The Black Album (Jay-Z album)

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The Black Album
The Black Album cover
Studio album by Jay-Z
Released November 14, 2003
Recorded 2003
Genre Hip hop
Length 55:32
Label Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam
Producer Jay-Z (exec.), Damon Dash (exec.), Kareem "Biggs" Burke (exec.), Just Blaze, Kanye West, The Neptunes, Timbaland, 9th Wonder, Eminem, Rick Rubin, The Buchanans, DJ Quik
Professional reviews
Jay-Z chronology
The Blueprint²: The Gift & The Curse
(2002)		 The Black Album
(2003)		 Kingdom Come
(2006)
Singles from The Black Album
  1. "Change Clothes"
    Released: November 11, 2003
  2. "Dirt Off Your Shoulder"
    Released: January 13, 2004
  3. "99 Problems"
    Released: April 13, 2004

The Black Album is the eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released November 14, 2003 on Roc-A-Fella Records. It was promoted as his final studio album, although Jay-Z subsequently announced a return to solo recording in 2006. The album was very well received by critics and was also a commercial success, debuting at #1 with nearly 463,000 copies sold in its first week and over 4 million to date.[1] The black disc is accompanied by a black-covered set of liner notes and a black jewel case.

The album features a guest appearance by Pharrell (in "Change Clothes") and Jay-Z's mother, who speaks about his childhood in different portions of "December 4th". An a cappella-only version of The Black Album featuring these performances was also released.

Contents

[edit] Release history

In early interviews, Jay-Z said that the album would be a return to his Reasonable Doubt sound (responding to criticism from some fans that his subsequent efforts were too commercial) and that it would be "for the streets", with no promotion or singles;[citation needed] however, "Change Clothes" and "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" were both successful singles.

He also claimed that the album would have a different producer for each track, and early magazine advertisements listed a series of numbers (representing tracks) and a producer for each number. The final album did feature a variety in producers, although Roc-A-Fella producers Kanye West and Just Blaze produced two tracks each, in addition to the two produced by frequent Jay-Z collaborators The Neptunes. Longtime collaborators DJ Premier and Dr. Dre did not produce any tracks. 9th Wonder saw a boost in popularity after producing "Threat" for the album.[citation needed] (Jay-Z is credited as the second producer on the track for finding the R. Kelly sample that was included in the beat.)

[edit] Remixes

An a cappella version of the album was released, with the intention of providing material for remixes and mashups. An early attempt by Kev Brown, The Brown Album, was followed by Danger Mouse's The Grey Album. The latter gained attention due to its unauthorized use of samples of songs by The Beatles. This incited many other remix albums made available on the Internet through file sharing.

The only officially released remix album is Collision Course, Jay-Z's collaboration with Linkin Park; it was produced by Mike Shinoda and included a DVD featuring the artist and the band performing together. Their collaboration led Jay-Z to executive produce Shinoda's solo debut, The Rising Tied, released under the name Fort Minor.

Lines from the album have been sampled by other artists into entirely new songs. These include:

  • T.I.'s "Bring Em Out", based on a line from "What More Can I Say", which Jay-Z in turn got line from The Notorious B.I.G. & Tracy Lee song "Keep Your Hands High".
  • Joe Budden's "Stuntin'", also based on a line from "What More Can I Say".
  • Cassidy's "I'm a Hustla" and Juvenile's "Way I Be Leanin'", both based on respective lines from "Dirt Off Your Shoulder".
  • Clipse's "Number One Supplier", based on a line from "Public Service Announcement".
  • Clipse's "Where You Been", based on a line from "Threat".
  • Gillie Da Kid's "Holla Back," based on a line from "Moment of Clarity".
  • Beanie Sigel's "All the Above" uses "Public Service Announcement (Interlude)" for a line on the track.
  • Freeway's "It's Over" chorus based on a line in "Encore".

[edit] Track listing

# Title Producer(s) Samples Length
1 "Interlude" Just Blaze 1:22
2 "December 4th" Just Blaze 4:34
3 "What More Can I Say" The Buchannans 4:55
4 "Encore" Kanye West 4:11
5 "Change Clothes" The Neptunes 4:18
6 "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" Timbaland 4:05
7 "Threat" 9th Wonder 4:07
8 "Moment of Clarity" Eminem, Luis Resto (co) 4:24
9 "99 Problems" Rick Rubin 3:55
10 "Public Service Announcement" (Interlude) Just Blaze
  • "Seed of Love" by Little Boy Blues
 2:53
11 "Justify My Thug" DJ Quik 4:04
12 "Lucifer" Kanye West 3:12
13 "Allure" The Neptunes 4:53
14 "My 1st Song" Aqua, Joe "3H" Weinberger 4:45

[edit] Chart history

Album
Chart (2004) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200 1
U.S. Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums 1
U.S. Top Rap Albums 1 [2]
Singles
Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles
2003 "What More Can I Say" - #48 -
"Change Clothes" #10 #6 #4
2004 "Encore" #106 #30 #22
"Dirt Off Your Shoulder" #5 #3 #2
"99 Problems" #30 #26 #10
Chart procession and succession
Preceded by
Shock'n Y'all by Toby Keith		 Billboard 200 number-one album (First Run)
November 23, 2003 - November 29, 2003		 Succeeded by
In the Zone by Britney Spears
Preceded by
In the Zone by Britney Spears		 Billboard 200 number-one album (Second Run)
December 7, 2003 - December 13, 2003		 Succeeded by
The Diary of Alicia Keys by Alicia Keys

[edit] Personnel

  • Executive Producers: Shawn Carter, Damon Dash, Kareem "Biggs" Burke
  • A&R Direction: Kyambo "Hip Hop" Joshua
  • A&R: Lenny S.
  • A&R Direction/Join Venture: Darcell Lawrence
  • A&R Administration: Rob Mitchell
  • Recording Administration: Rob Mitchell
  • Mastering: Tony Dawsey
  • Marketing: Shari Bryant, Amber Noble
  • Management: Roc-A-Fella Management
  • Art Direction & Design: Robert Sims
  • Principal Photography: Jonathan Mannion
  • Additional Photography: Lenny "kodak man" Santiago, Walik Goshorn
  • Legal Counsel: Michael Guido, Jennifer Justice
  • Business Affairs for Roc-A-Fella Records: Michael Seltzer, Ian Allen, Antoinette Trotman, Jeff Kempler
  • Sample Clearance Agent: Eric Weissman

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Jay-Z: The Black Album (2003): Reviews
  2. ^ http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=335&cfgn=Albums&cfn=Top+Rap+Albums&ci=3080351&cdi=9123374&cid=12%2F09%2F2006

[edit] External links

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