A half a year after its initially scheduled release date, the solo debut album from Jadakiss has finally dropped. Finally. Yep, it sure did get released.
What was it that I was waiting for again? While listening to "Kiss tha Game Goodbye," I really can't remember what that was. Jadakiss is definitely one of the most talented MCs in the game, and his earlier work with the Lox seemed to set him apart from the other members of the group, Styles and Shiek.
Over the past year or so, he's done his best to stay in the hip-hop spotlight, appearing on every other remix and dropping freestyles on the radio and TV -- all in anticipation of his album release. Finally, after some legal delays, the disc is here.
Let's give Jadakiss credit where it's due. "Kiss tha Game Goodbye" is a good album. On more than one occasion, Kiss has relayed the sentiment that he didn't want to be in the rap game after age 30 - that he wanted to write an album on which he could make money enough to stop rapping. Though previous Lox albums on Bad Boy and Ruff Ryders didn't move many units, "Kiss tha Game Goodbye" could do it.
|
No matter what beat or subject he's rapping on, Jadakiss's wit never gets dull. He's got serious skill for a one-liner style of rap; and his assertion on "We Gonna Make It" might not be far off: "I'm the reason n-as got deals the past few years/sound anything like Kiss? Then sign right here."
Although it's his own product, the album gets strength from a few straight- up Lox tracks. While Kiss holds his own throughout, he seems most in his element on these. Songs like "We Gonna Make It" and "It's Time I See You" conjure the grimy street spirit of the earlier albums.
In addition to the Lox, "Kiss tha Game Goodbye" features cameos from several rap heavyweights, including DMX, Nas and Snoop Dogg. Though Snoop Dogg and DMX both drop throwaway verses, "Show Discipline" featuring Nas shows a rapper on the lyrical comeback. Expectations run high for Nas's forthcoming "Stillmatic" album.
On his own, Jadakiss broadens his sound on this disc to include more songs about girls. Some, like the Neptunes-produced "Knock Yourself Out" and the Timbaland track "Nasty Girl," seem directed at the ladies, while others like "Is We F-in or What?" are obviously not. His best foray into this area is "On My Way," a clever and funny boast about his girls all over America.
Perhaps, then, considering the solidity of this album, this reviewer's disappointment is not with the actual product but with its potential. Although most of the album tracks work well alone and some together, the songs come off more like a hastily glued collage of themes than an album.
In fact, I'd say this album is one of the most transparent overtures to crossover success in recent memory. The modern mainstream rap album definitely has settled into a sort of template for success: some threats, some stuff about ladies, and then an uplifting track (you know, for the kids).
Although it's a limiting form, it still gives room for creativity, room that Jadakiss just doesn't use. His witty delivery never really reaches a flow over beats that are, for the most part, forgettable.
|
Although he's clever, Jadakiss can't hide the obvious - that the Kiss who raps on "Jada's Got a Gun" is not the same character who raps on the club track "Nasty Girl." It's O.K. to be versatile, but he sounds like he's pandering. His cynicism isn't put to much use on anything besides talking about guns and broads.
Although the album is certainly "in the moment" with copious references to 20-inch rims and expensive women's clothing, it also sounds like it might have a short shelf life. Save "We Gonna Make It" and the hilarious "Jay Jerkin'" skit, which takes a stab at record executives, there is nothing on this album with real staying power.
The worst, however, comes at the end, with the track "Keep Ya Head Up," a song about making it out of the ghetto. Although the lyrics aren't bad, the wailing chorus and gospel-sounding instrumentation are out of place on the album. He has the nerve to lament "babies with no socks on / eatin' popcorn / and everybody know what they moms and they pops on."
Of course you do, Jadakiss. You just said you sold kilos of it. You can't talk about being the first crack dealer to "cook up on the George Foreman grill" and then dedicate a song to "all the infants born addicted." That's just too much.
So "Kiss tha Game Goodbye" will probably move some units; Jadakiss may even get that elusive platinum plaque and be able to leave hip-hop like he said he wanted.
But the fans who buy this album need to know that Jadakiss thinks you don't know the difference between a real effort and one that's tailored for pop success. Some rap albums have achieved a balance between the two. This one does not.
Read More
The best albums of 2014
By Noah Zeidman | December 4, 2014Across genres, it has been a pretty great year in music.
Top 10 movies of 2014
December 4, 2014This has been an excellent year for film, offering everything from gripping blockbusters to innovative personal films.
Iggy Azalea is “Reclassified”
December 4, 2014It has become common practice among music artists to repackage their albums in an effort to simultaneously boost single sales and dish out new content by slightly renaming the album or slapping “Deluxe” onto the title.
