Take Care

I mean, 4 me...

Ok first, let me start off by saying that the production was very predictable (outside of Look What You've Done). It was no surprise that it was slow paced and monotone...low key depressing. Yes the creativity of the production did create a lighter mood for the album than Thank Me Later, but that's not saying a lot. However, it still didn't give me enough tempo, and or emotional dynamics. Like I said, the album Cole World: the Sideline Story (http://imean4me.blogspot.com/2011/11/cole-world-sideline-story.html) gave a perfect blend of fast, slow, happy, sad production. Take Care was more "sad, sad, kind of sad, I sound happy but I'm actually sad, I sound sad but I'm really happy, then sad again" type of production.

The sad part is actually that the production accurately portrayed the subject matter. I've been saying for a long time that Drake needs a good relationship. I want him to make happier music. For me, he's who I think of to listen to if things between me and my girl aren't really vibin. I suppose it's a good thing that the production doesn't clash with what he's singing about though. And personally I don't like his singing that much. I'm not sayin' that It's bad, BUT I just get tired of hearing the same ol' thing. Plus he's not that great of a singer anyway. I mean his singin', and depressing stuff is ok sometimes, just not all or even most of the time...for me. I like Drizzy Drake or the rapping Drake better than Heartbreak Drake...unless he's trying to be a thug. He might be, but it's just hard to believe haha. He doesn't give off that type of vibe. But who knows, he might not be a killer, but don't push em..

Having said all of that, the album is good. It's not great, but it is better than his first album and it is better than the other albums that have come out this year besides Watch The Throne & Cole World: the Sideline Story. I wasn't expecting too much from the album, and what I expected was fulfilled. It's still good though. I can't say the production was the most creative I've heard. Can't say the lyrical content was the best. What I can say is that he makes songs that you can connect to. And the songs you can't really connect to personally, you just like...sometimes. Don't really know how to explain it, but his music has this appeal to it. Even though you might get tired of it, don't like his singing, or annoyed by the fake thuggery, you still find yourself listening to it. There's a certain honesty that he put's into his music. He seemingly gets extremely personal about his real life. Whether it's true or not, it comes off as real. So if he's not telling the truth, he's a good liar.

So overall, I'd give the album a 7.8/10. As of right now, my personal opinion, and from the opinion from a couple other people I know, the best song on the album is Look What You've Done. Just listen to it and then watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5F5xP6cwRg.

I will say this though... I usually don't get leaked albums unless I wasn't planning on buying the album anyway. I was on the fence about getting this album because his first one disappointed me. When I found out it leaked, I got it so I could determine if I should buy it. Unless the artist proved to me with their previous albums that I should go and buy their next one, I won't without a recommendation from someone who's musical preference is close to mine OR I preview or hear the album and feel like it'll be at least an 8...that being said, most people either loved or hated the album. If you are a Drake fan, you should definately go and BUY the album. If you don't like Drake, don't get the album. If you're one of those on the fence Drake fans where you know he's good but sometimes you just don't like his songs, then I feel like you should listen to it from one of your friends' ipods, and if you like it, go and get it. Simple as that.

PS....it's still Watch The Throne >>>>>>>>> Everything else

Cole World: The Sideline Story

I mean for me...

J. Cole's debut album "Cole World: The Sideline Story" is the second best Hip-Hop album of 2011 (and there haven't been a lot of HIP-HOP albums put out lately...some urban/rap albums, but not Hip-Hop). The best album of course was Watch The Throne.

Listening to the album, you would never know that this was Cole's debut album. I don't know to explain it, but newer rappers sometimes sound bright-eyed and excited when they rap. It's like they're trying too hard to sound good. For example, listen to DJ Unk's Walk It Out Remix. When Unk started rapping, you could tell that he was happy and excited about the success of the song (which isn't a bad thing), but when Andre 3000 spit his verse, it sounded like we was just chillin' and vibin' out cause it's nothin' to him. A lot of veteran rappers have that, "I've been doin' this for a minute so what I gotta prove? I can just relax on the track" type sound when they rap. You notice it more when they're featured on a new artists' song, which contrasts the rookie rapper's over zealous flow.

I said all of that just to say that J. Cole sounds almost like a veteran rapper. The choices he made for his album showed a different level of maturity than most new rappers. And I mean new as in having only one album.

One decision he made was to only have 4 features on the album. Generally, rappers like to have a lot of guest features on their album. Depending on the artist, it's to add desire for the record because of who's on the album, or because the artist isn't good enough to do an entire song or album themselves...at least that's how I feel. On the other side of things, sometimes newer artists can't get a lot of features either because they can't afford the guests or they're not drawing enough credibility to their work for another artist to get on.

However in this case, J. Cole had a big enough following to get "big name" features. And I wouldn't be surprised if he could afford a couple artists here or there, especially through the label. But he chose not to. Cole did the album basically himself. Every verse on the album was spat by him except the verse by Jay-Z on Mr. Nice Watch & Drake on In The Morning. We first heard In The Morning on Cole's award winning mixtape Friday Night Lights. It was easily the most popular song on the mixtape with the masses so there's no surprise that it made it to the album. And the verse by Jay was almost a given. I mean Jay-Z is J. Cole's boss, mentor, and he's just Jay-Z. I mean NOBODY in their right mind turns down a Jay-Z verse. I'm just sayin', whether you ask Jay or especially if the offers, you don't turn it down. So I feel like those two verse features were totally acceptable, weren't overkill, and didn't take away from his talent. He also featured Trey Songz on the hook of his lead single Can't Get Enough. I feel like this was a smart choice because he needed a radio single that wouldn't detract from his style of music and Trey Songz has enough mainstream appeal to draw more fans in without being too cliche or seeming desperate by bringing someone in like a Chris Brown or Justin Beiber. The only other feature was Missy Elliot on his song Nobody's Perfect. She sang the hook perfectly. Their chemistry was perfect. It's true that Nobody's Perfect, but that song almost is.

Another genius decision that J. Cole made, and possibly the best choice he made was to basically produce the album himself, with No I.D. It just gives the album a connected and congealed feel. It made every song seem together while still being it's own song. The sign of a great, or classic album is the ability to listen to the album straight through without skipping any songs. You can do that with this album. Sometimes using only one or two producers can hinder the album by giving it a monotone feel (Thank Me Later). At the same time, using a different producer for every other song makes the album disjointed. It might give you seven or eight good songs, but it also can give you a cluttered album. The combination of J. Cole & No I.D. is just awesome. Although production isn't as epic or complex as Watch the Throne's, it gives a more classic hip-hop type vibe. They did an excellent job of giving each song it's own identity without giving any polar opposite dynamics in the beats like other albums do sometimes.

And just in case you didn't know, J. Cole is a lyrical BEAST! Subject matter, he's comparable to Nas. Wordplay, he's comparable to Lupe Fiasco. This guy is just good. I honestly don't know how to describe or explain to you that Cole is gonna be a problem for these other rappers in a couple years. I've been tryin' to tell people he's like the LeBron James of the rap game because of the potential that he has. He possibly could be mentioned with the greats in the future if he progresses.

That's basically all I can say right now about the album. I know the review is kind of late...but better late than never. The album is awesome. Easily a 4/5...to me.

Watch The Throne

I mean, for me...

Watch The Throne, the collaborative album by Jay-Z & Kanye West, is the best album of 2011. No I have not listened to every album that came out this year. No the year isn't over with. And honestly, it doesn't matter! If you want me to be politically correct, Watch The Throne is the best Hip-Hop album that I've personally listened to this year. Better?

But if you have not bought or at least listened to this album, you are truly missing out.

If you like catchy hooks, check out No Church in the Wild, Lift Off, or Made in America

If you like samples or laid back, throwback-type beats, listen to New Day, Primetime, or The Joy

If you like punch-line heavy, bragadocious lyrics you gotta hear N*ggas In Paris, Otis, Gotta Have It, H.A.M., Illest ______ Alive & Who Gon Stop Me (Jay-Z went INNN on this one)

Ladies, they give you props on That's My...."Chick"

If you are into lyrical content and subject matter, you have songs like Why I Love You, Welcome to the Jungle, & Murder to Excellence to listen to.

And really, some of the songs can fit into multiple categories.

This album, has something for everyone. From the club goer, to the lyrical fiend, or to the ones that say "I just like good music", this album has at least one song for you. But I would be surprised if you only liked one song.

To be fair, when I first listened to the entire album, I was underwhelmed. Few songs stuck out from the beginning as undeniable smashes. However, some songs took a while to get acclimated to. For example, I still can't really get into New Day like I want to. The lyrics and message are good, but the beat is not my favorite. But when it comes down to it, I'm one of those lyrical fiends ha ha. But some of you may not be that, and that's ok. All I can tell you is that this album as a whole, is amazing. Production is out of this world. The sounds, the way they use the sounds, the way they rap over the sounds is just phenomenal. No beat sounds like the other. No song sounds like another song. Yes, comparisons have been made about Lift Off being similar to All of The Lights production-wise. What they fail to realize is that the two songs do not sound the same, it's just the fact that both songs sound EPIC that make people who just hear the music, and not listen, think that they are more similar than they are. And if you listen to Lift Off entirely, you hear that there is a total switch in sound and beat towards the end...genius! I really don't know what else to say. Lyrics are amazing! The metaphors, the symbolism, the imagery, the story telling, the truth behind these lyrics are just awesome.

"I made 'Jesus Walks' I'm never goin' to Hell. Couture level flow is never goin' on sale. Luxury rap, the Hermes of verses. Sophisticated ignorance, write my curses in cursive" - Kanye West, Otis

"At 42 be better than 24, I carried the 4-5, mastered 48 laws. Still wearin' my 23's they can't f**k with the boy. As far as them 16's, I'm 23 of it all." - Jay-Z, Primetime

Like really?? Who comes up with lines like that? Albums like this are just unfair. It's too much talent. Too much skill. Too much creativity. And the crazy part about it, in an interview Jay-Z said that they had to cut some songs out and water some songs down because he didn't want to ruin anything they did afterwards! ha ha. In other words, this isn't their best work. << That's kind of scary... people shouldn't be that good ha ha.

But anyway, to rap (pun intended) it up, Watch the Throne is the best album since My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (Kanye West), and one of the best albums of all-time if you ask me [of albums that I've heard -__-]. It's a definite buy. At least listen to the entire album objectively the whole way through twice before you totally disagree.

..oh, and I'm ready for J. Cole's debut album next week. It should be good too!

My Top5 Favorite Rappers are...

So I havn't done this in a while, but I guess I'll jump right into it.


First let me say that this list is of who I feel are my Top5 >>FAVORITE<< rappers. Meaning that they might not be the best to ever do it in your opinion, but these are just who I like.


I mean, for me...

in at number 5 is.....a TIE between newcomers Big Sean & J. Cole.
To be honest, I haven't followed their careers too long right, but from what I've heard they are better than a lot of established artists. They have their swagg. They have lyricism and humor. They have some popularity. They have respect from big-time artists already. These two guys have come in and have set the game on fire. It may not be the most recognized fire, yet, but I have a feeling that these guys along with a couple others have the potential be the future of Hip-Hop. With Big Sean you have someone to kind of fill the party, club, yet lyrical and punch-line oriented rapper (ex: Lil Wayne). Then with J. Cole you get a more conscientious rapper. Deeper subject matter and more complex lyrics (ex: Nas). But we'll see what happens once their first albums drop. Big Sean's should dropping in a couple of weeks and J. Cole's in a month or so.

Number 4....Lil Wayne. So if you know me it might seem like I "hate" on Lil Wayne a lot, but that's just because nobody else does! ha. I mean, sometimes I feel like people exxaggerate his skills >>SOMETIMES<< but it's too much hype around him (ex: He's the best rapper alive or G.O.A.T.) That being said...I do feel and I do say that he's the best PUNCH-LINE rapper alive. Besides that I honestly don't know what else to say about Wayne. Yall know him, and most probably feel that he his the best or something. He's good, maybe even great, but just not the greatest. But I do realize his talent, that's why he's number 4.




Number 3...Lupe Fiasco. I mean, you should've seen this comin'. I did an entire blog about him. There's really nothing else I can say that I didn't already say in the Lupe blog. He's a beast lyrically. Honestly I really feel like there MAY be only two or three better...maybe. If you really listen to how he says what he says, it's just unreal. And it's not even when he's just telling a story, or when he's talking about something of substance. Even when he's just bragging about himself, he just does it better haha. If you listen to his mixtape Enemy of the State, the subject matter isn't as serious as his albums' content. It's more light, and yet still deep if that makes sense. I will say this though, his Lasers album disappointed me, but I know there were other people and issues involved that kind of changed what he planned and it was noticed. But 2/3 of his albums have been awesome!



Number 2....Jay-Z. I mean this is self explanatory. It's Jay-Z. Jigga Man. HOV. Cmon now. I don't feel like there's a real need to really explain why I like him. He's just good. Really REALLY good at this whole being a rapper and rapping thing. Lyrically he's one of the best all time. Diverse in subject matter. One minute he's telling a story about the rise and fall of a drug dealer (Fallin') Another minute he's talking about gettin with a girl (Excuse Me Miss). Then he's talking about the harsh streets and realities of the ghetto (D'Evils) or the greatness of the city he calls home (Empire State of Mind). I mean there's really nothing he hasn't touched on either on his own songs or with a verse as a featured artist. I mean the list goes on and on, but I'll get more detailed when I talk about the greatest rappers.




And number 1....Kanye West. Why is he my favorite rapper? Well he first came on the scene with Twista and Jamie Foxx on Slow Jamz. Had one of the most quotable and notable hip-hop lines of all-time with "Gotta light skinned friend look like Michael Jackson. Gotta dark skinned friend look like Michael Jackson." That line made me want to know who he was. Then he came out with hit, after hit, after hit, after hit. I was new to the whole hip-hop thing at first so I really didn't go out and buy albums when College Dropout came out, but by the time Late Registration came out, I was already at the store gettin' it. Gold Digger was the song that removed Nelly from being #1 on my list back in '05. And once I listened to the entire Late Registration album, it was official. The beats he does are different than most rapper's beats. He actually talks about real things in his songs. He has a wide range in subject matter. His lyrics can be funny, haunting, can cause thought and reflection, and some are just good punch-lines. He's so diverse in what he does and what he can do. His production and musicality is pretty much unmatched by any other rapper. The production on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was just so indescribably good and different. I love music, and you can tell by the music he makes that he does as well. His lyrics have gotten better with every album. I mean, I really don't know what else to say. He's my favorite rapper, and I feel like he's one of the best dead or alive...but we'll get to the Top5 Greatest list later...



So those are my Top5 FAVORITE rappers: 5. Big Sean & J. Cole 4. Lil Wayne 3. Lupe Fiasco 2. Jay-Z and 1. Kanye West