The Blueprint 2: The Gift The Curse

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
To release seven strong albums in as many years is a phenomenal achievement. Just ask Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. The rapper's fans know he won't let them down, so IBlueprint 2: The Gift The Curse/I is as near to a no-risk investment as this notoriously variable genre can produce. In hip-hop, stars are born, rise, shine briefly, then fade and fall with alarming speed. Yet, seven years after his independently produced debut, IReasonable Doubt/I, Jay-Z is still shining. This sprawling, contrary, brash and supremely competent double CD isn't without its faults, but they're easily overlooked. Whether resurrecting the career of a forgotten producer (Heavy D's "Guns Roses" should do for his career what "Hard Knock Life" did for the 45 King's) or continuing to nurture new talent (Just Blaze and Kanye West, unknown before the first IBlueprint/I, produce the majority of tracks here), Carter knows how to get the best from his collaborators. And, especially considering he works on his lyrics "live", committing them to both memory and tape instead of writing them down, Jay's wordsmithery is particularly impressive. Nobody in rap history can match his consistency; the only problem will be living up to his own standards. --IAngus Batey/I

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Customer reviews

review by: nickpalmer1 date: 2006-02-23 rating:
The Blue print for the Black Album?!
I bought this album the day it came out back in NOV 2002 but I have recently been playing it alot at gym, in car etc... I forgot what a good album it is...brI'm a big fan of Jay Z and although this album is not a classic, it helped his career and helped him experiment material which made The Black Album such a success.brTHE GIFTbr'A dream' featuring Faith Evans and Notorious B.I.G, opens the album and makes for good easy listening. The Gift continues with 'The Watcher 2', a follow up to the original on Dre's 2001. It isnt original but Jay's lyrics are excellent and it makes for a nice collaboration. 'Bonnie and Clyde' is a powerplay for Jay, Bringing him alot of airplay and Crossing over to Beyonce fans to move units, maybe at the expense of Credible fans. 'Excuse me miss' is another club hit, not very memorable.br'What they gonna do' featuring Sean Paul is a waste of a good possible collaboration.br'All around the world' is quite forgettable only interesting for those who love Jay's every lyric. 'Poppin' tags' is another waste of a possible good collab with Big Boi that makes you think, if Jay soo rich, why make a song bought popping tags off clothes.br'Fuck all nite' is enjoyable enough music, not a classic but a good listen.brFinally a song worth praising, this song is so underrated and not given enough airplay. Kanye West's lyrics arent great but it shows a growth. Jay Z and Timbaland collab and yet again a great song, the beats are excellent. I love the line 'Kipnap rap seven years, no ransom' thats Jay at his best. The Gift side of the disc closes on 'I did it my way', further evidence that Jay Z wants to push the boundarys of rap and this makes for a good listen, Jay sounds very comfortable on this track. pThe CursebrAlthough the weaker disc I believe the best lyrics are saved for the curse. Opening with 'Diamond is Forever' Jay shows a depth of lyrics. 'You put on two tube socks, you couldnt walk in my shoes'. Diamond is probably one of my favourite Jays song ever. 'Guns n roses' doesnt suit Jay, I didnt like this song but the lyric 'Even a broken clock is right at least two times a day' is Jay at his best.br'U don't know' remix is more an attempt to showcase the just signed M.O.P. strange the fact they never released an album on Roc a fella and are now with G-Unit!!br'Meet the parents' is a deep and personal story telling track that should have been released as a single!! Make sure that if you buy this album you give this a listen too.br'Some how some way' and 'Some people hate' are filler tracks that are experimental for Jay. Jay's flow is still untouchable.br'Blue print 2' is my favourite song on the album, the lyrics are deep, Jay Z is very defensive on this song and it works. Also Jay takes another shot at Nas.brThis song really deserves a play or two.brThe rest of the album is filler music, Jay either experimenting with different fows or beats, preparing The Black Album before leaving the Game, buy this album the lyrics alone warrant the price.

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review by: twigne date: 2005-10-26 rating:
Not a bad buy
This is a good album, there's no doubt about that.pHowever.....pI'm working backwards (just about). I already owned the blueprint (excellent) and recently aquired the black album (which is absolutely amazing i might add!!1). Because of this, i think i've probably heard the best 2 albums first (in my opinion) and to be honest after very recently aquiring the blueprint 2 and reasonable doubt, neither live up to the others.pBut, they are good albums, and definately worth looking into.pAnother reason i think i'm not DEAD impressed with some of the other stuff is for the input of mr p. williams. It's just TOO JT!!! (Which i definately do NOT like). But then, for every not so good track, there's an amazing track. So, decide for yourselves.

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review by: date: 2004-08-11 rating:
More Tracks - More Duds?
Truly 2 albums for the price of 1. On this album Jay-Z has split the tracks into The Gift and The Curse, two seperate CD's. The sound has matured from the previous album and he also works with a number of other artists (Lenny) and producers (Neptunes). Top tracks include- A Dream, The Bounce, 2 Many Hoes and Bitches Sisters. However because there are more tracks there do tend to be more tracks that are skippable.

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review by: kclwarhist date: 2004-07-31 rating:
stunning!!
jay-z continues to blow away fans and gain new ones with these somewhat commercial hits however the variety of fresh beats and slick rhymes are undoubtedly impressive. in my opinion the first cd (the gift) could have alone carried the album to the top of the charts and proves a lot stronger than the second cd, (the curse). the album opens with 'a dream' sampling biggies rhymes, a genius track that sets the tone for following tracks (hovi baby, the watcher, poppin tags) however the disc ends with 'i did it my way' a weak filler that jay could have left out. disc two has its moments, 'nigga please, guns roses, as one' yet the majority of listeners would argue that it was an un-neccesary record as the excellence of the first cd would have carried the blueprint 2. definately a cd that pulls together all of hova's finest qualities and delivers.


review by: matty25 date: 2004-03-02 rating:
Jay-Z - The Blueprint 2: The Gift and The Curse
Its a showcase of some of the best producers in the world, some of the best artists and of course the man himself. The two tracks released as singles ('03 Bonnie Clyde and Excuse me Miss) are good but there are two hidden gems on this album...1)Meet the Parents, due to the subject matter it can be understood why this wasn't released as a single but it really is incredibly hard hitting stuff. 2) The Bounce, For me (and possibly me alone) this is as good a Timbo/Jigga collabo as 'Big Pimpin'and thats saying something. Dr Dre's work is ok, but those of us who have heard 'The Watcher' will perhaps wonder what he did to earn his fee, although Rakim appears on this tracks and drops an excellent verse. The Neptunes take four tracks, the best of which is 'Excuse me Miss', the other three are like every other track produced by them during this period. Just Blaze adds the excellent 'Meet the Parents' while 'Hovi Baby' is rather overblown and 'U Don't Know remix' is quite poor. Unfortunatly the Lenny Kravitz collaboration, which had so much potential, proved a bit of a dissapointment. At 22 tracks long, spread over 2 CD's, it is too hit and miss. Too many guest artists can get a little annoying too, but again, one thing you can always depend on is that Jay-Z has something to say. Every one of his albums is worth getting purely for the excellent lyricism and wordplay.

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