Why I LOVE 4:44 – Jay-Z’s New Album

I’m just gonna put it out there…

I LOVE 4:44 because… it reminds me of a Beyoncé Album!!!

They say behind every great man, is a great woman.  Or is it beside the man???  How am I supposed to know where is she supposed to stand?  I don’t have no man.  But where ever she stands, this album proves it’s worth it to ‘listen to yo woman’ man…  because this album has Bey’s influence all over it.  From the varied beats, asking producers to provide music never heard before, to revamped sounds of a previous time.  To beats that are so progressive they just work.  To the use of dynamic melodies that give each song just the right amount of depth, not only to be heard, but to be listened to, interpreted, and understood.  To the various breaks throughout that allow for moments of reflection and direct communication with the listener, even if it’s just with one word.  Whatever it is, this album is special.  A fluid collection of 10 independent bits of liquid prose combined to tell a story: Jay-Z’s story…

The story of Jay-Z’s adult life.  A story that perfectly bookends Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z’s first studio album released almost 20 years ago.  If Reasonable Doubt is an album about a young man raised in the Marcy projects of Brooklyn, NY and all the trappings that came with that life.  Then 4:44 is the exact opposite…

4:44 is the story of a married father who has lived, loves, hurts, and has grown. It’s the story of a man who was fortunate to find success early in life doing something he loves, but wasn’t always so sure on how to handle maturity.  It’s the story of a man who has combined the tools of his youth with the teachings of adulthood, to morph into a well-rounded man with an unapologetic view of life, this society, and the future.  This album provides clarity and insight of what it means to be Jay-Z, the man, today.  It’s the next level of a man that has continuously, and most effectively, used words to paint pictures of audio stimuli as a means to communicate with his audience.

So, although I LOVE this album because it reminds me of a Beyoncé album, I KNOW that this album is all Jay-Z.  Because like my life with Bey, I have a history with Jay… and his career has always been a solo one.  That means… I know these are his lyrics… I know this is his voice… I know this is all his perspective…  and I most certainly know that no one else could have produced this type magic for my listening pleasure.  But, as faithful and loyal member of the Beyhive, I see her influence on this album and it works.  I appreciate Jay being open to the influence of his wife, who he openly pinned the ‘Hottest chick in the game’ and the ‘Baddest girl in the world’, to create, yet another, all Jay-Z masterpiece.  It’s as if he assumed his loyal followers have also grown and he risked omitting the trappings of whatever it is they play on the radio these days for a more robust, albeit less obvious, blend of beats, melodies, convos, and lyrics, in pure Jay-Z form as only he could do, to entice listeners to become a part of his journey… a new walk in his life.

I recently told someone that I don’t listen to new music unless it’s produced by one of my faves, and this album falls right in line with that theory.  I LOVE and appreciate Jay-Z’s new album, it’s not just hip-hop… it’s music.  Now…

When is the tour???

(and back to my Beyoncé albums)