Young Jeezy | The Recession

Def Jam
By SAM UBL  |  September 10, 2008
4.0 4.0 Stars
youngjeezy.jpg
Young Jeezy made a number of good decisions in crafting The Recession, but the best was to disregard rap’s stupider commercial requisites. So: only one slow jam, barely any guest verses, no stilted attempts to broaden his audience, and — deep breath — no auto-tune. Neither, however, will you hear any ill-advised formal experiments or state-of-hip-hop laments. Remember, Jeezy disdains rappers, just like the teen movie anti-hero who decries the phoniness of movie stars. He offers the thrilling fantasy of transcending the banal rules to which he is subject and which he has internalized and mastered. “Word Play” outlines his persona as quickly and dirtily as any sweeping establishing shot from Thug Motivation 101 or 102 (“You niggaz want word play but I’m ’bout bird play”), but “By the Way” is the emphatic forward leap: looped atop a ridiculously huge beat built from ridiculously lo-fi Midi synths, those three indifferent words become a rap in-joke to end all rap in-jokes. Elsewhere we get lots of the usual earthquake bass and keening synth arpeggios and staccato horns, and, of course, Jeezy’s hypnotically commanding flow, all of it amounting to one of the hardest mainstream rap albums in years.
Related: Fourth quarter starters, The street scene, The Big Hurt: Winners and losers, More more >
  Topics: CD Reviews , Celebrity News, Entertainment, Music Stars,  More more >
| More


Most Popular
ARTICLES BY SAM UBL
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   PETER BJORN AND JOHN | SEASIDE ROCK  |  October 01, 2008
    It’s really pointless. And somewhat nice.  
  •   YOUNG JEEZY | THE RECESSION  |  September 10, 2008
    Remember, Jeezy disdains rappers, just like the teen movie anti-hero who decries the phoniness of movie stars.
  •   FRIENDLY FIRES  |  September 02, 2008
    The Hertfordshire trio’s debut full-length cobbles from some of dance rock’s silliest (and sappiest) party mavens, among them Talking Heads, Prince, and the Rapture.
  •   LYKKE LI  |  August 26, 2008
    Lykke Li may be hotly tipped for Starbucks stereoplay, but she’s more “Konichiwa Bitches” than Keren Ann.
  •   PERHAPST  |  August 19, 2008
    To say he’s not a leading-man type is an understatement.

 See all articles by: SAM UBL