Is it just me, or is it that Jay Z is quickly becoming overrated. Don't get me wrong, some of his early stuff was great, and I even shelled out a lot of dough to see him in concert years ago, but the constant praise that Jay Z gets from most of the hip hop circles is amazing.
..oh, and don't get me started on Kanye West..
Who's with me?
Kanye is very, very overrated.
Jay-Z is one of my all time favs, but he has dropped off a lot IMO over the past few years. This is the way I see it;
The Pinnacle
Reasonable Doubt (1996) - Easily a top 5 rap album for me. Still fresh 10 years later.
Better Than Most
The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)
The Blueprint (2001)
Unplugged (2001)
Collision Course w/ Linkin Park(2004)
Just OK
In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (1997)
Streets is Watching (1998)
Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life (1998)
Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter (1999)
Avoid
The Best of Both Worlds (R. Kelly) (2002)
The Black Album (2003) - My absolute least favorite album. How are you going to make an album so bad, that Dangermouse remixed it with Beatles tracks and made it one of the better albums in recent memory?
Havent heard/Incomplete
The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse (2002)
Unfinished Business w/ R Kelly (2004)
Kingdom Come (2006)
I don't know about overrated dc. He's gotten a lil lazy yes, but hands down he is still the best commercial artist in the game. His worst flows smoke most mc's best.
You need to dig up a mp3 out there Philly called "I'm a Biter". They basically take nearly every lyrical sample that Jay-Z has lifted and plays the original and then his. It is laughable how many of "his lyrics" arent his.
