Saturday, Nov. 19th marked the 20th anniversary of the releases of three exemplary Hip-Hop albums: DJ Shadow’s debut, Endtroducing…, Foxy Brown’s Ill Na Na and Mobb Deep’s third studio LP, Hell On Earth.
Today we (prematurely) celebrate the tenth anniversary of both JAY Z‘s Kingdom Come and Snoop Dogg’s Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, both which were released on Nov. 21st, 2006.
Known as Shawn Carter’s ninth studio album, Kingdom Come also marked the grand return of the G.O.A.T. following his early retirement in 2003 with the release of The Black Album, an album which garnered massive acclaim from various music publications.
To follow up such a monumentous project as The Black Album would usually prove career suicide for any other artist, especially after announcing a retirement just three years prior, but this is JAY Z we’re talking about.
Although the album had lots of high moments, the 14-track long-player ultimately proved to be a flop in comparison to his previous albums.
While Kingdom Come was backed by incredible production from the likes of Just Blaze, The Neptunes, Swizz Beatz, Dr. Dre (who provided his signature sonics for three songs) and Kanye West, Kingdom Come fell apart at the seams with lukewarm songs such as “Hollywood,” “30 Something” and even the Usher and Pharrell-featured “Anything” — proving to be frivolous, considering that America at the time was still reeling from the horrors of 2005’s Hurricane Katrina.
The album did have its high points, with songs like the somber Dr. Dre-produced “Minority Report” which served as a dedication to the victims and families of Hurricane Katrina; while also taking shots at the Bush adminstration for its lack of empathy surrounding the tragedy, the otherworldly single “Beach Chair” featuring Coldplay’s Chris Martin, “Lost One,” “Do U Wanna Ride” and “Dig A Hole,” infamous for the shots sent towards Cam’ron in the wake of Cam’s “You Gotta Love It.”
I’m like air, lil’ shots go through me
Won’t tear one tissue, no tears, no tissue, not an issue
Don’t cry for me
I peep these niggas from deep
Got a front row seat even if you don’t speak
Silent partner, I hear you loud and clear
Left a fingerprint, you ain’t gotta be there
I’m just waiting til’ you dig a hole big enough to put your whole body in
Then I’m gon’ body them
It’s nothing but a hobby to him
Simple as a serve in volley to him
Niggas like, “Hov, why don’t you get at ol’ boy?”
Why kill a puppet and leave Geppetto alive?
Why not wait to catch them all together?
That’s why you dig one big hole, one time
Snoop Dogg‘s eighth studio album, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment marked the first time the legendary Long Beach rapper worked with Dr. Dre since 2000’s Tha Last Meal and featured singles such as the West Coast posse-cut “Candy (Drippin’ Like Water),” “That’s That Shit” with R. Kelly, “Vato” featuring B. Real, and “Imagine” featuring Dr. Dre and D’Angelo.
Also worth mentioning is Yelawolf‘s debut, Radioactive — released five years ago and also marking his debut on Shady Records.
