The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse

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The Blueprint2: The Gift & the Curse
Studio album by Jay-Z
Released November 12, 2002
Recorded March 2002-June 2002/August-September 2002
Genre Hip hop
Length 49:40 (The Gift)
58:47 (The Curse)
1:48:27 (Total)
Label Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam
Producer Darrell "Digga" Branch, Just Blaze, The Neptunes, Timbaland, Charlemagne, Kanye West, Heavy D, Big Chuck, Ron Feennster, Jimmy Kendrick, No I.D., Dr. Dre
Jay-Z chronology
The Blueprint
(2001)		 The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse
(2002)		 The Black Album
(2003)
Singles from The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse
  1. "'03 Bonnie & Clyde"
    Released: October 24, 2002
  2. "Hovi Baby"
    Released: December 17, 2002
  3. "Excuse Me Miss"
    Released: February 4, 2003
  4. "Excuse Me Miss Again (La La La)"
    Released: April 29, 2003
  5. "Stop"
    Released: June 3, 2003
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 3/5 stars [1]
The A.V. Club (favorable) [2]
Entertainment Weekly (C) [3]
NME (8/10) [4]
Pitchfork Media (7.5/10) [5]
PopMatters (mixed) [6]
RapReviews (8.5/10) [7]
Rolling Stone 3/5 stars [8]
Spin 4.5/5 stars link
Village Voice (favorable) [9]

The Blueprint2: The Gift & the Curse is rapper Jay-Z's seventh studio album, released in November 2002. Parts of the album were later reissued as The Blueprint 2.1 in 2003.

This album, like Jay-Z's previous four, debuted at #1 with over 545,000 units shipped in its first week of sales, and has sold 2,117,000 units as of February 2012 in the U.S.[10] The album was criticized for its more pop-oriented sound as well as its plethora of guests, while The Blueprint had been almost devoid of guest appearances.

Though the album has no strict concept in view, the first disc The Gift generally has more upbeat, party tracks, including the hit singles "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" and "Excuse Me Miss." The Curse has a somewhat darker tone, including fewer guest appearances, disses to Nas, Ja Rule, and Jay-Z's former mentor Jaz-O on "Blueprint²" and a dramatic street tale on "Meet the Parents."

Contents

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Disc 1: The Gift

# Title Producer(s) Samples Length
1 "A Dream" (featuring Faith Evans & The Notorious B.I.G.) Kanye West, scratches by Just Blaze 4:12
2 "Hovi Baby" Just Blaze
  • "Diggin' On You (Live)" by TLC
 4:21
3 "The Watcher 2" (featuring Dr. Dre, Rakim & Truth Hurts) Dr. Dre 5:57
4 "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" (featuring Beyoncé) Kanye West
  • "Me and My Girlfriend" by Tupac Shakur
  • Interpolation of "If I Was Your Girlfriend" by Prince
 3:25
5 "Excuse Me Miss" (featuring Pharrell) The Neptunes 4:41
6 "What They Gonna Do" (featuring Sean Paul) Timbaland 4:53
7 "All Around the World" (featuring LaToiya Williams) No I.D.
  • Interpolation of "Sadie" by B. Hawes
  • "Brooklyn's Finest" by Jay-Z
  • "Theme From The Black Hole" by George Clinton
  • "Children Get Together" by Ed Hawkins
  • "Same Song" by Digital Underground
 3:52
8 "Poppin' Tags" (featuring Big Boi, Killer Mike & Twista) Kanye West 6:00
9 "Fuck All Night" The Neptunes 4:19
10 "The Bounce" (featuring Kanye West) Timbaland 4:18
11 "I Did It My Way" Jimmy Kendrix, Big Chuck 3:42

[edit] Disc 2: The Curse

# Title Producer(s) Samples Length
1 "Diamond is Forever" Big Chuck, Ron Feemster 3:55
2 "Guns & Roses" (featuring Lenny Kravitz) Heavy D
  • "Arco Arena" by Cake
 4:25
3 "U Don't Know" (Remix) (featuring M.O.P.) Just Blaze 4:27
4 "Meet the Parents" Just Blaze 4:58
5 "Some How Some Way" (featuring Beanie Sigel & Scarface) Just Blaze 5:37
6 "Some People Hate" Kanye West 4:31
7 "Blueprint²" Charlemagne 4:49
8 "Nigga Please" (featuring Young Chris) The Neptunes 4:38
9 "2 Many Hoes" Timbaland 3:34
10 "As One" (featuring Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Freeway, Young Gunz, Peedi Crakk, Sparks & Rell) Just Blaze 3:48
11 "A Ballad for the Fallen Soldier" The Neptunes 4:42
12* "Show You How" Just Blaze 2:58
13* "Bitches & Sisters" Just Blaze
  • "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby" by Kim Weston
  • "A Bitch Is a Bitch" by N.W.A.
 2:38
14* "What They Gonna Do Part II" Darrell "Digga" Branch 3:47

(*) denotes bonus tracks. Unlike Jay-Z's other albums, these three tracks are listed on the album and have their own separate track.

[edit] Chart history

Album
Chart (2002) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200 1
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums 1
Canadian Albums Chart 8
Singles
Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles
2002 "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" 4 5 2
"Hovi Baby" - 76 -
2003 "Excuse Me Miss" 8 1 2
Chart procession and succession
Preceded by
8 Mile Soundtrack		 Billboard 200 number-one album
November 24, 2002 - November 30, 2002		 Succeeded by
Up! by Shania Twain

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ link
  2. ^ link
  3. ^ link
  4. ^ link
  5. ^ link
  6. ^ link
  7. ^ link
  8. ^ link
  9. ^ link
  10. ^ http://music.yahoo.com/blogs/chart-watch/week-ending-feb-26-2012-albums-half-top-160050213.html

[edit] External links

Jay-Z
Studio albums
Compilation albums
Collaboration albums
Soundtracks
Concert tours
Related articles
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