The Black Album
JAY-Z
2003
Announced as his retirement album– to be laid out like a final concert– a hip hop G.O.A.T. actually stumbles upon the next life of his extensive discography.
Mafioso/Rap Rock/Art Deco Hip Hop
BY DA’SHAN “NIGHTSHAWN101” SMITH
MARCH 24, 2024
On November 16, 2003 – just two days after JAY-Z released his eighth studio LP, The Black Album – ‘The New York Times’ published “Superstardom Is Boring: Jay-Z Quits (Again).” As the opening line of the editorial, the author, Touré, wrote “JAY-Z is bored with hip-hop.” While recording the finishing touches of the album, the rapper told Touré, “There'll be no more full-length Jay-Z albums. I might do a soundtrack in a year or two. Maybe a collaboration. But only after a year. I want to let it alone for at least a year.” The album had been marketed as a retirement statement.
JAY-Z’s reasoning for wanting to retire– according to that profile– was “the game ain’t hot.” In retrospect, that had been quite an ironic statement. 50 Cent dropped Get Rich or Die Tryin’ at the beginning of 2003– with two of its singles going No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. “In Da Club” even received a remix from JAY’s “Bonnie,” Beyoncé– with the original ending up as the No. 1 song on Billboard's year-end rap songs and Hot 100 chart. JAY himself had scored a No. 1 by being the featured artist on “Crazy In Love,” as the fusion of R&B with hip hop grew further in the second wind of hip hop soul’s commercial dominance. Aside from 50 Cent seemingly having the King of New York crown, other rappers had released meaningful projects that reshifted their careers– ranging from Fabolous (who had also found the sweet spot of hip hop soul’s appeal); T.I. (who predicted the rise of Trap Muzik a decade in advance); and Lil’ Kim (who had arguably retained her Queen of New York and hip hop crown.)
But according to how he was profiled, “a lack of competition ha[d] affected his creative process and made it hard for him to be as mentally engaged as he was in the past.” 2003 signaled that a changing of guard was starting to take place for hip hop’s sound and image. The spaces that JAY-Z once dominated were ceasing to exist. Mafioso Rap– as pioneered by the likes of The Notorious B.I.G. and JAY’s own 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt – had faded away primarily because the industry wanted to evolve from the blatant violent imagery that led to many assassinations and unnecessary beefs. Bling Bling Rap as expressed on “Big Pimpin’” from 1999’s Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter represented a sense of misogyny and immaturity that many rappers were growing out of since they were starting to transition into moguls that wanted to appeal to broader audiences outside the culture, while being taken seriously in the boardrooms.
In his previous studio album, The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse , JAY-Z’s transition started to become a bit more evident. It contained elements of those previously mentioned rap eras, but also delved more into his vulnerabilities. Especially because it had seemed as if he had in fact lost his first civil war: a beef against Nas. On that album, he played more with the sonics of big band music– as evident on “Hovi Baby.” With Bey by his side during her solo rise, JAY tried transitioning more into a ladies’ man who had cleaned up his “Big Pimpin’” ways. Long gone were the seductive sleaze of the Neptunes-produced “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)” and “Frontin’,” but rather the sleekness of the icy “Excuse Me Miss.” But The Blueprint 2 seemed a bit lost according to critics. It had shown that JAY-Z was conflicted about where he wanted to be. The Black Album on the other hand confirmed that JAY-Z stepped into a new chapter of manhood.
Starting out with “Interlude,” The Black Album runs for the length of 55 minutes and 23 seconds. Produced by Just Blaze, “Interlude” features a spacey instrumental of a loungey drum-driven beat intercepted by the sound of an Atari video game. Just Blaze altered his voice for the monologue– giving the song a soulful afrofuturistic appeal of the ‘70s. At one point he mentions, “I learned that all things must come to an end.” And at another point he mentions “legacy.” It’s clear to see that this would be JAY-Z’s most conceptual project up to that point.
“December 4” marks the birthday of JAY-Z. It quickly follows up the “Interlude” with blaring horns and this atmospheric Brooklyn superhero sound. His mom, Gloria Carter, announces his birth with a soulful sample of the 1974 Chi-Lite’s “That’s How Long.” Noticeably, The Chi-Lites would be sampled on Bey’s “Crazy In Love” – indicating that JAY-Z was going for the dynasty type of feel he had been preaching at the start of the 2000’s. “They say ‘they never really miss you until you dead or you gone’,” raps the MC, before finishing the bar “So on that note, I’m leavin’ after this song.” He goes into being conceived by Ms. Carter and his deadbeat father, Adnis Reeves (“was a kid torn apart once his pop disappeared). As he is chronicling his career, he unpacks the hubris and ambition he acquired– with his mom giving anecdotes on their relationship through that.
“What More Can I Say” and “Encore” both feature the roars of crowds cheering him on. Through soulful production, he continues to brag about his skills as a lyricist and why he feels he’s still at the top of the game he’s eventually going to leave. On “What More Can I Say,” he addresses a rumor that plagued his career during the Nas beef: “I’m not a biter, I’m a writer for myself and others.” That’s followed by a salute to The Notorious B.I.G. – the main legend that people accused him of stealing his style from. He claims it’s his responsibility to represent his borough of Brooklyn and to pay homage to rap’s greats as he’s “New York’s ambassador, Prime Minister.” This is where we start to understand JAY-Z as a mogul: “The soul of a hustler, I really ran the street/A CEO's mind, that marketin' plan was me.” On “Encore,” the intensity increases with the production of Kanye West. “I came I saw I conquered/From record sales to sold out concerts,” he slyly gloats. During the song’s interlude, an announcer encourages the crowd to chant “Hova” and screams “they love you Jigga!” to excess. To start out the final verse, he ties into the retirement theme: “so this here is the victory lap.”
As its intent and purposes, The Black Album plays as a final concert. That would be fitting since the album was marketed as a “retirement tour.” “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” leaned into the appeal of rock meeting rap– giving both genres a new life in the commercial sphere. “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” became an anthem and signature for JAY-Z, as he’s telling the crowd “ladies is pimps too.” The “brush your shoulder off” dance resonated, and has become one of the more integral parts of hip hop culture (see: Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime performance; between the transition of “Bitch Better Have My Money” and “Where Have You Been”.)
“99 Problems” also became a signature for its hardrock appeal. Rick Rubin came up with the popular phrase “If you’re having girl problems, I feel bad for you son/I got 99 Problems but a b!tch ain’t one.” The song avidly addresses rap critics as well as discusses the implications of the hip hop police monitoring his actions. It’s the rebellion that led back to the classic days of more politically charged rap that transpired in the ‘80s. It also rebirthed the beginning days of rap slowly permeating MTV culture– tying back into TRL mention on “Encore.” As a full circle moment, “Encore” received a nu-metal treatment in 2004, as JAY-Z and Linkin Park collabed on a mash-up of that song and the band’s “Numb.”
“Moment of Clarity” and “Lucifer” are both haunting, blending the ideations of Mafioso with horrorcore. In some ways, they both seem like the children of “Renegade,” the highly regarded deep cut that stood out on 2001’s The Blueprint . “Moment of Clarity” received production from Eminem– borrowing from his style more than anything else. “Music business hate me ‘cause the industry ain't make me,” states JAY before relishing in the fact that “Hustlers and boosters embrace me and the music I be making.” On “Lucifer,” he takes a page from the ready-to-die and repenting likes of 2Pac’s “Hail Mary,” declaring “I’m from the murder capital, where we murder for capital.”
What JAY-Z also accomplishes on The Black Album is establish the genre that shall be coined as Art Deco Hip Hop. Parts of the LP’s sonics play in the geometrical form of the architecture that became famous in the early 20th century. Art Deco as a movement had been based on modern luxury, and JAY-Z was fully transitioning from jerseys and baggy jeans into button downs and tuxes. On “Threat,” he accesses the Mafioso territory that started his career but with the stylings of a grand piano. “You lookin at the Black Warren Buffett” is a modernized form of hip hop embracing a business mogul who came from the school of John D. Rockefeller, an oil tycoon that lived to see his Jr. son prosper during the art deco period. Later, JAY references “we Rat Pat n!ggas” with a name drop of Frank Sinatra, a prodigy who grew up during the Art Deco period.
“Change Clothes” also became a standout moment for Art Deco Hip Hop’s formative days. Produced by The Neptunes, it continued the mission of suave appeal the production duo had with JAY-Z. There are lyrical references to the luxurious Maybach Coupe and tailored high fashion suits. On the hook, Pharrell sings in falsetto– adding to the Sinatra like style of the genre. However the standout moment is the deep cut “Allure” which best embodies the Neptune vibe of delving into opulent production. Backed by the clapping of a gun salute, “Allure” allows for JAY-Z to reminisce about his drug dealing days and give thanks to how hip hop transitioned him into a new lifestyle.
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Related Tangents
What makes The Black Album a resounding project is how it functions in a circular motion. “Public Service Announcement (Interlude)” also plays on the sonics of soulful rock music. There is a piano that creeps up, as Just Blaze sampled a loop of “Seed of Love” by The Little Boy Blues from 1968. The song showcased how Easter Eggs were getting planted and then paid off at later moments. Whereas “Interlude” does not feature JAY-Z saying anything, “Public Service Announcement” enters with an arena styled bang, with the MC declaring “allow me to reintroduce myself, my name is HOV!” The final track is aptly titled, “My 1st Song” with an interpolation of a Biggie interview, and with JAY rapidly rapping like he did prior to his 1996 debut.
It’s almost as if The Black Album could be played in a reverse tracklist and still make sense. The beginning of the album sounds like a conclusion– maybe with Gloria Carter concluding with the birth of JAY-Z, the man who gave the final concert. While the ending is in fact a retracing of how the career started, going back to the point of where the concert happens.
“Lucifer” for its stellar production from Kanye West, its ties into ‘The Blueprint 1,’ and the addictive interpolation of “Chase The Devil” which is where the repetition of “lucifer” happens.
“Allure” for being the best track off the album and introducing a new side to where JAY-Z would progress in the future of his career.
“Encore” for its fast paced energy and the announcer of the concert that breaks the theme front and center.
Key Tracks
A long time ago, there was a question posed on Twitter about what age you had to be to understand your favorite JAY-Z album. Pondering my response, I always thought that The Blueprint 1 had been my favorite. But then in 2019 when I returned back to NYC to pursue music journalism once again, I realized it had been The Black Album . There is an internal code that is present on it, that’s hard to really explain without sounding crazy. Even without knowing the full story behind the album, it’s not hard to recognize its autobiographical nature and take it in as an inspiration.
The Black Album is undeniably a classic and the changing point of how we process JAY-Z’s legacy today. Full of hit singles that made their impact on rap, hip hop, and pop; but also deep cuts that stood the test of time. For an album that relies on different producers, it all feels cohesive because of how the tracklist is structured and JAY-Z’s fervent presence on each track. There wasn’t much else he could say on this album once it was done, but a new focus on business would have him coming back years later. Then after 2006’s Kingdom Come dropped, it felt like it would be a while since JAY-Z could live up to this classic. The Black Album should continue to be regarded as the opus of his career. A vital listen for fans of hip hop.