ER

A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal VIII

Nov 14, 2013

JR
Stage· 375 messages
Nov 14, 2013

Can We Still Bring It Back: That Old New York Rap

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

Oh hey
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

Hey! Happy Black Album Day.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

(I mean, also G-Unit's "Beg for Mercy" and Tupac: Resurrection, but regardless.)
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

And we were going to talk (Tawk?) about Trinidad James' comment about how NYC rap is dead, but...we decided to do this instead.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

But I guess it begs the question: was this album the last gasp of NYC rap?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

First of all
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

New York rap isn't dead
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

can we just get that out of the way
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

Rap isn't dead
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

New York isn't dead
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

New York Rap isn't dead
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“that whole 'hip hop is dead' thing is dead”

JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

Tupac isn't dead.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

Point: Jake
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

It's such a funny thing to me that Trinidad James, of all people, has had an effect on people's hometown pride
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

OF ALL PEOPLE
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

it's like people are more intense about this than Kendrick!
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

and he called himself the King of New York
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:05 PM

Yeah, but maybe it's BECAUSE Trinidad is who he is. He's a very easy target.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:05 PM

And so Maino can threaten to clean his teeth or whatever.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:05 PM

I love The Black Album
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:05 PM

but it's not the last great thing that NYC has produced
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:05 PM

and it won't be
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:06 PM

but I love it for so many reasons
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:06 PM

Alright, let's go through: what're your top three songs?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:06 PM

Well hold on
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:06 PM

I just wanna say that I really did buy into the idea that Jay wouldn't be rapping again
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:06 PM

and I really didn't want to believe that he and Dame were in any way at odds
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:07 PM

Right, same. We were so young and naive.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:07 PM

the Rocafella organization was everything to me
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:07 PM

and when Jay put out Fade to Black, it seemed like everything was cool
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:07 PM

and Jay even shouted Dame out on the last track of the album
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:08 PM

I wanted so bad to be somehow affiliated with Rocafella
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:08 PM

hence any Rocawear purchases
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:08 PM

Jay was that powerful
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:08 PM

in certain ways, more powerful than now
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:08 PM

cause there were less rappers
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:09 PM

and less ways to get to be famous
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:09 PM

or even "famous"
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:10 PM

Right. I don't think I felt Jay Z's connection as personally at the time. For some reason, I think I slept on the Black Album?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:10 PM

The Black Album is a great listen
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:10 PM

I don't know what I was listening to at the time, but I definitely feel like I had to catch up.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:10 PM

and everything still has resonance
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:11 PM

and to tie it back to the regional stuff...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:11 PM

Jay worked with multiple producers
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:11 PM

the original idea, from what I can remember, was to work with 12 different producers on 12 different tracks
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:12 PM

and the funny thing is, people look back on that album (with DJ Quik from the West Coast and Kanye from Chicago and Timbaland and Pharell from VA and Just Blaze from New Jersey) and claim it as a NYC-specific opus
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:13 PM

True, that's a good point. But it's not like DJ Quik was doing a super WC beat, or that Kanye was region-specific. "Lucifer" isn't the sound of Chicago.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:14 PM

I don't think it's NYC so much as "this sounds like Jay Z, who is from NYC."
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:14 PM

I suppose...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

re: Kanye, I think he remade the Chicago sound
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

and with the Blueprint, gave it to Jay, who made it more nationally known
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

Right, and so then it becomes "Jay is bringing back soul."
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

Ye did take that from NoID, afterall
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

and I'd say Quik's song is very West Coast
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:15 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“Did Mark Ronson have anything to do with the album? Or just Fade to Black? That FTB mixtape is soooo good”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:16 PM

Jake, in regards to Ronson, Just Blaze told us n our Hypemen podcast that Ronson did the music for FTB the movie
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:16 PM

because Just's samples were not clearable for the film
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:18 PM

I think it's amazing how big some of these songs still are. Almost all of them get played at SOB's still and for the foreseeable future -- although that's presuming SOB's opens again.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:18 PM

I hadn't heard that about SOB's
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:18 PM

interesting
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:18 PM

Yeah, they're big songs
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:19 PM

PSA might be Jay's most popular today actually
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:19 PM

everyone loves PSA
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:19 PM

Which is sort-of crazy, right? That wasn't a single, I don't think.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:19 PM

it definitely wasn't
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:19 PM

but that album really crossed over
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

and I think a big selling point was that this was Jay's LAST album
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

Andrew Barber from Fake Shore Drive said earlier on Twitter that his "retirement" was the ultimate troll
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

Wait, lemme stick on that point: what did you think when it came out that Jay was un-retiring?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

okay...
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

Did you feel betrayed?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:20 PM

I love Jay Z
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

a humungous fan
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

he can do very little wrong with me
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

But that album was pretty wrong, ha.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

well hold on
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

I thought he'd written the perfect ending to the story
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:21 PM

he'd said all he'd had to say
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

he'd worked with all the greats
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

he'd had the documentary
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

the MSG show
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

he'd passed the torch
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

it all made sense
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

and in a sense, it was like Michael Jordan hitting the shot in Utah
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

right? Perfect ending
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:22 PM

I agree with that.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

but on the other hand
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

how do you tell someone to not continue with their craft
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

so did I feel betrayed?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

I'm not sure that's the word I'd use
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:23 PM

I think the following album was not what I'd wanted in a comeback album
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:24 PM

I also didn't want him to look weaker than when he's left
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:24 PM

he'd
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:24 PM

you?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

I think when he unretired I felt a little bit like, So wait: was this all just a publicity stunt? Did you ever want to retire in the first place?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

I never took it as a publicity stunt
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

I wanted to believe
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

Right. I did believe.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

And then I didn't.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:25 PM

and no, I wasn't actively rooting for retirement
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:26 PM

Of course not!
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:26 PM

but if he chose to do it, I was like, alright
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:26 PM

and bought into it
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:26 PM

Right, I agree with all of that.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:27 PM

★ Spotlighted from Blake Ian

“There is a such thing as sticking around too long in all art forms... When you do really have something to say, but you just want to keep putting stuff out”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:27 PM

★ Spotlighted from Blake Ian

“Look at Chevy Chase's later films! haha”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:27 PM

to Blake's points...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:27 PM

I think the times are different too
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:27 PM

Jay has adapted, where I'm not sure Chevy did
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:28 PM

Chevy has always played the same character
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:28 PM

Well, now, with the Internet and culture-at-large the way it is, no one can ever retire.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:28 PM

that's why I gave Jay massive credit when he did American Gangster - an album INSPIRED BY the movie
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:28 PM

Or rather, no one can ever disappear.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:28 PM

★ Spotlighted from Blake Ian

“That was the extreme example... but from you guys are saying it seems like he didn't REALLY need to make the last record... he just did it to make something.”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:29 PM

Blake - that's not what I'm saying
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:29 PM

Jeff?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:29 PM

I'm not saying that, but I think Blake's confusing his unretirement album with his most recent one.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:29 PM

in regards to The Black Album, I think he did it because he was done
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:29 PM

right
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:30 PM

as for The Black Album's success, I think it stands on its own as a great piece of art
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:30 PM

Has he made an album as good as TBA since?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:30 PM

no
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:31 PM

I don't think any come close.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:31 PM

minus Justify My Love, it's almost flawless
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:31 PM

no, you're correct there
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:31 PM

That time was the perfect moment for The Black Album
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:31 PM

Yeah, I wonder if I'd rather have "This Life Forever" on there instead of "Justify My Thug," or if that seems like too much of the same?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:32 PM

though if they made The Black Album today, it'd still stand up
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:32 PM

like, he was in the right frame of mind, worked with the right people, had the right storyline
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:32 PM

and that's what a lot of artists are missing today:
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:32 PM

a storyline
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:32 PM

they sort of exist for the now
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

and don't know what the long game is
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

Right, I always just feel like people are putting things out just to remain in the conversation nowadays.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

As opposed to sticking to their own narratie.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

Narrative.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

yeah
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:33 PM

Maybe the only one who's doing it might be Kanye?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:34 PM

Kanye's certainly the best example of someone doing it right
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:34 PM

And Drake, I guess.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:34 PM

and, by the way, he knows when it's time to improvise
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:34 PM

Has "Justify My Thug" aged better than you expected?
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

I think it sounds better now than it did.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

I'll say this re: Justify My Thug...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

I haven't listened to it in probably 8-9 years ha ha
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

and when it came on the radio today, I was like, oh...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

not that bad
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

but still
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

I think it was fat on the album
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

as in, it could have been trimmed off
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:35 PM

Yeah, and Jay's got some clunker lines on there.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

but Encore is excellent
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

Lucifer is excellent
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

Dirt Off Your Shoulder still does the job
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

Yes to all of those.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

I mean, they're all great
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

FUNNY THING
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

do you remember...
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:36 PM

uh oh.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:37 PM

#REMEMBER
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:37 PM

when Busta took offense to the line in What More Can I Say?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:37 PM

like, really took offense to it?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:37 PM

"animated like, say a Busta Rhymes"
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:37 PM

Yeah, I sort-of like the idea of people being offended by things, though.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

it's such a small thing to set someone off
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“Did he take offense to Kanye's line in Gold Digger, too?”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

Jake, I don't think so
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

Right, but Busta was probably (PROBABLY?) on steroids.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

What a crazy thing to say "probably" about.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

back then?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

Maybe
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

I guess he might have been
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:38 PM

I don't know. Ask George Mitchell.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

In the order of important Jay albums...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

The Black Album is probably number 2
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

Important, as opposed to best?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

behind the Blueprint
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

You don't think Reasonable Doubt is the most important?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:39 PM

hard to say
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

because if you're going to talk about what introduced him and the sound he'd become famous for to the masses...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

it was The Blueprint
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

No, I'd argue it was Vol. 2
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

because of Annie?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

I don't know
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

I mean, I know how important that song was
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:40 PM

but the album...
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:41 PM

When Vol 2 came out, Jay Z headlined over DMX and Juvenile.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:41 PM

but you got soulful Jay on The Blueprint
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:41 PM

Excuse me, Ja Rule.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:41 PM

like, that's a female audience now
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:42 PM

Song Cry
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:42 PM

Girls, Girls, Girls
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:42 PM

But he wouldn't have reached those people without Annie.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:42 PM

So when you're talking about importance...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

yes, but does one song outweigh everything on another album?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

like The Blueprint was a cohesive project
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

a great piece of art
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

as an album, what was most important?
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

I'm not arguing that! We're talking about what's important, not what's his best work.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:43 PM

Can I Get A...
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

Jigga What, Jigga Who
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

Money Ain't a Thang
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

Money, Cash, Hoes
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

If you have one album to take with you to an island where you have a cd player...
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

These are all huge songs that crossed him over.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:44 PM

what would it be?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:45 PM

Wait, just to close this point: Vol. 2 is his highest selling album.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:45 PM

At 5x platinum.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:45 PM

And if I were to take one album of his, I'd take...hm. Blueprint 1 or Black Album. Probably Blueprint.
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

You?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

and Reasonable Doubt sold comparably little
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

but it's important too
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

Right. Because it set up his persona as the "cooler than thou"
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“BEST OF BOTH WORLDS”

JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

Counterpart to Nas.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

OH TRUE THANK YOU JAKE GOD
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

I happen to like Best of Both Worlds
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

the first one
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

Eric bought that album.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

not the second one
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

So, cool.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:46 PM

I did and I'm not ashamed of it
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

I still listen to that album proudly
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

I always sorta hate Jay's southern accent on "99 Problems"
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

well, Jay
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

is not an actor
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

I wish Pimp C was his acting coach.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

another funny thing from the Black Album era...
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:47 PM

His vocal coach.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

is that Jay said he might get into acting
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

Really?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

yeah
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

I remember that
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

Weird.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

but I think it was just a front
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

like, something to take the retirement more seriously
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

How do you think he did as a record exec?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:48 PM

because I think he saw it as an easier departure from Dame
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

and a place where Dame couldn't control him
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

or have his hands in his projects
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

or be a part of his life
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

He signed Jeezy, signed Rihanna, Teairra Mari...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

I liked Jay as an exec
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

Pissed off LL
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

Put out "Fishscale"
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

well, I didn't like when he sent off DMX in a huff
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

Right.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:49 PM

DMX on Columbia seemed sacrilegious
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

and if we're gonna be honest here, LL the same thing
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

How did he spin that? Do you remember?
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

though, LL was making bad music
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

DMX wasn't making good music either
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

and someone had to make the rough decisions
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

I'm trying to think what music DMX was even putting out then.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:50 PM

so that was Jay
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:51 PM

I'll tell you this though...
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:51 PM

I was SUPER excited when Flex premiered the Hustlin' remix with Ross, Jeezy and Jay
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:51 PM

that was a good night of listening
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:52 PM

Yes.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:52 PM

I think, more than anything, Black Album reminds me of Funk Flex.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:52 PM

I feel like NY radio was all Jay Z, all the time.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:53 PM

and 50
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:53 PM

Right, but Beg for Mercy wasn't as big as this.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:53 PM

no, but 50 still ran everything
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:53 PM

And "Change Clothes" has not aged well.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

that was the first single!
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

And?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

just saying it's funny
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

Oh, yes.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

you can tell what Jay likes by what he still plays today
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

in concert
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“Without Pharrell, Just Blaze, and Kanye - do you guys think Jay would have gotten to be as big as he is?”

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Eric Rosenthal · 6:54 PM

Jake: NOPE
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

it's teamwork
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Jeff Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

hahahaha, I was going to write the same thing.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

NOPE.
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

those Rocafella years were played perfectly
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

everything they did was the right move
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“There's Swizzy and the Heatmakerz”

JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:55 PM

Hm. I wonder how Jay Z would have sounded over Dipset production.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

no
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

That would've sounded wrong.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

it also wouldn't have been as big
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

I agree.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

there's a reason he's on one level and they're below that
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

also, the idea of The Black Album itself
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:56 PM

the artwork
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

Well. It's not like Kanye's production is super-broad?
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

the sound
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

the look
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

Well Jeff
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

everything fit
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

Kanye's songs on that album played their position
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

they didn't need to be the biggest, broadest ones
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

I'm not arguing that.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:57 PM

(even though Encore is the perfect closer)
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:58 PM

I'm just saying that Swizz is capable (or was, I guess) of being "that guy"
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Eric Rosenthal · 6:58 PM

I think Swizz could make big songs, but not the BIGGEST for Jay
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:58 PM

I think it's a weird hypothetical, but not one necessarily worth dismissing off jump.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:59 PM

so let's go back to your original question
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 6:59 PM

do you think that The Black Album was the last great NYC album?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:00 PM

I'd argue it was.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:00 PM

(But I mean, I love the new French Montana album.)
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:00 PM

But New York - as like, an idea - sorta breathed its last breath on this album.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:00 PM

I don't think anyone has touched it.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:01 PM

And wait.
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Eric Rosenthal · 7:01 PM

people need to stop getting so aggy about what NYC sounds like
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Eric Rosenthal · 7:01 PM

and consider that The Black Album is NYC to the fullest
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:01 PM

I think that NYC has an evolving sound. But as a leader? That was the last time, at least for the past ten years.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:02 PM

even if Premier and Pete Rock didn't touch it
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:02 PM

That was when NYC ceded ground to Atlanta and then Houston and then Atlanta and now LA.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:02 PM

And while I think NYC has a lot of great talent, no one's really capturing AMERICA the way other cities are right now.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:02 PM

hmmmmm
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Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

I think it's like this:
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

New York hasn't produced the right personality yet
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

like, 50 Cent could have been it
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

A$AP?
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

but he made choices that impeded that
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

A$AP has potential
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:03 PM

a lot
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:04 PM

he just needs to be bigger
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:04 PM

and cross over a little more
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:04 PM

but Papoose can't be the spokesman
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:05 PM

Of course not.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:05 PM

But no one besides Papoose wants that.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:05 PM

so as someone who hasn't given proper listening time to The Black Album lately, do you think you will going forward
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:05 PM

?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:06 PM

Maybe a couple of songs might've been overlooked, but for the most part, I feel like I hear it fairly often.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:06 PM

Like, even though I didn't remember "Threat" by name, I know all these songs pretty well.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

I don't think I need to listen to it much more.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

by the way, did you see that ALL of Eminem's albums were charting this week?
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

that is incredible
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

Yeah, that always annoys me how much Eminem fans like Eminem.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

Because I'm like, THEN SUPPORT OTHER RAPPERS.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:07 PM

that's weird to say though
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:08 PM

because wouldn't you assume that the people buying old albums are those who hadn't had the albums before?
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:08 PM

Eh. I don't know. It could also be new devices or kids of people who bought Eminem albums.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:08 PM

that many people doing that?
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:08 PM

I'm not so sure
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

can't be mad at people who do buy albums
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

they support who they support
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

Right. I wish it wasn't just his fans that did it.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

it's about other rappers engaging their audiences and getting them to spend money to support them
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

★ Spotlighted from Jake O'Connor

“Imagine all of the hip high school kids, showing off their Slim Shady LP albums - like, "Yeah his new stuff is good, but have you heard THIS?!'”

JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:09 PM

Can I just say:
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

It was so smart of Jay to release the a capella version of Black Album.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

Point: Jake
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

yes, totally
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

MEME-MAKER JAY
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

Like, it gave everyone Grey Album
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

you know who does that too?
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

Chromeo
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

Brown Album
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

I feel like there were a million mash-ups.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

but yes, it was a genius move
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:10 PM

especially for someone of that caliber
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

I do wonder what the original producers think
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

I wonder if the RIAA hated it or loved it.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

Definitely didn't love it.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

good question
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

whatever
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

we loved it
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

RIAA hates everything.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

Yes.
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

Alright, well. This was fun.
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

Happy Black Album Day
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

LIVE FROM NEW YORK this week
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

I'm Eric
JR

Jeff Rosenthal · 7:11 PM

I'm Jeff
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:12 PM

Thanks for tawking
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:12 PM

come back next week
ER

Eric Rosenthal · 7:12 PM

and bring friends!