Blogcritics Author: Adam Hoff

My 2007 Soundtrack of the Year: Knocked Up

Adam Hoff — Sun, 6 Jan 2008 23:14:42 EST

Selecting the best soundtrack of 2007 by recognizing Judd Apatow's ear for music.
Following articles on my choices for hip hop album of the year (the Wu-Tang Clan's 8 Diagrams), and overall album of the year (by The National), I've decided to round things out with my 2007 Soundtrack of the Year: Knocked Up. The irony here is that there is not, in fact, a soundtrack for this movie. Yes, there is a collection of Loudon...

My 2007 Album Of The Year: Boxer by The National

Adam Hoff — Sun, 6 Jan 2008 22:31:14 EST

The Brooklyn trio's intricate, atmospheric fourth LP is my choice for 2007's album of the year.
Walking down a deserted (but perpetually shimmering) Michigan Avenue in Chicago last spring, listening to The National's fourth full-length album in my iPod, it dawned on me that I was listening to my favorite album of the year up to the point. Driving down a deserted (well, deserted for L.A. standards) 10 freeway in Los Angeles last week on New...

Music Review: The Wu-Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams

Adam Hoff — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 15:25:31 EST

Breaking down my Rap Album of the Year
Nothing perplexed me more in the world of music this year than the reaction to the new Wu-Tang Clan album, 8 Diagrams. 2007 has been undoubtedly the busiest year of my life, which explains my lengthy absence from posting on this site but also explains why I actually heard the new Wu record before I read anything about it (rare in this day and age,...

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Raiders Must Take Quinn

Adam Hoff — Tue, 2 Jan 2007 20:06:37 EST

I know there is plenty of time for NFL Draft conjecture, but now that we know the Oakland Raiders have the top pick in the 2007 Draft, let me just say that Oakland absolutely has to take Brady Quinn.They passed on Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler last year because they supposedly had quarterbacks for the present (Aaron Brooks) and the future (Andrew Walter). The guy they took instead -- safety Michael Huff -- had an up-and-down season (at best) and while he might wind up being worth the No. 7 pick, I don't see how Oakland can remain convinced that they are set at the quarterback position. Even an organization as out of touch as the Raiders has to realize they need a new signal caller.Brooks is clearly done as an NFL quarterback, but it was the play of Walter in 2006 that made for the bigger story. While it is true that the former Sun Devil played for a very bad coach, had an offensive coordinator fresh off a bed-and-breakfast stint, was armed with a No. 1 wide receiver that rarely tried, and dropped back behind the worst offensive line in football, that still doesn't excuse just how awful he was. Walter completed 53.3% of his passes, threw 13 picks with just three touchdowns, and compiled a horrific 55.8 QB rating. Plus, he mouthed off a couple of times and showed very few leadership qualities. Oh yeah, and he was also injury prone. Pretty solid all the way around.Fortunately for the Raiders, Quinn looks like the real deal. Unfortunately for the Raiders, Quinn's biggest weakness is the pass rush. When he has time to throw he can dice up any defense, but when the rush is on (see: the UCLA and Michigan games), he has a rough go of it. This means that if Oakland is to draft Quinn, they will need to spend the rest of their offseason fixing that miserable o-line. They need a new ... well, pretty much everything, including left tackle (Robert Gallery isn't very good, folks).In fact, the offensive line is so bad that the Raiders may be tempted to go that way on draft day, especially with Wisconsin's Joe Thomas available. To me this, would be a mistake, as would the selection of Georgia Tech's Calvin Johnson, because while you need to give a quarterback blocking and a guy to throw to (and with Moss on his way out, Johnson could slide right in), you need the quarterback first and foremost.And the Raiders definitely don't have that.

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

Hip-Hop Regional Report: Here Comes the "New West"

Adam Hoff — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 17:55:30 EST

The Regional Report: West Coast Up-and-ComersIt was a monster November/December combo for hip-hop, with leaked albums springing up everywhere, the Game emerging triumphantly from his Aftermath feud(s), Jay-Z returning with a legendary seven-city, 26-hour tour and not-so legendary album, Snoop releasing a keeper, Nas declaring that hip-hop is dead, Ghostface putting out a second album in '06, and the Clipse making hipster hip-hop fans drool with the release of Hell Hath No Fury. There's been a lot to keep track of. So you can forgive me for taking a break from the Regional Report's "up-and-comers" theme. It's hard to stay focused on the next breakout star when Jay-Z is flying around in a plane that has his face painted on it, and putting on concerts in Atlanta at seven in the morning. The tail end of 2006 was all about the heavy hitters.However, the first quarter of 2007 stands to serve as a breakout campaign for new hip-hop stars across the country, and nowhere does the youth movement seem to be picking up more steam than in sunny Southern California. "New West" is the catch phrase in L.A. as a bumper crop of stars look to make their mark early and often in the year to come. The dynamic for emerging rappers on the West Coast is different from other regions of the country. Artists in Chicago are grappling with the challenge of maintaining Kanye's aesthetic while sidestepping his rather large shadow. Those in New York are trying to bring the birthplace of hip-hop back to the forefront while competing for airtime against veteran heavyweights like Jay-Z and Nas. In the South the new guys are finding it tough to get a piece of the limelight, with fairly new stars like Young Jeezy and Chamillionaire (not to mention "King" T.I.) already in place. In the Mid-Atlantic, some incredibly talented artists are simply trying to put cities not named Virginia Beach and Philadelphia on the hip-hop map. Everywhere you look, there are substantial challenges. Then there is the West Coast. Always one of the powers in hip-hop, L.A. has been in rough shape for the better part of the last decade. Dr. Dre continues to loom over the rap industry, but he's become less regional and more national with each passing year. He hardly qualifies. Snoop's Tha Blue Carpet Treatment is probably his best release since Doggystyle in 1993, but even Snoop is more of an MTV star than a West Coast gangsta rapper. That pretty much leaves the Game to hold down the entire fort, and he's actually doing an admirable job. More important to would-be stars in the L.A. area is the fact that the Game's success has put the whole region back on the map. Game will be the first to tell you that he's saved the West Coast and brought it back to prominence. Now the West is once again in the mix. The momentum exists and it is up to the new wave to cash in. Nature abhors a vacuum, so you'd better believe that there is room for a host of new stars to break though and into the forefront, which is probably why almost every artist coming out of L.A. these days is quick to yell out "New West!" at a show or on a mixtape. No one wants to be associated with the dog days that have made up the better part of this decade. They don't necessarily want to be associated with Game either, but that's only because he's a one-man army who doesn't know how to play nice. These newcomers simply want to occupy spots that are destined to be filled. It all means that there is a ton of opportunity out West, which works out nice, because there's also a ton of talent. Primary Challenger - Bishop Lamont. It wasn't easy to pick between Bishop and Glasses Malone, but in the end, I went with the better long-term option. Arguably already the best rapper to ever come out of Carson, California, Bishop Lamont is poised to become mega-star. Why? Let me count the ways. For starters, he's looming as Dr. Dre's newest protege and unless you haven't been paying attention to the drama surrounding the Game over the past year, you know that there's a vacancy for that particular lead chair. Considering the success of artists ranging from Snoop Dogg to Eminem to 50 to Game, being Dr. Dre's running mate is the rap equivalent to being tabbed by Martin Scorsese to be his new go-to actor (see: Robert DeNiro 1973-1995, Leo DiCaprio 2002-current). So he's got that going for him. (I love the story of how this came to be, by the way. Apparently, Bishop was supposed to meet Kanye West with demo in hand at the "Dreams" video shoot, but Kanye was a no-show. Bummed out and ready to head home, Bishop saw Dr. Dre come out of a trailer so he walked right up and handed him his mixtape, Who Do I Have to Kill to Get a Record Deal? A few days later he was driving around listening to Power 106 when all of a sudden Dre was on the air talking about how excited he is to work with a new artist named Bishop Lamont. Great stuff.)Even better news is that this right-hand man position looks like it will provide some immediate results. There have been countless artists that have signed with Interscope and Aftermath only to collect dust while waiting for a chance to shine, but the word is that Lamont's first album, The Reformation, will release during the first quarter of next year. According to an interview he did for West Coast Rydaz, Bishop will be getting beats from virtually every big name in the production biz, including Just Blaze, Pete Rock, DJ Quick, Battlecat, Dre, Scott Storch, J Dilla, DJ Premier, and Salaam Remi. Not only that, but he figures to be the top gun on Dre's Detox if and when that actually happens. Plus he's already got a follow-up project in the works titled The Possible Impossible that will feature all beats from Dre and Storch. He's also aiming to work with artists such as Chris Martin, Korn, Mike Shinoda, and the White Stripes in order to expand hip-hop. 2007 could be Bishop's year, regardless of newcomer status or West Coast location. The best thing he has going for him, of course, is skill. His flow still needs a little bit of work, but a few sessions in the studio with Dre and Eminem should take care of that. Otherwise, he is a ready-made star. He has the voice, style, and smarts to be a mainstay. My favorite thing about Bishop is that he features witty wordplay and clever rhymes that one would typically associate with an underground, or "backpack" rapper, yet he maintains an authentic West Coast sound that glides smoothly from gangsta rap to G-Funk and back again. He himself described his sound as backpack rap -- but with guns and drugs stuffed inside of the backpack. In other words, he's smart and witty and can rap about topics as diverse as The Doors, Todd McFarlane's Spawn comic books, Nintendo's Duck Hunt, and Hercules, but he's also not afraid to throw on a huge G-Funk beat and boast about white tees and '64 Impalas. The only word of caution regarding Bishop is the story of the one Dre protege that got away: Hitman. You might remember Hitman from Dre's Chronic 2001. Just as Bishop is expected to be the new young gun on Dre's next release, Hitman was that guy the last time around, appearing on over a quarter of the tracks on that classic release. He too was expected to be a huge star, but it never happened. In fact, Game even brought this up when he went at Bishop in the recent G-Unit-centric diss track, "100 Bars (The Funeral)": I'm gunning for Bishop/I'm the king of this L.A. s***/tell me homie is you blood or crip/is you thug or b****/cause the Essey's say they don't ever see holmes run around L.A./fake ass ghostwriter get your little flow tighter/before I put you in the trunk of this f****** lowrider/you ain't nuthin' but Hitman in quicksand. That said, it is probably more noteworthy that Game even felt compelled to go at Bishop on a diss track, when most of the world doesn't even know who he is yet. Armed with savvy, a sense of humor, the best production team on the planet (including local guys like J Wells and Diverse that he's bringing along with him), and talent to spare (not to mention a sweet logo comprised of a bishop chess piece and a giant L), Bishop appears to be a mortal lock to blow up huge. Which means that the Game better get a few more diss tracks ready to roll. Listen to: "I Am a Soldier," "Up and Down," "It's Bishop," "Let's Get it Poppin'," and "I'm a Warrior."Secondary Challenger - Glasses Malone. This should probably be 1B to Bishop's 1A as the two seem to be rising to stardom hand-in-hand. Their goal is to take the New West movement to the top of the industry and make L.A. the new Atlanta, with a spirit of cooperation and regional dominance leading to national prominence. And right now, Glasses Malone might be in the best position to be the T.I. in that analogy. Formerly a member of the Game's Black Wall Street crew, Glasses moved on when it became obvious that Game was probably never going to get around to bringing anyone up behind him (the unwritten rule in rap). Then, when Game had a falling out with his Piru Blood older brother Big Face, G. Malone became the newest beneficiary of Face's connections.After releasing the acclaimed mixtape White Lightenin' (Sticks), Glasses quickly became a household name in Los Angeles rap circles and before long, he was commanding a $1.7 million deal with Sony that included his own imprint, Blu Division. In a short span he has become the de facto leader of the New West movement and the most immediate threat to challenge Game for West Coast supremacy. In fact, Malone's first LP is coming out in just two months, as The Beach Cruiser is expected to drop on February 20. Sony has such high hopes for the record that they've asked Glasses to leave behind the local L.A. producers - at least for the time being - and make a national album. Production is expected from the likes of Blaze, Pharrell, DJ Toomp, and Cool and Dre. While collaborations with a host of eclectic and Southern producers sounds like a risky proposition, there is already evidence that the pairings will work. The track "F*** Wit Me" has became a local sensation and while it is a club jam above all else, it maintains a West Coast feel despite getting production from Southern mainstay Mannie Fresh. The only downside to G. Malone is that his voice sounds a whole lot like the Game's. He has the same raspy sound and his delivery has a similar pace and rhythm. I think he is actually a much better lyricist than Game, but he doesn't emote quite as well. So it's kind of a toss up on who is actually better. The problem for Glasses? Game's already out there. In the legal world (and maybe other worlds for all I know), they call this the "first mover problem." Will millions of hip-hop fans be willing to embrace another cocky West Coast artist that sounds just like the Game? That hiccup, plus Bishop's superior long-term label situation gives Lamont the slight edge going forward. That said, expect big things from both.Listen to: "F*** Wit Me," "Take a Fade," "I'm Bout a Dolla," and "Two Hunned."Darkhorse - Lil Eazy E. In almost every walk of life, you eventually get to put the "legacy" factor to the test. Whether it is college admissions, politics, or the NBA, carrying the last name of those that came before has always been a tried-and-true method for getting opportunities that others only dream of. But hip-hop is a young industry, so we're not yet sure of the roles that nepotism and legacy interests will play. We're about to find out. Lil Eazy E is the most prominent of a host of rising stars that can claim famous fathers in the rap world. Cory Gunz (son of Peter) and Sun God (Ghostface's lad) are emerging in the East, while Dr. Dre's son Curtis Young (more on him in a minute) and Lil Eazy E are making waves out West. Lil Eazy appears to be the most talented of the group and could become a massive star. He's got the same nasally flow that his dad brought to the forefront as a member of N.W.A. and as a controversial solo artist. Not only that, but the Lil version of Eazy E seems to possess the same taste for battle, already engaging in a publicized feud with the Game throughout most of 2006. The best thing about Lil Eazy E is that he routinely outshines the other artists on tracks featuring multiple rappers. He buries G-Unit's Spider Loc on the song "Two Step" and has outperformed the likes of Ice Cube, Bizzy Bone, and even some recycled Biggie and 2Pac (on "Us Against the World"). Granted, that's not like coming out on top against the likes of Nas and Ghostface, but it counts for something. Based on the quality of his recent mixtape This Ain't a Game, we should expect good things on his upcoming The Prince of Compton LP.Listen to: "Us Against the World," "Two Step," "Life of a G," and "That Fire."Others to Watch - Ca$his, Spider Loc, Hood Surgeon, Eastwood, Crooked I, and 40 Glocc.Ca$his is an intriguing guy to watch for a variety of reasons. For starters, he's on Aftermath, which always raises an eyebrow. However, unlike many G-Unit and Interscope signees of late, Ca$his appears to actually have some talent. He's got his own sound and a pretty polished flow and is getting some serious run on mixtapes. He is featured heavily on Eminem Presents the Re-up and while he can't quite hang with the likes of Stat Quo and Obie Trice at this point, he avails himself pretty well. Needless to say, he's certainly the top gun out of Orange County right now. Spider Loc represents 50 Cent's best effort to replace the Game with a West Coast G-Unit affiliate. Sounds pretty good on paper, but the result is not so great. Spider sounds like a Tone Loc retread (is that where he got the name?) and thus far has produced very few memorable tracks or verses (the best probably being his guest appearance on Lloyd Banks' Rotten Apple bonus track "Life"). I can't imagine him being a major part of the West Coast rebirth, let alone righting the G-Unit ship.Hood Surgeon is also known as Curtis Young, son of Andre Young, aka Dr. Dre. So he's got the pedigree. However, as mentioned above, we have yet to see how this whole legacy thing plays out. Hood Surgeon is taking a unique approach (by choice or by necessity?) to his rap career, building from the ground up. He is the founder and CEO of So Hood Records and has a pretty solid mixtape floating around titled The Autopsy. He claims to be going at this alone, yet everything about him seems derivative of Dre, from his themes to his name to his "monster" sound as a producer. It will be interesting to see if the general public gives him a chance. Eastwood is a talented artist that was formerly a member of Death Row, where he sat on the shelf for years before being liberated by Game, who signed him to Black Wall Street and made him part of the group M.O.B. which combines Eastwood with rappers Problem (hailing from Compton) and Techneic (a Mac 10 protege) and looks to position itself as a new age Dogg Pound. But can Eastwood really fill the Snoop Dogg role in that scenario? I doubt it.Crooked I is another rapper that got put on ice for a few years at Death Row but now looks to emerge as a West Coast force. The Long Beach artist is known in certain circles as a talented ghostwriter with some real ability. He recently floated a song called "Say Dr. Dre" that appears to be a track originally destined for Dre's Detox album, since all Crooked I's verses are delivered as if he himself were Dre. The message seems to be, "Hey, this is yet another hit I wrote but since it might not see the light of day, I'll go ahead and throw it out there." The only problem? Dre's not much of a rapper, but I would have definitely preferred this track coming from the good Doctor, regardless of who wrote it. That doesn't bode well for Crooked I. Finally, 40 Glocc is one of the best true rappers in the West, but he appears to be cut from more of the "veteran underground artist" mold rather than the up-and-comer type that will likely break big. That said, he's pretty damn good. His song "Finer Thangzzz" was a true highlight on DJ Exclusive's Dretox mixtape and 40 Glocc has handled beats from the likes of Rick Rock, Dre, Havoc, and the Alchemist. So I'm not going to rule out a rise to prominence.

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

Music Review: Jay-Z - Kingdom Come

Adam Hoff — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 06:33:39 EST

Jay-Z’s comeback album has been out for almost a full month now – even longer if you count the Internet release (also know as album leak). For the most part, it has been knocked down, kicked, and then covered with dirt by most Internet music sites. I acknowledge that Kingdom Come was disappointing, but was it worthy of such vitriol? I don’t think so. In fact, I was careful to let this one soak in before rushing to judgment (like I did with the first three leaked tracks off the album) and I’ve come to the conclusion that Kingdom Come is much better than it is getting credit for. Maybe not a classic, but not a piece of crap either. When confronting a strong opposition, one must try to determine where the proverbial fork in the road takes place. Why do so many critics my age hate this album (Tom Breihan from The Village Voice, Byron Crawford from XXL, and Pitchfork, to name a few), when I like it? I’ve got a few possible theories on this, each of which will be examined on a sliding scale that ranges from “no chance” to “sounds good to me” (with “doubtful,” “maybe,” and “likely” as the middle options). Here we go.Theory #1 – Subject Matter. One of the biggest criticisms of the album is that Jay-Z’s content isn’t what it used to be. It seems that all the rapping about being a CEO and the bragging about possessions, trips, and celeb friends isn’t going over so well. I understand that, but my question is - since when? This is America, land of capitalism and home of the “anyone can make it” dream. Now that Jay has “made it” why wouldn’t he talk about it? This is his life now and it wouldn’t make any sense to rap about hugging the block or cooking crack in a dank duplex. I mean, seriously. Plus, this complaint is disingenuous. Brag rapping has been loved and respected for years in hip hop. Just this year, the Clipse received heaps of critical love despite spending well over half their album (which I loved, by the way) rapping about all the stuff they have. So to criticize Jay-Z for boasting is hypocritical. Few can brag like Jigga. In the (admittedly overwrought) Just Blaze stadium epic “Oh My God,” Jay-Z pretty much lays it out there. (“Coming through roofless/ yeah, your boy ruthless/ like Ice Cub was/ turn the whole city on, I’m the new plug/ So if this is your first time hearing this/ you are about to experience/ someone so cold/ a journey seldom seen/ the American Dream/ from the bottom to the top of the globe/ they call me Hov.”)Honing in on the brag raps fails to look at the whole package. While it might have been nice to see Jay use a more narrative structure for his new CEO status (maybe some sort of running gangster movie theme, like all the old Pain N Da Ass skits), he makes up for it by throwing in a few other interesting topics. He discusses everything from his ascension to the corporate world to the push and pull of being a born hustler (in “Prelude”), from a feud with Cam’ron (“Dig a Hole”) to Hurricane Katrina (“Minority Report”), and from far-reaching Biblical themes to the end of his career (and life). It’s far from a terrible mix, topically and thematically. The Hurricane Katrina commentary, in particular, is extremely powerful (“Sure I ponied up a mil/ but I didn’t give my time/ so in reality, I didn’t give a dime/ or a damn/ just put my money in the hands/ of the same people that left my people stranded.”) Strength of Theory #1 – Doubtful. Theory #2 – Lyrical Skill. I’ll be the first to admit this album doesn’t have the usual plethora of Press Rewind moments from One Take Jay, and he probably does spend too much time using the whisper voice (the one from “Allure”). That said, it also isn’t fair to measure him by his own extremely high bar. Compared to most of the stuff coming out in 2006, Hova is still an elite lyricist. He may not be hungry like he was on Reasonable Doubt or at the height of his game like on The Blueprint, which explains some of the repetitive lines and lazy rhymes, but he’s still Jay. This means you are going to get a lot of effortless verses that fuse intelligence and wit in bold, brash, decisive strokes. From clever little lines like “Guess who’s back/ Since this is a New Era I got a new hat” (“Prelude”) and “Kingpin of the ink pen/ monster of the double entendre” (“Do U Wanna Ride”) to classically complex Jay-Z (“Think I’m in the office, I’m off the grind?/ That’s how kids become orphans, ya lost your mind?/ I keep my enemies close/ I give ‘em enough rope/ they put themselves in the air/ I just kick away the chair” – that last part perfectly describes Sacha Baron Cohen’s style of comedy in Borat, by the way), he still has “it.” If those aren’t good enough examples, there is always this gem from “Beach Chair,” which layers pop culture with soul-baring questions, all while employing multiple meanings of a word (for which I am a total sucker): “Not afraid of dyin’/ I’m afraid of not tryin’/ every day, hit every wave like I’m Hawaiian/ I don’t surf the net/ no I ain’t never been on MySpace/ too busy lettin’ my voice vibrate/ carvin’ out my space.” Of course, gems like that are offset by some meandering efforts, like the up-and-comer bashing on “Trouble” and the excessive spelling on the horrendous Neptunes-produced “Anything,” so I can see the complaint. Strength of Theory #2 – Maybe. Theory #3 – Beats. One complaint I can get behind is that Jay-Z didn’t exactly load up with the best beats for Kingdom Come. When I sort my iTunes music by producer, I can’t help but notice that many of the best producers’ finest beats have been for Jay. Kanye West and Just Blaze are the primary examples of this, but even guys like DJ Premier, the Neptunes, Eminem, Rick Rock, and Dr. Dre (“The Watcher”) have busted out some career-best type performances when providing a track for Jay-Z. Um, not this time. Just Blaze has three entries on the album: “Kingdom Come” is arguably a great beat, but “Oh My God” and “Show Me What You Got” are just average. Dre provided three cuts, but only “Trouble” (the Dre quality without the Dre genericness) is a standout and it turns out that Snoop got the best of the Dr. Dre Fall 2006 Collection. The Neptunes track is horrible. The beats for “Hollywood” and “I Made It” are not good. When the Chris Martin-produced (complete with expected alt-pop distortion) “Beach Chair” is a standout, you know you have some problems. However, it really isn’t what is on the album that is the issue, it is what’s not on Kingdom Come that is most noticeable. Timbaland is arguably one of the hottest producers in the music industry right now (check out tracks ranging from Nelly Furtado’s “Promiscuous” to Justin Timberlake’s “Sexy/Back” to Snoop’s “Get a Light” to Young Jeezy’s “3 A.M.”) and has collaborated with Jay in the past (12 Jay-Z tracks on eight albums, by my count) - so where is he? DJ Premier, anyone? Just one Kanye West song? (Although, it should be noted that “Do U Wanna Ride” is a good one – a subtler version of Kanye.) Even 9th Wonder or Bink would have been a welcome addition at this point. Strength of Theory #3 – Likely. Theory #4 – He’s Too Old. People have been taking cracks at “30 Something” and insinuating that Jay-Z is too old to make a good hip hop record. This seems insane on a few levels. For starters, he just turned 37, which means that he was 34 when he put out a certifiable classic in the form of The Black Album. Is 37 that much older than 34? It’s not like he turned 35 and started aging in dog years. There are plenty of hip hop stars picking up steam in their 30’s. Nas’ new one is a heater and he’s 33. Ghostface was rap’s critical darling for ’06 and he’s 36. Hell, Snoop Dogg is as old as dirt and he just put out his best album in 13 years. Yes, Jay’s new record was built for an “adult audience.” No, he’s not too old to be good. Strength of Theory #4 – No Chance. Theory #5 – Backlash. Let’s face it - we live in a society that loves to bring people down. This is the pop culture universe that built 50 Cent up and then tore him down in the span of 12 months, and that’s just the obvious hip hop example. There was Leo after Titanic (it took him over five years and a half dozen incredible roles to get all the way back). It started happening with Dwayne Wade during the NBA Finals last year when people started complaining about all the calls he got. It just happened this week regarding SNL’s new digital short “A Special Box,” which should have been enjoyed by all as a truly funny sketch, but was instead beat down lest we get too excited ala the “Narnia Rap.” It’s happening with Lost. It will probably happen with Sacha Baron Cohen if it hasn’t already. And so on and so forth. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Jay-Z would get the same treatment. After all, he’s everywhere these days. Running Def Jam, owning the Nets, dating Beyonce, appearing on Budweiser commercials, doing the Hanger Tour, popping into the booth on Monday Night Football, you name it. Naturally, people are going to push back. Jay even saw this coming, rapping on Trouble that it’s “just a matter of time before the steady hate/ starts to overflow and then the levee breaks.” People won’t stay down on him forever, which means that his next album is already money in the bank. The same critics slamming him now will be frothing at the mouth to redeem him by the time the 10th disc rolls around. Strength of Theory #5 – Sounds good to me. The Verdict. Based on my irrefutable methodology (that’s sarcasm, people), it seems that Jigga’s album is getting the cold shoulder mainly because of natural backlash, followed by shaky beats, and possibly a letdown on the lyricism front. This means that people are crushing this thing for reasons that have little to do with Jay-Z. Nice. Like I said at the top, I am somewhat fond of Kingdom Come. It’s certainly not a classic, thanks in large part to a rough patch in the middle of the album (tracks 7-10), and the beats could certainly have been better. Still, this is the one of the best rappers ever putting in solid work. No complaints here. In fact, among Jay-Z albums (excluding the R. Kelly fiascos, of course), I put it right in the middle:1. The Blueprint2. Reasonable Doubt3. The Black Album4. Hard Knock Life5. Kingdom Come6. Vol. 17. Vol. 28. The Dynasty9. The Blueprint 2*(* Note: I am referring to the double disc album that was originally released, not the nicely salvaged The Blueprint 2.1 re-release.)The Score: 7.9

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

The Regional Report: Papoose Is Having a Big Month

Adam Hoff — Thu, 21 Dec 2006 13:31:27 EST

Brooklyn rapper Papoose is a bit of an enigma. One the one hand, he has a pretty good pedigree which includes the 2005 Justo Mixtape Artist Award and a recently inked $1.5 million deal with Violator. On the other hand, I've combed through about 150 Papoose songs looking for some classics and I have yet to find anything truly memorable. Other than the notorious "Alphabetical Slaughter" track, which tries to take Saigon's "Letter P" to the next level, Pap has been incredibly, consistently boring.Fortunately for Papoose, the tide seems to be turning in December, and just in time for the upcoming release of his LP Nacirema Dream. First, he launched an immediate and passionate (if not terribly artful) response to the NYPD police shooting of Sean Bell with "50 Shots," an angry political track that harkens back to the days of Public Enemy. The song itself isn't all that great, but that's not the point. I wish they had continued with the Sam Cooke "A Change Is Gonna Come" sample rather than just using it for the intro and fake bridge, but whatever. This song isn't important because of the dubious beat or even Pap's relentless rhyming, but rather because he calls everyone out and basically spells out the problem with the whole incident, even explaining some of the legal nuances ("the law states a cop is not permitted to shoot at a moving car/it doesn't make a difference if its coming straight at him"). All in all, it speaks highly of Papoose as an individual and at least gives him a leg up in the substance department. More good news for Pap comes on the style side with his recently dropped verse over the beat from Nas' "Black Republicans." It seems like everyone is rapping over this track these days and for the most part, none of them are touching Jay-Z's and Nas' original verses (with the exception of Sean Price, who is always potent) - and that certainly includes Young Hot Rod of G-Unit, who joins Papoose on this particular effort. But while this L.E.S. cut hasn't been a breeding ground for hot verses (unlike, say, Just Blaze's "Show Me What You Got" which led to some fantastic freestyles), it certainly served as a staging ground for Pap. He still uses his put-the-accent-on-the-last-syllable style without remorse and starts out with his familiar drab flow and trying-just-a-bit-too-hard metaphors ("I take my time/ya'll be Russian like the Soviet Union"), but about halfway through the track, he just goes nuts. At the 2:18 mark, Papoose launches into a double-time explosion that leaves the listener dizzy. ("I smoke the bubonic/ tonic/ exotic/ melodic/ brollic/ bionic/ psychotic/ ironic/ hypnotic kind of chronic/ on every project/ my object /is to make the product the hardest/ smartest/ calmest/ modest/ honest/ oddest/New York is accomplice [this word isn't clear]/ I abolish/ demolish/ astonish/ promise no college/ Harvard is garbage/ acknowledge homage to fathers and martyrs/ sick of these offices often causing the coughing and walking/ so I decided to comment and got responses from Congress/ this is retarded/ this nonsense"). He keeps going at that pace, if you can believe it. Honestly, this is like nothing I've ever heard. I know Twista, Busta Rhymes, and Mystikal were faster, but Papoose's ability to spin a powerful statement into such a complex rhyme scheme is pretty amazing. The only guy that I've heard layer up that effectively is Eminem. All told, this one-two punch may be just what Papoose needed. He's known as a bright guy with a relentless work ethic and razor sharp lyrics, but up to this point, he's lacked flair and polish in his delivery. The road to hip hop greatness is littered with would-be lyricists, from Sauce Money to Ali Vegas to Cannibus, so it was always going to take something more to launch Pap to superstardom. Perhaps this new combination of political fire and verbal dexterity is just what he needed.

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

Music Review: Mos Def - "Undeniable"

Adam Hoff — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 08:09:45 EST

I recently got my hands on a copy of Mos Def's new album, which wasn't nearly as exciting as it would have been back in about 2002 or so. New Danger was horrible and he really hasn't been all that good since he did Black Star with Talib Kweli. I really like his acting, I think he's a very positive and important rapper, and he seems like a great guy, but the recent albums have sucked. That's just the way it is. However, when I saw that the track "Undeniable" had been nominated for a Grammy for best hip-hop record and was rumored to be a Kanye production, I had a whole new reason to give Tru3 Magic a spin. Imagine my disappointment then when I hit play only to discover this is a song has already been done before.Now, I understand that this sort of thing happens all the time in hip-hop. Sampling is a staple element of the genre, dating back to when rap music consisted of an MC making various pronouncements while a DJ played existing records. The music came from sampling, so it makes sense that it plays a prominent role. I have absolutely nothing against the practice. I am also fine with various forms of imitation (Game and his Black Wall Street producers imitating Dre on Doctor's Advocate is one example), "borrowing" (like when Lupe used Kanye's "Diamonds" beat for "Conflict Diamonds" and then Kanye turned around and used Lupe's theme on "Diamonds From Sierra Leone"), and even blatant copying (see: Khari rapping on an Erick Sermon track that he would "walk through hell with gasoline drawers on" only to have both Mullyman and Young Jeezy use the same line on mixtapes this year). The one thing I'm not ready to endorse is a blatant rip-off being nominated for a freaking Grammy. "Undeniable" is a track that makes no bones about sampling, which is fine. From the "no matter how hard you try, you can't stop us now" chorus to the sparse, synthesized guitar pluck, Mos Def takes all of the best elements of the Temptations track "Message From a Black Man" and spins it into a modern, bluesy rap song. For a true aficionado of soul music, "Undeniable" probably feels like something caught between an homage and an act of highway robbery, but the overall effect for most critics is that Mos Def is incorporating both message and mood while offering a nod to important music of the past. It doesn't hurt his cause that he sings on the song and says things like "always be cool" and "always be you." I'm sure the folks tabbing Grammy nominees love that stuff. Me? I'd pay a pretty large sum for the assurance that Mos Def would never sing again.But I digress. Because the problem here isn't that he sings, or mails in the lyrics, or spends the last 70 seconds just yelling out random comments, or even that he made a fairly obvious remake of a Temptations song. The problem is that we already have a remake of "A Message From a Black Man." Ill Bill of the group Non Phixion featured a song titled "Unstoppable" on his 2004 release What's Wrong With Bill? and if you give it a listen you will hear the same chorus, the same beat (albeit a little faster), the same everything from "Undeniable" ... except that the Ill Bill version is probably better. "Unstoppable" isn't even one of the best tracks from that album, but Ill Bill's tenacious, angry flow is the update to "Message From a Black Man" that the song demanded, even if it wound be being a Message From a White Man. For that matter, even the use of the "no matter how hard you try" riff in the Rage Against the Machine song "Renegades of Funk" felt more appropriate than this pop-infused mess that Mos Def is slinging. (By the way, would you believe that this isn't even the worst transgression of production laziness on Tru3 Magic? Mos also raps over a Juvenile track for one song and then butchers a glorious GZA track on another.)I doubt many people responsible for handing out Grammy's know who Ill Bill is so I guess I can't blame them for being complete suckers, but take one listen to "Unstoppable" and then switch over to Mos Def's "Undeniable" and you tell me which track is better. I can already tell you which one is more original. What is undeniable is that this song is a total rip-off. The Score: 6.

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

Music Review: Eminem featuring 50 Cent - The Re-Up

Adam Hoff — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 17:04:05 EST

Eminem's new Shady/Aftermath compilation Eminem Presents the Re-Up is the latest hip-hop release to make an early "debut" on the net, which means that I've been spending the past few hours weeding out the crap from the quality. Considering we've got 22 tracks and that they run the gamut from recycled beats to relative genius, it took some work. There are several quality songs on the album, most notably all of the stuff that Stat Quo is featured on (especially "Get Low" and "Tryin to Win"). Obviously, this is a good sign for the Aftermath's Atlanta rep and should serve to raise expectations for the long-awaited Statlanta. Another general observation is that most of the stuff I really liked on this release came from all the producers other than Eminem. Other than the remix to "Ski Mask Way" (which actually improves upon the overlooked Disco D original from The Massacre), Eminem doesn't really produce any true gems here, with the stellar cuts come courtesy of Alchemist, Dre, and Witt and Pep. Which sort of confirms my suspicion that Eminem isn't all that great of a producer and that he's been recycling his best song -- Jay-Z's "Moment of Clarity" -- for the past three years. But whatever. One of the Dre tracks on the album is the title track, which isn't great as much as it is important. Why? Because <i>The Re-Up</i> announces the return of the Old 50 Cent. You know, the pre-Candy Shop 50, the "I'm not a marksman while sparkin' so I spray random" 50. There's no way to know whether this version is here to say or whether he will return to his quest of becoming the biggest R&B star on the planet, but I did an auditory double take the first time I heard this song. The whole thing start off in rather innocuous fashion. A pretty mellow beat box kicks off the track before a throbbing base and typical Dre synth merge with a rather strange "boom, boom, cha" chant. The whole effect gives some sense of atmosphere and we are clued in that this is to be a "hard" track, especially when Eminem tries to launch into that aggressive style that used to be his whole persona but now feels like a role he's playing. He has a few typical Eminem rapid-fire rhymes that are on par with his verse from Obie Trice's "We All Die Someday" (probably his last great guest appearance), but certainly doesn't blow the lid off it. By the time the song was 1:45 in, I was ready to chalk it up as a total loss, and I'll be honest, I definitely wasn't expecting Ferrari 50 to save the day. But boy does he ever. He launches right into a kiss my ass revelry that includes the lines "the clean parts/the s***** parts/my bullet wounds, my beauty marks/the fifth will tear your ass apart" and that just glides over the beat, suddenly making the previously boring track sound haunting and menacing. I hit rewind four times before moving on.After a brief trip to Genericville (although it still sounds good), the beat changes up and splices in the instrumental from "In Da Club," which is both a little surprising but also kind of nice, like getting a phone call from an old friend. And the change of pace is perfect, because 50 switches his flow up right along with the beat. Not only that, but he pulls off his greatest coup on the track within this mini interlude as he combats all of the vitriol and recent success of the Game with just a few bars, rhyming: "I carried Game's style for nine months and gave birth to it/now I feel like a proud father watching him do it." 50 really only has one card to play with Game and that is that he, in effect, "made him." I'm not sure I agree with the sentiment, especially since Game seems better now without 50, but the argument sure was presented beautifully. Less is more and all that. After the brief segue into 50's favorite pastime of dissing Game, the beat is flipped back to the throbbing bassline, which 50 greets with manic energy and hammers home ("Every day is Dre day, front and cause a melee/turn a town upside down/with a frown upside down/I smile and do something foul/and watch my money pile/I'm f****** with straight stacks/I'm kicking you straight facts/I hit you where they bag it punk and bring me mine right back").All told, it's my favorite 45 seconds of 50 Cent since he obliterated Ja Rule on "Back Down." And I have to tell you, it makes this song one to remember. We can only hope this version of 50 Cent (he also provides some memorable lyrics two tracks later on "Jimmy Crack Corn") is here to stay. Track Score: 8/10.50's Verse: 9.5/10

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.

One Man's Heisman Poll: Final Edition

Adam Hoff — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 10:12:19 EST

I skipped the Heisman poll last week, waiting instead for the big USC-Notre Dame showdown, just in case Brady Quinn had a 500-yard, 6-touchdown game up his sleeve. Obviously, he did not, which means this race is over. Ladies and gentlemen, your 2006 Heisman winner ... Troy Smith. Duh.Here is my final Heisman top 10 of 2006. 1. Troy Smith, QB, Ohio State (last week's rank: 2). Smith probably needed only a victory over Michigan to secure this award, but he left little doubt when he threw for 316 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Buckeyes to a 42-39 victory over the Wolverines. Smith finished the season as the undisputed leader of the nation's best team and he racked up 30 touchdowns against just five interceptions in the process. While his 2,507 passing yards don't stack up to the 3,278 of Brady Quinn, Smith has the edge in most other key stats, including: QB rating (167.9 to 151.6), completion percentage (67.0 to 63.4), sacks (just 13 to Quinn's 30), and yards per attempt (8.4 to 7.6). Granted, Smith might have had a better line and more explosive weapons at his disposal, but it can be countered that Quinn played in a more favorable system for a quarterback. You could probably go back and forth comparing the two as individual players, but ultimately, football is a team game and the fact that Ohio State ran the table makes all the difference. The Buckeyes held on to the very end and for that reason, Smith should win this award in a landslide. Previous Heisman PollsFirst Edition Second Edition Third Edition Fourth Edition Fifth Edition Sixth Edition2. Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame (1). Even in a lopsided defeat to USC, Quinn kept on putting up solid numbers, throwing for 274 yards and three scores and even leading the Irish in rushing with 74 yards on the ground. That said, it wasn't nearly enough to overcome Smith. Quinn will have to console himself with the likelihood that he will be the top pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. Hundred dollar bills make for nice tissues. 3. Mike Hart, RB, Michigan (3). I was watching some college hoops last week when I saw the finalists for the Maxwell Award (for player of the year) scroll across the screen, and to my shock and surprise, Mike Hart wasn't on the list. How is this possible? There were only three names to be found, which were Smith, Quinn, and Rutgers' Ray Rice. Now, I like Rice as much as anyone (just read a few of these Heisman polls), but I don't see how he can be ahead of Hart on any player of the year list or ballot. Hart topped off a magnificent junior campaign by shredding Ohio State's defense for 142 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries. He finished the season with 1,515 yards and 14 touchdowns for one of the top three teams in the country. Consider me confused. 4. Ray Rice, RB, Rutgers (4). Of course, just because Hart got robbed doesn't mean that Rice is anything short of fantastic. The guy was the heart and soul of a feel-good Rutgers team that is a win away from a Big East title and an appearance in a BCS bowl game. Rice is nearing 1,500 yards and has 17 rushing touchdowns with a chance for more against West Virginia this week. His second half against Louisville alone should have him heading across the bridge for the award ceremony. And if there is one good thing about Rice leaping ahead of Hart in the Maxwell fiasco it is that voters can't ignore him any longer, lest they look like morons. 5. Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas (6). The Razorbacks' magical run came to an end against LSU, but that certainly wasn't McFadden's fault. Arguably the nation's most exciting player, McFadden put up another fantastic performance against a tough defense by rushing 21 times for 182 yards and two scores. And once again, he even handled QB duties, completing both of his passes out of the single wing for 33 yards (maybe they should have let them throw them all, considering quarterback Cody Dick went 3-for-17). Going into the SEC title game, McFadden has totaled 1,485 yards on the ground and scored 14 times. Give him a seat at the Hilton. 6. Steve Slaton, RB, West Virginia (8). Slaton's story is the same as it has been for about a month: the stats are there, the high WVU ranking is not. He needed the Mountaineers to be in the title hunt and that just hasn't happened. That means the 147 yards per game and 7.3 per carry are just empty numbers. Of course, this is in many ways an award that focuses on numbers, so he remains in the mix at #6.7. Colt Brennan, QB, Hawaii (8). Brennan could make a case for a seat at the trophy presentation ceremony, given Hawaii's surprising success and his absolutely ridiculous stats. However, I just can't see him passing any of the four running backs ahead of him on the list. The stats are insane though, of course. 4,589 yards, 51 touchdowns (against nine picks), a 186.7 QB rating, and a 71.9% completion percentage. Yikes. He should be a prime candidate in 2007. 8. Ian Johnson, RB, Boise State (10). So much for that collapsed lung. Johnson made an unlikely return to the Boise State lineup and ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns as the Broncos finished the season undefeated and landed a spot in a BCS bowl. Johnson now has 1,613 yards and an NCAA-leading 24 touchdowns on the season. 9. Marshawn Lynch, RB, Cal (7). Lynch is a fantastic talent, but the loss to USC sunk his ship. He can pile on a few more stats this weekend against Stanford, but he will go no higher on this list. 10(tie). JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU (NR) and P.J. Hill, RB, Wisconsin (NR). For the last spot, I'm going with two players that were overlooked stars on overlooked teams. LSU is the team that makes Ohio State glad there is no playoff system, because they are the best two-loss team in the country, hands down. Russell has had a really good year for the Tigers and finishes with 26 touchdowns against seven picks, 2,797 yards, a fantastic 9.1 yards per attempt, and a 168.1 passer rating. In case you were wondering, those last three stats are all better than those of Troy Smith, while the TD/INT ratio is in the neighborhood. As for Hill, he had a little hiccup late in the season when he hurt his ankle and had his coach call him out after the game, but 1,533 yards and 15 touchdowns for an 11-1 team from the Big 10 simply has to be on this list. Hill is one of many underclassmen that should make for intriguing candidates next year.

Adam Hoff is the columnist for the Webby-winning WhatifSports.com. He can be reached at wis.insider@gmail.com.