Jay-Z - Vol. 2... Hard Knock LifeReview #11|Post #16
Oh, I'm sorry, is my East coast bias showing?
I seem to be flipping around through the Jay-Z discography, though my reason for skipping In My Lifetime, Vol 1. is simply that I don't have the album. Since Reasonable Doubt is already reviewed, I might as well continue the Jay discog by going to the next album I have.
Shawn Carter's second album, In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, was criticized for being too commercial and marked towards the club. Jay, facing what could've been the end of his street credibility, learned from his mistakes and tried to make most of the album what made Reasonable Doubt so great.
Most.
Jay still wanted women to shake their asses to his song in the club. And as such, it was still more radio/club-friendly then Reasonable Doubt. But it was more for the street and for the hip hop head. So radio-friendly hits combined with songs for the street.
Was it a good combination?
1. Intro: Hand It Down (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by DJ Premier
DJ Premier's only contribution is a two minute intro. It features Memphis Bleek spitting. And, to be honest, he doesn't sound that bad. Just goes to show you how anyone can sound good over a DJ Premier beat.
2. Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)
Produced by The 45 King
You've heard this before, don't play that game. You know that it was Jigga's biggest charting single at that time. And should also know that this song still holds up today, despite being a little under eleven years old.
3. If I Should Die (feat. Da Ranjahz)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
Swizz's beat here sucks. And it gets annoying pretty quickly. And what the hell ever happened to Da Ranjahz? They sound decent here...
4. Ride or Die
Produced by Stevie J for The Hitmen
The only track produced by a member of The Hitmen. And with good reason. The beat is boring. The chorus sucks, too. Jay's lyrics get boring after a while.
5. N---a What, N---a Who (Originator 99) (feat. Big Jaz)
Produced by Timbaland
Back in 1989, Big Jaz had a song called "The Originators" which featured a young Jay-Z. Jaz was doing Jay a favor and giving him a chance to shine (in the same way Big L and Big Daddy Kane featured Jay on their albums). Well, now it's nearly 10 years later, and Jay's bigger than Jaz will ever be. And as a way of saying thanks, Jay allows Jaz to hop on the first Jay/Timbo collaboration. Jay even uses the quick flow he had on pre-Reasonable Doubt tracks. Both Jay and Jaz sound good, and have good chemistry with each other, too bad that nowadays, Jay is tossing in lame shots at Jaz on Ludacris tracks ("shout to Grandmaster Flash and the cash and even Jaz bum ass").
6. Money, Cash, Hoes (feat. DMX)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
Wow, you know a track is old when it was released back when DMX was relevant. At one point in time, he was a hot commodity, now he's too busy dressing up like cops and not understanding Barack Obama's name to release an album. Onto the song, once again, Swizz Beatz's beat annoys me. Primarily the keyboard thing that repeats itself. Jay and DMX sound good, though.
7. A Week Ago (feat. Too $hort)
Produced by J-Runnah
I'll never understand why MCs get other good MCs to appear on a track, and then just decide to make them do the hook. Hell, Too $hort only does half of the chorus. Was he really needed on the track? The song's good though. Jay's lyrics are on-point and J-Runnah's beat is decent enough to not annoy me.
8. Coming of Age (Da Sequel) (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
So to evoke feelings of Reasonable Doubt, Jay decides to make a sequel to the Clark Kent-produced "Coming of Age", which featured Memphis Bleek. Memphis comes back around spit on the sequel, and, as you presumably guessed, the original is much better. The two pass the mic back and forth in what is a good song... even if it's not better than the original.
9. Can I Get A... (feat. Amil & Ja Rule)
Produced by Irv Gotti & Lil' Rob
A top 20 charting single that could be called responsible for the fact Ja Rule was remotely popular. And as a result, I can't get behind this. Plus the fact that Irv & Rob's beat is really boring.
10. Paper Chase (feat. Foxy Brown)
Produced by Timbaland
This ain't no "Aint No N---a".
11. Reservoir Dogs (feat. The L.O.X., Beanie Sigel, & Sauce Money)
Produced by Erick Sermon
By this point, Sauce Money had decided to chase his dreams and quit the pizza delivery business to become an MC. However, he had to pay the rent, so he took up a job for delivery Chinese takeout. He got lucky again and delivered to the Roc-A-Fella studio and was given a guest verse. Beanie Sigel and The LOX are here, with Sigel providing his first verse as part of the Roc-A-Fella family. Jada provides the best verse out of D-Block, but Jay and Sauce have the best verses here. Oh, and Erick Sermon's on production.
12. It's Like That (feat. Kid Capri)
Produced by Kid Capri
Kid Capri's beat is simple and Jigga's lyrics are good. That combination makes this a pretty good track.
These are considered bonus tracks... I guess...
13. It's Alright (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by Damon Dash & Mahogany
This was originally on the Streets is Watching soundtrack. Bleek actually sounds pretty good on here. However, if I'm looking for good songs featuring Bleek on this album, I'd pick the intro every time.
14. Money Ain't a Thang (feat. Jermaine Dupri)
Produced by Jermaine Dupri
Originally from Jermaine's solo album Life in 1472. Doesn't sound too bad, but it doesn't too good, either. It's a meh track.
Conclusion: I suggest you hit up a hip-hop downloads blog and download this. It's a decent album, but I can't suggest you go out and spend your hard earned money on this, when there are more important things in the world. Like rehab for that nasty heroin habit of your's. That's be a good thing to spend it on...
Also By Jay-Z
Reasonable Doubt (June 25, 1996)
The Blueprint (September 11, 2001)
The Black Album (November 14, 2003)
Coming Soon
Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Slaughterhouse - Slaughterhouse
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
I seem to be flipping around through the Jay-Z discography, though my reason for skipping In My Lifetime, Vol 1. is simply that I don't have the album. Since Reasonable Doubt is already reviewed, I might as well continue the Jay discog by going to the next album I have.
Shawn Carter's second album, In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, was criticized for being too commercial and marked towards the club. Jay, facing what could've been the end of his street credibility, learned from his mistakes and tried to make most of the album what made Reasonable Doubt so great.
Most.
Jay still wanted women to shake their asses to his song in the club. And as such, it was still more radio/club-friendly then Reasonable Doubt. But it was more for the street and for the hip hop head. So radio-friendly hits combined with songs for the street.
Was it a good combination?
1. Intro: Hand It Down (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by DJ Premier
DJ Premier's only contribution is a two minute intro. It features Memphis Bleek spitting. And, to be honest, he doesn't sound that bad. Just goes to show you how anyone can sound good over a DJ Premier beat.
2. Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)
Produced by The 45 King
You've heard this before, don't play that game. You know that it was Jigga's biggest charting single at that time. And should also know that this song still holds up today, despite being a little under eleven years old.
3. If I Should Die (feat. Da Ranjahz)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
Swizz's beat here sucks. And it gets annoying pretty quickly. And what the hell ever happened to Da Ranjahz? They sound decent here...
4. Ride or Die
Produced by Stevie J for The Hitmen
The only track produced by a member of The Hitmen. And with good reason. The beat is boring. The chorus sucks, too. Jay's lyrics get boring after a while.
5. N---a What, N---a Who (Originator 99) (feat. Big Jaz)
Produced by Timbaland
Back in 1989, Big Jaz had a song called "The Originators" which featured a young Jay-Z. Jaz was doing Jay a favor and giving him a chance to shine (in the same way Big L and Big Daddy Kane featured Jay on their albums). Well, now it's nearly 10 years later, and Jay's bigger than Jaz will ever be. And as a way of saying thanks, Jay allows Jaz to hop on the first Jay/Timbo collaboration. Jay even uses the quick flow he had on pre-Reasonable Doubt tracks. Both Jay and Jaz sound good, and have good chemistry with each other, too bad that nowadays, Jay is tossing in lame shots at Jaz on Ludacris tracks ("shout to Grandmaster Flash and the cash and even Jaz bum ass").
6. Money, Cash, Hoes (feat. DMX)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
Wow, you know a track is old when it was released back when DMX was relevant. At one point in time, he was a hot commodity, now he's too busy dressing up like cops and not understanding Barack Obama's name to release an album. Onto the song, once again, Swizz Beatz's beat annoys me. Primarily the keyboard thing that repeats itself. Jay and DMX sound good, though.
7. A Week Ago (feat. Too $hort)
Produced by J-Runnah
I'll never understand why MCs get other good MCs to appear on a track, and then just decide to make them do the hook. Hell, Too $hort only does half of the chorus. Was he really needed on the track? The song's good though. Jay's lyrics are on-point and J-Runnah's beat is decent enough to not annoy me.
8. Coming of Age (Da Sequel) (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by Swizz Beatz
So to evoke feelings of Reasonable Doubt, Jay decides to make a sequel to the Clark Kent-produced "Coming of Age", which featured Memphis Bleek. Memphis comes back around spit on the sequel, and, as you presumably guessed, the original is much better. The two pass the mic back and forth in what is a good song... even if it's not better than the original.
9. Can I Get A... (feat. Amil & Ja Rule)
Produced by Irv Gotti & Lil' Rob
A top 20 charting single that could be called responsible for the fact Ja Rule was remotely popular. And as a result, I can't get behind this. Plus the fact that Irv & Rob's beat is really boring.
10. Paper Chase (feat. Foxy Brown)
Produced by Timbaland
This ain't no "Aint No N---a".
11. Reservoir Dogs (feat. The L.O.X., Beanie Sigel, & Sauce Money)
Produced by Erick Sermon
By this point, Sauce Money had decided to chase his dreams and quit the pizza delivery business to become an MC. However, he had to pay the rent, so he took up a job for delivery Chinese takeout. He got lucky again and delivered to the Roc-A-Fella studio and was given a guest verse. Beanie Sigel and The LOX are here, with Sigel providing his first verse as part of the Roc-A-Fella family. Jada provides the best verse out of D-Block, but Jay and Sauce have the best verses here. Oh, and Erick Sermon's on production.
12. It's Like That (feat. Kid Capri)
Produced by Kid Capri
Kid Capri's beat is simple and Jigga's lyrics are good. That combination makes this a pretty good track.
These are considered bonus tracks... I guess...
13. It's Alright (feat. Memphis Bleek)
Produced by Damon Dash & Mahogany
This was originally on the Streets is Watching soundtrack. Bleek actually sounds pretty good on here. However, if I'm looking for good songs featuring Bleek on this album, I'd pick the intro every time.
14. Money Ain't a Thang (feat. Jermaine Dupri)
Produced by Jermaine Dupri
Originally from Jermaine's solo album Life in 1472. Doesn't sound too bad, but it doesn't too good, either. It's a meh track.
Conclusion: I suggest you hit up a hip-hop downloads blog and download this. It's a decent album, but I can't suggest you go out and spend your hard earned money on this, when there are more important things in the world. Like rehab for that nasty heroin habit of your's. That's be a good thing to spend it on...
Also By Jay-Z
Reasonable Doubt (June 25, 1996)
The Blueprint (September 11, 2001)
The Black Album (November 14, 2003)
Coming Soon
Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Slaughterhouse - Slaughterhouse
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
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