
something must be wrong with me. My insides. My Soul.
Maybe I expected too much from Lupe's album? What, I dunno? Perfection? Naw. I suppose I expected Food & Liquor to be 'on par' with some of the albums I consider to be 'the best' of 2006.
The conflict we have I think is one of substance vs. style. Lyrics vs. production. Not-so-jammin vs. jammin. (I said 'jammin', now New Jack Swing yo ass on)
Let me ask another question…do I just like that 'ignorant shit'? Must every emcee show a 'conscientious' side to their lyrics in order to be in the 'game' and be 'respected' by the dirty backpacker 'real HIPHOP' folks of the world?
I suggest you really think about those questions before answering.
Seriously.
Click 'Read More' after a few seconds of reflection.
Didn't I tell you this review would be short?
The only problem I have with this album comes with the track J.E.E.Z.Y.
That's it. Straight up.
And that's just with the track. Cuz the quoteables are there.
With lyrics like
The old lady 'cross the street still bitchin
It's 3 in tha mornin take yo old ass to sleep
3rd time she done called the police this week
C'mon? And no I'm not bullshittin. Wish I was. Call me ignorant if you want to. I can take it.
My point is…this is that 'cocaine rap'. And as a 'cocaine rap' album, I can't really find anything wrong with it, technically.(see Fishscales) We can debate about Jeezy as an 'emcee' all day long. 'Til forever.
Hell, just to emphasize my point I'll use one of my FAVORITE emcees to ever fuckin do it:
Old Dirty Bastard R.I.P
If we must discuss the 'art' of emceeing, the 'technical' aspect of rockin the mic. Stayin on time, breath control, speakin clearly… (forgive me gods)
half of the shit O.D.B spit you had to listen to more than once to understand what the hell he was talkin about. And even then it usually didn't make all that much sense. And he rapped mostly about 'ignorant' ass shit to being with. Did you pay attention to the cover of his debut album? Were you listening to the lyrics? Did you know he was piss drunk during a lot of it?
And GOD DAMMIT if it wasn't the illest of albums. WU-TANG to the fullest. You had to love it.(no Jeezy)
Was O.D.B doin his thang, yes he was.(while not being the 'best' of persons outside of his celebrity all the while, keep it funky one time please)
Soooo…double-standards aside, why are we beefin about Jeezy?
If you've listened to the album, and still just don't like it there is nothin in the world I can say to counter that. It would be counter-productive to my entire argument. You're entitled to your opinion.
But at the end of the day…the shit ain't nothin to get worked up over. If you wanna be mad at something, be mad at Lupe, and others who are 'supposed' to be blowin your mind on each and every track, every time out, no debate even needed, but somehow fail to do it. For whatever reason.
If the game is about 'balance', then it's up to these 'real emcees' to step their game up and really drop some shit that impresses not only the 'critics', but the Dee-Dees, Ray-Rays, and Tyrones of the world.
Um…Show Me Whatcha Got?
Next Up: De La Soul - oh the antithesis to Jeezy's album to be sure. But executed far better than Food & Liquor. And they address the 'state of HIPHOP' issue in a far more 'authentic' way than ol boy did. Without the (self) hype.
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