Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life

by

Jay-Z

Edit

There is a lot of hate around this album, mainly because it was the one that brought Jay-Z into the mainstream circuit.

It isn't as good as his previous 2 releases, Reasonable Doubt being certified classic by just about everyone who has heard it, and In My Lifetime being the most underrated album in the last decade, but it certainly does not disappoint.

'Hard Knock Life', the title track, won Jay-Z critical acclaim and heavy airplay all over America. It samples the chorus from the musical Annie, and with Jay-Z over the top of a simple drum and bass beat, it is an instant classic.

The next 2 songs, 'Ride Or Die' and 'If I Should Die' take it back to his hustling days, but give it a more mainstream feel than what he produced on his debut. The only criticism here is the theme of death being done twice in a row, but both songs are tight and produced well.

'Nigga What, Nigga Who' takes Jay-Z way back to his very early days when he used to rap as fast as Busta Rhymes, a style we virtually never see on his released work. The lyrics are great, delivered fast, and the collabo with Jaz O is a nice touch. Overall, a very underrated single, definitely deserved to perform better.

The next song, 'Money Cash Hoes', is definitely the beginning of the new Jay-Z focus. In later music, he enjoys flexing his masoginistic muscles, as well as flaunting the fact he is extremely rich. He got a lot of criticism over this song, and despite that and the theme of the song, it is still solid, and keeping in with Jay-Z's changing lifestyle. Good verse from DMX on there too.

The rest of the album is extremely solid. 'A Week Ago' showcases Jay-Z's storytelling ability, which we don't see enough anymore, 'Can I Get A...' is a great song, in which Jay expresses his dislike for gold diggers, and the bonus track, 'Money Ain't A Thang' is one of the best songs on the album.

Sure, Jay-Z has changed from rapping exclusively about hustling and snitching, but he is only trying to keep it real, and at the moment, what's real in Jay-Z's life is money, bitches and fame. Doesn't deserve any criticism, a great release.

This is the only album of his that I OWN, and I don't know why. After recieving it in the mail, I listened to his two newer albums, and they are the albums to buy. I will get them off some friends, but for now I'm stuck with this overated album...

But don't despair; it ain't all bad. Vol. 2 can give a good listening experience for a while, but it will scarcely pop up after that. The best tracks are as follows:

2)Hard Knock Life- OK, so the chorus is pretty corny for Jigga. But I can kinda see what he says in the booklet, "They just sayin, Yo, its a hard life and we live with it". Overall, a relaxed song with some good lyrics.

3)If I Should Die- A song with a played-out theme, but Jigga makes the most of it with a great beat and a catchy chorus.

5)Nigga What, Nigga Who- Best track on here, IMHO. Timbaland almost always drops hot beats, and this is a great example. The song is somewhat short, but the creative way the lyrics meld with the beat makes it the best.

6)Money, Cash, Hoes- A track that Swizz produced and it was one of his "succesive" hit songs during that period. The beat is tight, but DarkManX is better here than on his entire third ALBUM (which I own).

9)Can I Get A...- The album's most famous single. Irv Gotti produced it, and he is one of the hottest producers out now, along with artist Ja Rule (Irv produced most of Ja's debut album). This track has a ill beat with good flows by especially Ja Rule.

Well, thats the end of it right there; 5 tracks out of 14, which is a low number to start with, and thats with TWO bonus tracks! Jay must of slipped here, or he's been flossin too much ice ... . Buy his earlier or later albums and skip the middle one, please, for ya sake, ha ha :-).