That's when I decided. I'll listen to and internalize every Jay-Z album while I build myself into the gangster I was born to be. The first up? Reasonable Doubt. From there, we'll go in order until we reach the last Jay-Z project. Where are we at now? Check out the review below:

Going thru it too, it'll get better

lmfso thought title said op and his girl were broke so they started listening to jay z albums

Review: Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life

Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life (1998)

This was a fun album.

I can't flex on y'all boys. This was a very fun album. I've never heard Jay-Z rap like this before.

Growing up, as I mentioned before, I started with the 2004 Black Album Jay-Z and moved onto Kingdom Come, American Gangster. I never heard much about the Life and Times series, consisting of Vol. 1, Vol. 2, and Vol. 3. So I always assumed they were his most trash albums. I'm apologize for the disrespect.

Last week we covered Vol. 1. While I saw a lot of the thread gave their praises regarding that album, it didn't hit for me the same. This one right here though? Wow, what of blend and soon to be 2000's sound. Jay is rapping like the crown.

Hold on. Let's get to the review. His third album: Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life.

🎵 Track 9, "Coming of Age (Da Sequel)"

Jay is an absolute spitta on this album. I've never heard bruh rap like this.

One thing that's fascinating to me about hearing these albums in chronological order, is not only seeing the evolution and the range that Jay displays early on, but from the perspective of the new prospect trying to get in with the city (Reasonable Doubt), and then after Biggie Smalls passes away is looking straight at the throne with Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.
You can feel the urgency to strike now. The throne is for the taking, and Jay knows it. He feels it. And this is where his incredible range really comes into play.

You hear what Jay wants to establish with Reasonable Doubt. You understand what he's about and you understand the difference. In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, he starts to stretch his range as an artist to let others know what he's about. Then with this album? He straight kills 'em.

This is just straight rap. And as a person who discovered Jay when he was already on the throne, to hear him really go at other rappers and authoritate his voice the way he does... even the guest features are dope rapping. I've never heard of THE LOX or Da Ranjahz, or even Sauce Money... but everyone understood the assignment. You can really and feel how Jay focuses so much on detail.

As a Kanye fan and historian, it's no wonder that the two came together. There's really a lot of similarities business-wise between how Kanye released his first albums under Def Jam, and what I'm hearing now with Jay-Z before.

This album sounds like a lot of those black movies back in the day, like All About The Benjamins, State Property, and Hot Boyz.

Jay sounds like the leaders of the team here, and his main guy Beanie Sigel is performing really well on his tracks. Coming Of Age (Da Sequel) is an amazing track that I just keep coming back to. The other track that won't stop getting play? Reservoir Dogs. Jay doesn't even start rapping on this track until the three guests leave their mark, but man this song sounds like riding in Miami with the old school convertible--at least at first, until the beat changes up and the rappers go to work.

Looking at this song historically, you can't help but celebrate rap in its essence. These boys are spitting. It reminds that New York was where rap was born. We're really looking through Jay-Z's history and seeing how he became what he is. This is actually quite fascinating.

But let me not get lost--sorry again, this was a very fun album. Probably the most fun album I've heard. I love playing these tracks. They remind me of all the video games from the late 90's and early 2000's.

Speaking of, Can I Get A...'s beat reminds of Crash Bandicoot 1 lol. But they're still bouncing to it.

You know, I keep mentioning songs, verses, and the album as a whole without getting too deep into specifics. I could, but I don't want to make this review too long, and it's really just a testament to the quality and fullness to this album in all aspects. This album has no weaknesses. Great beats, fye ass verses, and attitude that tells you: this is it. Everything you think about this album is the truth.

Being a person who discovered Jay-Z into his later career, I didn't experience his legacy of consistent #1 albums, and being considered the best rapper in the game. But I see it now. I literally see how this man was earning those album accolades. I understand how he was getting this respect. This man was dominating his peers musically, and creating a new business all at the same time. He was a force. There wasn't anyone like Jay; I can see that.

Bruh, the rapping is 10, the beats are 10, and the vibe is 10. This album is a 10, bro. I didn't think I'd get another ten so soon.

And let me tell you something else... this album is better than Reasonable Doubt. This was definitely a happy surprise. I really can't go more into the tracks or my perspectives without just... talking forever.

This album was so good, it made me really think about doing a video series of these reviews to be able to go more in-depth and make the experience more interactive. Damn bruh. This was a good album. No cap. I'm just excited to do the rankings.

My two favorite moments from this album came from Coming of Age (Da Sequel) and A Week Ago.

For Coming of Age, I feel like Jay delivered his hardest line lol:

These young niggas think I fell out the loop,
Cus the last time they see me hoppin, out the coup,
I HOPPED OUT IN A SUIT!

And also,

Look at that fake smile he just gave me, it's breaking my heart
Should I school him or pull the tools out and break him apart?
I felt his hatred, it was hard
Before this faking s*** start?
I should take him to the back of the building and blaze him

And on A Week Ago, imagine my surprise that Kanye was paying Jay ultimate homage with his line "it was all good just a week ago!" on Watch The Throne's H.A.M.

This is cool stuff. We're getting closer to the Kanye era as well. I fully recommend this album to any hip-hop fan. Every track is fire.

ALBUM RANKING: 10/10

Tito's Track Rankings:

1. Coming of Age (Da Sequel)
2. Reservoir Dogs
3. Hard Knock Life
4. If I Should Die
5. Jigga What, Jigga Who

• 9 of 14 tracks downloaded

Roxanne, Roxanne... never gonna love me, but it's alright!
✨

Sometimes she calls me, sometimes she doesn't.

When she first called me, I was elated. I had spoken to God about her, of course, and he told me to write down my goals. So I wrote down my goals for the next three years...

Get my skin clear, get my credit to 780. Erase all my debt. Bring in $240,000 a year. Secure a government contract with my business. Get life insurance. Learn to dance. Learn to fix cars. Visit Germany. Purchase a commercial property in Georgia.

These are some of the goals I wrote for myself, and I wrote some additional goals that concern me and her over the next few years. I know that if I continue to follow my goals, everything will turn out OK in the end.

But damn this human condition, because the days in between still hurt and at times feel lonely. I can feel so empowered all day, but at nightfall, it's hard not to feel alone.

When we were together, I vowed to do better. I told her I'd get a better job, move into a new place, and create a foundation in which we can thrive.

Well I'm in my new place now. And I'm working on the better job.

But when she calls, sometimes she's just quiet. She hasn't visited me yet, and I understand. She's called enough to make me think in my mind that perhaps she just wants to check on me... to see how I am? To see if I've folded without her in my life? To see if I'm staying consistent and doing the things I said I'd do?

But when I call her, no answer, and no response.

🌌

I don't really want another girl. But I don't want her, either. She broke my heart and now there's something missing in our opportunities to connect with each other.

I won't be in this space for long... and I feel like I'm being doubted. Well the truth is, I could do a lot better than how I was. No disrespect to the girl, but our relationship sucked. I wasn't getting what I wanted, and she wasn't getting what she wanted. She's just beautiful to me inside and out and what I'm truly in love with is the idea that our s*** could be better. What I'm truly in love with is fixing where I went wrong and redeeming myself, for myself. What I'm truly in love with is a future where I'm loved and there's someone I can love back.

There are many types of women in the world. What kind do I truly want? Just like how I can set up my life the way I want it, I can have a woman who fits my needs.

The world you desire can be won.

🌎

But the thought of starting over can be grueling. That's just the human condition. I love that I'm feeling these feelings, but I hate that I'm feeling them again. I've been here before, with I girl I loved before. It's not a great feeling. But it's a lot of feelings at once. I'm glad to be able to feel that again. I think it's the motivation I needed. It's the fire I needed lit under my ass. I'll be careful not to wallow in this, so that's why I'm talking it out now.

One day I'm not going to be the man that I was before. And it pains me to think of the day when I see you but it doesn't feel the same. I think it already doesn't feel the same.

I'd really like to know why we know each other, and what will happen next.

But the one thing I know for certain... these feelings are motivation. If I keep following the goals I've written, everything will be okay. It's all on me.

This is @op top 5 threads

Hes just getting started tho ladies and gentlemen

Review: Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter

Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter (1999)

It's 1999. Bring in the turn of the century. Jay-Z's fourth album, Life and Time of S. Carter, released on December 28th, 1999, just a few days before Y2K.

One thing I love about this album is the cover. It's big, big energy (shoutout Latto). It feels like the coming of the 2000's. It's feels like Jay-Z is coming into another level even still.

You see Jay's style transform from the mobster in the suits to now a little more relaxed as he stretches his influence across New York City with his Rocawear clothing brand.

The cross is a hard joint, too.

Let's get into the review.

Vol. 3. The Life and Times of Shawn Carter.

🎵 Track 11, "Big Pimpin'" feat. UGK

S dot Carter, you must try harder
Competition is... nada!!!"

S. Carter is a track I heard a long time ago, and it's fun to revisit it during this Jay-Z binge. Some of y'all may know I'm a Sports Section legend and OG, so I actually heard the track in a video celebrating football player Cris Carter and his many touchdown catches.

Love this bop, and I'm surprised it wasn't a single. This is a single that really balances out this album for me and captures the spirit of Volume 3.

Whenever I play this album, not only do I go to that song, but I also go to Big Pimpin, which I'll just say straight up is probably the best track on the album.

Bun B is lowkey one of my favorite rappers, and UGK was a group that never disappointed. They didn't here, either. It's good to hear Jay-Z experiment with a sound that can bounce up and down in Houston, ad yuo even have other tracks where you see the first appearances of Timbaland, and so moves like that is what really give this album a big feel.

I mentioned this in the thread, but listening to Vol. 3 really lead me to harken back to Vol. 1 and appreciate more where that album stood now that we've experienced more of the path Jay-Z traveled down. It's interesting to me that there was such a stark contrast there.

Back to the album. Some other songs I really bounced to (this is a really "bounceable" album) was Pop 4 Roc which features Memphis Bleek and a cast of others.

Let me say just one thing about these early Jay-Z tracks: Memphis Bleek is the man in all of his pairings with Jay-Z. When I really started listening to music, it was with Kanye in 2004 and 2005, so Memphis Bleek wasn't rapping as much by the time I started listening to hip-hop. I always knew he was Jay-Z's partna, but I didn't how good their collaborations were. Every track he's on in these first four albums, he has fye verses, lines, and concepts. Y'all know how I much I love the Coming of Age series from Reasonable Doubt and Vol. 2, and Pop 4 Roc is another one in which you just really appreciate his presence. I have to show love to both Jay and Bleek because this is an underrated duo for sure.

Nymp and Is That Yo B**** are also solid tracks. Is That Yo B**** is a pretty good concept and Timbaland does well on the beat. That's a pretty tough song that makes you ask tough questions!

Finally, let's look at Anything, a medley with 3 tracks. When I first heard it, I was definitely f***ing with the first song. There's a moment of silence that comes after the first song of the set, and it does really well. After that, you hear a couple more Jay-Z songs, but as good or decent as the tracks were, it feels like the track as a whole loses some points due to the lengths. Not always fully replayable, y'no?

I'll also say that the first half of the album did not resonate with me the way the back half did. I don't have any downloads on the album until Track 8, S. Carter, but then I download tracks 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16. So I have to take points from the album from that.

On my first few listens, I don't think this album had as many highs as his previous three efforts. Big Pimpin is a pretty high tier track when evaluating what we've heard so far, Is That Yo B**** is nice, and then you have S. Carter, but like I said before, listening to this album really made me... go back to the previous albums. In the future, there might be an album that makes me revisit this one, but as of right now I'm excited to move onto The Dynasty: Roc La Familia and move towards his premium work in The Blueprint, The Black Album, and soon Kingdom Come.

Onto the next. Let's get it. I'm looking forward to doing a re-rank after the next album review.

ALBUM RANKING: 7.5/10

Tito's Track Rankings:

1. Big Pimpin' feat. UGK
2. S. Carter feat. Amil
3. Is That Yo B****
4. Nymp
5. Anything

• 8 of 16 tracks downloaded

I'll start listening to The Dynasty this week.

so ghetto is a dope track

Alright fellas. Let's get back on schedule.

Expect the review this week, and we'll also be doing a Re-Ranking of the previous albums.

Along with the Re-Rank Special will be the following:

• My favorite Jay-Z lines so far
• A bonus Jay-Z Playlist
• Favorite Album ranking

And an anecdote about my Jay-Z-ification since I began this project. I definitely feel more of a boss mentality

Two of my favorite songs from The Dynasty are 1-900-HUSTLER and Soon You'll Understand.

The back end of the album have some really deep cuts from Jay-Z. I hadn't heard but a couple tracks from The Dynasty before, so this was a refreshing listen.

I’m heartbroken again, this time by the same girl as before.

It's a small heartbreak, this time the one when you know it's certainly over for real.

Sigh. I was surprised to come to know how much I truly loved this girl. This time we spent was so spectacular and meaningful and personal for me... in the end I learned so much about myself as well as many other things.

Kristen.... my love for you is vast and deep. In another life, things are so much different between us.

Kristen, you are known to me as,

The 2nd most important love of my life.
Who changed me, and was a gift from God Himself.
The one who taught me about Honesty.
The Aries, fiery like a star,
The one who was heartbroken by her ex.

Love is so powerful,
Even when it's unrequited, it just is.

I love feeling these feelings. Every time I think about you, I cry like a little boy. Your face is so beautiful, that looking at you is like looking into a galaxy itself.

You inspired me, to be an astronomer. To want to see and travel past the stars.

I'll always love you, Kristen. I don't just say that to anyone. I just wanted to share this love with you, and not experience it Alone.

If you want to be like Hov you have to stab someone first

Every man needs to go through this phase, you’re on your way son❤️

Bro wrote the most beautiful thing i've ever seen over a girl called Kristen on KTT2

wild times

Review: The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)

The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)

This album released on January 1st, 2000.
Did you know that was Ice Spice's birthday?

This is a nice collab album, and as it progresses, it gets more personal with Jay as he takes us in his mind in some of his most introspective songs.

It took me a few listens to really get my groove with this album, and after I gave myself some time to clear my Jay-Z palate, this one really started to resonate with me.

🎵 Track 5, "This Can't Be Life'" feat. Beanie Sigel and Scarface

I'll be clear: three my favorite songs on here are 1-900-HUSTLER, Where Have You Been and Soon You'll Understand.

This is a collab album, but Jay-Z really takes it home towards the end of this project.

We see some faces on this album that aren't a part of Roc-a-fella... R. Kelly singing about how he's guilty until proven innocent, and a little bit of Pharrell on here as well as Snoop Dogg.

In that way, the album reminds me of Kanye's Cruel Summer with some of the features.

Speaking of Kanye, did you know that this is the album he was mentioning on his song Last Call (2005)?

"Yo you heard the track I did, man This Can't Be Life".

Historic! It was cool hearing This Can't Be Life finally and you can tell it's straight from Kanye. The sample by David Ruffin is very somber and you'll surprised at how many introspective tracks there are on this album.

I'm not sure if these are Jay-Z staples, but a few tracks that always seem to play when I hit this album on shuffle are Get Your Mind Right with Snoop as well as You, Me, Him and Her. They're decent tracks.

I think the songs that have the non-Rocafella features are cool tracks to listen to for the sake of the album, but on this project, Jay-Z and the music shine when it's Roc-a-fella. Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel have a few tracks on here as well, and as usual their features are on point.

I'll admit, this album has a dated sound. It sounds like the onset of the 2000's to me, with some of the beats reminding me of stuff I'd see in Def Jam movies and media back then.

This album is cool. It's not the wildest Jay-Z album we've heard... I want to give it between a 7.5 and an 8--I do think it's better than Vol. 3... The Life and Times of S. Carter, but overall I'd probably rank it as the fourth best album we've heard so far. It's just a collab album so it feels more like a pit stop to me than a full project, but I did enjoy spending time with this album. Honestly, I can probably hold out for another week still spinning this record, but I wanted to go ahead and not only pay homage to his earlier work with the Re-Rank, but I wanted to close out this album and move this project forward. Perhaps in the future we'll re-rank this, but for now, let's assume we've gotten what we could out of this album.

ALBUM RANKING: 8/10

Tito's Track Rankings:

1. 1-900-Hustler feat. Beanie Sigel & Memphis Bleek
2. Where Have You Been feat. Beanie Sigel
3. This Can't Be Life feat. Scarface
4. Soon You'll Understand
5. Guilty Until Proven Innocent feat. R. Kelly

• 11 of 16 tracks downloaded

This Can’t Be Life one of the best songs ever made

I'm sayin tho

This reads like Connell's emails to Marianne in Normal People

Hey, I really appreciate you all following my story so far. This is my art. Over the last year I've gained something so special that I can't really share this with everybody, but thankfully KTT is one of those places where I am able to journal my thoughts in a space where it can be appreciated.

This project has been really fun. I rock my pea coat and signature A cap around Atlanta, feeling like Reasonable Doubt and the cover of American Gangster.

People notice the difference. I notice how I think differently. I've become a bit of a better person and I'm attracting good things to me. Sometimes it feels like I'm in a gangster movie all the time, and I've been starting to manifest my Main Character energy.

In the end, my favorite songs from Part 1 turned out to be:

• A Million and One Questions
• Feelin' It
• Reservoir Dogs

These were the songs I kept going back to no matter what, sometimes holding up entire album reviews by themselves.

This has been a fun time and I think I've gained enough to move to the next level. So I hope y'all continue to stick with me until the end of the project.

🪴

My story with Kristen is over. This project has been a great way to document my feelings and allowing myself to progress.

Reading my thoughts from a month ago or even more makes me understand the depth and reality of what I’m experiencing.

As I close the story on Kristen, a girl whom I truly loved, not only on this thread but even in my real life… I want to talk more about the other areas of my life, and give more thoughts on my development and understanding, now that the time of processing emotions is about to close. I really want to start putting my discipline and feelings to action.

My Life and Times. The Blueprint.

🌌

CREDITS

A lot of speculation/
On the monies I've made, honeys I've slayed/
How is he for real? Is that nigga really paid?/
Hustlers I've met or, dealt with direct/
Is it true he stayed in beef and slept with a TEC?/
What's the position you hold?/
Can you really match a triple platinum artist buck by buck/
But only a single goin' gold?/
If Roc-A-Fella should fold, and you're left out in the cold/
Is it back to charging motherfuckers 11 for an O?/
For the millionth time, asking me questions/
Like Wendy Williams, harassing me/
Then get upset when I catch feelings/
Can I get a minute to breathe? And in that minute you leave/
While I'm looking at my Rol' ice spinning on my sleeve/
Ugh, nice watch, do you really have a spot?/
Like you said in Friend or Foe and if so, what block?/
What you doin in L.A., with Filipinos and Eses?/
Latinos and Chevys, down by Pico with Frederico/
I'll answer all your questions but then y'all got to go/
Now the question I ask you is, How bad you wanna know?/

BLAOW!

A Million.

Motherfuckers can't rhyme no more, 'bout crime no more/
'Til I'm no more, 'cause I'm so raw/
My flow expose holes that they find in yours/
Wasn't for me, niggas still be dying for w****s/
But I hate when a nigga sit back, admiring yours/
Young blood, you better get that, we frying because/
Niggas don't want to be confined to riding the iron horse/
And don't listen to the rappers yo, they dying to floss/
I used to be O.T., applyin' the force/
Shoot up the whole block, then the iron I toss/
Come back with the clique playing Diana Ross/
I'm the boss and this is how it's gon' be/
Burnt the turnpike, wild miles on the V/
I got mouths to feed 'til they put flowers on me/
And kiss my cold cheek, chicks crying like I was Cochise/
Tombstone read, "He was holdin' no leaks"/
Started from the crack game and then so sweet/
Freaked it to the rap game, Jigga the O.G/
On MTV, telling 'em how I sold D/
And used to bag work up out of apartment 4-B/
Me and my homie, started out co-d's/
Picked the mailbox lock 'cause I ain't have no key/
Had the cable with the anchor when Jaz made 'Sophie'/
Then I went low key, but now I'm back, it's on
Motherfuckers!

END OF PART 1

mental disorder.

Twitter review by Justin L. Hunte:

Viewer Mail by @RedEyeJedi