Upcoming Events
  • On Friday, Andy Brown Park East hosts a Sunset Social: Movie in the Park, airing Moana at 6:30-9 p.m.
  • On Friday, Coppell High School Junior World Affairs Council holds Heritage Night from 7-11 p.m. at CHS Large and Small Commons.
  • On Saturday, Coppell Historical Society holds Hop Into Spring at Coppell Historical Museum from 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
The official student news site of Coppell High School

Coppell Student Media

The official student news site of Coppell High School

Coppell Student Media

The official student news site of Coppell High School

Coppell Student Media

Business Spectacle: Lilys Hair Studio (video)
Business Spectacle: Lily's Hair Studio (video)
October 26, 2023

Jay-Z’s ‘The Blueprint 3’ suffers from lack of plan

By Chris Nguyen
Features Editor

Jay-Z
The Blueprint 3
Label: Roc Nation

Ironically, Jay-Z’s Blueprint albums do not have much of a direction. Whereas the instant classic, The Blueprint, mixed and mashed classic soul samples alongside heavy lyrics dealing with personal conflicts and troubles, the not-so-great The Blueprint²: The Gift & The Curse left a lot of the grit from the original for a mainstream pop sheen boasting a very long list of guests performers, including his future wife Beyoncé.
NEW YORK, NY- SEPTEMBER 13: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys perform during the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on September 13, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup)
NEW YORK, NY- SEPTEMBER 13: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys perform during the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on September 13, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup)

Now, eight years after the first Blueprint dropped, Jay-Z releases The Blueprint 3, which unfortunately more closely resembles the second Blueprint than the first in the overall sound and quality. On his 11th solo album, we find him at the top of the music game with nothing left to prove—and really, not much left to do. All he actually does is tell you, repeatedly, that he is the best in the world.

On “Reminder,” the self-anointed Jigga Man states that he crushed “Elvis in his blue suede shoes.” If that did not make the point clear enough, he boasts that he has made his permanent mark on the world in “Already Home” (I’m in the hall already/on the wall already/I’m a work of art/I’m a Warhol already). He even recruits Rihanna and Kanye West to back up that he does, in fact, run this town.

With these constant boasts, instead of recalling the glory of The Blueprint, his latest album is more akin to 2007’s languid Graduation from his friend and frequent working partner West. On both albums, the rappers lose the self-awareness and conflict that undercut their ego-inflating lyrics and replace them with hollow self-esteem boosters celebrating their affluent life.

What salvages the album is the production by West and No I.D. The producers breathe some fresh air into their songs with samples from ‘70s soul and stand tall against the stale Timbaland-helmed tracks that rehash the beats from Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSounds. On “Already Home,” the never-ending boasts are made bearable by the dizzying strings and horns. While on “D.O.A.,” Jay-Z busies himself by offering some cranky old man advice that autotune is dead, as the saxophone, drums and heaven-sent guitar licks give it some street swagger.

For a shining moment, Jay-Z does finally lose the self-consciousness to show his love for his hometown of New York City on the Al Shuz-assisted “Empire State of Mind.” With Alicia Keys’ instant hook and an infectious, pulsating piano melody, the song soars above and beyond as pop perfection.

Nonetheless, songs like “Empire” and “Already Home” function as highlights more because they nod to Jay-Z’s greatest hits rather than adding to his legacy. It is in this way that in the pantheon of trilogies, The Blueprint 3 does not evoke The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, so much as The Godfather Part III.

Under the weight of fervent anticipation, both end up treading across familiar water and fail to reach new peaks.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover

Comments (0)

All Coppell Student Media Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *