Jay-Z - Blueprint 3 CD

Blueprint 3 album for sale Black Eyed Peas, the hip-hop crossover juggernaut that propelled singer Fergie and producer Will.I.Am to superstardom, have, since 2003's ELEPHUNK, been audaciously plugging away at their bombastic but lighthearted style of rap-cum-dance pop--an effort that has translated to a run of successful chart-topping singles including "My Humps," "Pump It," and "Don't Phunk with My Heart." Eager to follow up on the platinum-selling success of 2005's MONKEY BUSINESS, Black Eyed Peas have returned with THE E.N.D. (an acronym for "Energy Never Dies"), their third studio effort. Combining Will.I.Am's thumping 808 kick drum-infused beats with production assistance from a host of collaborators (including vocoder-loving Torontoians MSTRKRFT and French house veteran David Guetta), BEP's infectious party-time rhymes are an easy match for the album's Ed Banger-style of electro rapping and Auto Tune jamming, especially on lead-off single and sure-fire 2009 summer anthem "Boom Boom Pow." Audio Remasterers: Chris Bellman; Brian "BC" Catena. Arranger: will.i.am. Personnel: Hal Ritson (vocals, guitar, keyboards); George Pajon (guitar); will.i.am (piano, synthesizer, drum programming); Printz Board (keyboards, synthesizer, bass synthesizer, ...

Blueprint 3 buy CD music Eminem's RELAPSE, a double album released after five years of recorded silence, a record featuring Dr. Dre behind the boards for the first time since 2000, faced no shortage of the relentless pressure of expectations. A narrative of survival after facing down his demons in rehab unfurled with Eminem's usual twisted Swift-ian wit, RELAPSE should disappoint few fans (or critics for that matter) with its patented mix of hilariously spit venom and delirious self-loathing. Like Darren Aronofsky's adaptation of REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, 2009's RELAPSE finds the full horror element in drug addiction. Eminem's raps, for all their over-the-top humor, have always conjured up images fit for Fangoria, but as he comes out of rehab, seeking solace from his demons, Mr. Mathers amps up the gore on RELAPSE. Dre's beats lurk dark-thumping sinister while Em unleashes nightmare dreamscapes of murder, mayhem, and Britney-Spearsacide. One target who gets off surprisingly lightly this time around is his mother (a topic even Em admits in his introduction of which the world is probably sick); "My Mom" boasts softer, bouncier beats and a final line few hip-hop fans would ever expect to hear coming out of his mouth. Recording information: 54 Sound, Detroit, MI; Effigy Studios; KDS Music Studios, Orlando, FL; Record One Studios, Sherman Oaks, CA; Studio At The Palms, Las Vegas, NV. Photographers: Karin Catt; Julian Alexander. Personnel: Elizabeth Keener, Matthew St. Patrick (vocals); Jeff Bass, Mike Elizondo (guitar, keyboards); Sean Cruse (guitar); Trevor Lawrence (keyboards, scratches); Dawaun Parker, Luis Resto, Mark Batson (keyboards); Eric Danchick (sampler); Traci Nelson (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Dr. Dre; Eminem.

Blueprint 3 songs THE BLUEPRINT was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance. "Song Cry" was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Awards for Male Rap Solo Performance. It's official. With his fifth album, aptly titled THE BLUEPRINT, Jay-Z has crowned himself the king of rap music. Laying a foundation for other MC's to follow, Jay Hova presents a lyrical masterpiece. And to make matters worse (for the competition, that is), he does so over a selection of the tightest beats (Jus Blaze, Timbaland) to come by hip-hop since fellow Brooklyn-ite Notorious B.I.G. changed the game. Jay-Z sets it off with a clear and concise statement of his purpose, "The Ruler's Back." From then on, each track dares rappers who tried to test his skills to answer back this time. There's also the cleverly worded (sort of a) love song "Girls, Girls, Girls," where Jay calls out every type of woman in the book. He limits the guest appearances to just one when he collaborates with Eminem for "Renegade." As always, classic material proves why Jay-Z retains his iconic status in the hip-hop world. Parental Advisory Personnel: Stephanie Miller, Michele Mills, Josey Scott, Keon Bryce, Q-Tip, Slick Rick, Biz Markie (vocals); Victor Flowers (organ); DJ Head (drum programming). Audio Mixers: Jason Goldstein; Doug Wilson; Eminem; Jimmy Douglas; Richard Huredia. Recording information: Baseline Studios, New York, NY; Manhattan Center, New York, NY. Photographer: Jonathan Mannion. Personnel includes: Jay-Z, Eminem, Q-Tip, Slick Rick, Biz Markie (rap vocals); Josey Scott (vocals); Victor Flowers (organ); Bink (programming). Producers include: Kayne West, Just Blaze, Trackmaster, Timbaland, Bink.

Blueprint 3 CD music Don't mistake the presence of Jay-Z and Beyoncé on Alicia Keys' fourth album as evidence that the singer/songwriter is burrowing into modern R&B -- take it instead as evidence of the rarefied company Keys keeps, her status as a superstar so solidified that the only cameos possible are R&B/hip-hop elite. Superstars are often given leeway to do anything they want, and so it is on The Element of Freedom, where Keys dials back the outward expansion of As I Am and turns inward, creating a clean, small-scale collection of ballads and Prince-inspired pop. Always apparent on Alicia's albums, that Prince influence is underscored by how she's swapped the retro-soul instrumentation of her earliest music for electronics, but she's retained the warmth, the throwback sensibility and, especially, a sense of reserve, never getting too heated or gauche. This does mean the Prince elements feel more NPG than Revolution, but Keys trademark always has been an easy elegance. On The Element of Freedom, that elegance is so easy it borders on the sleepy, with Keys' understatement undercutting livelier numbers -- chief among them the bubbly Beyoncé duet "Put It in a Love Song" -- so they play as ballads. This isn't a complaint so much as a characteristic: her voice may crack on "Love Is My Disease," but Keys never gets gritty, she remains reserved, never letting her singing or arrangements obscure the melodies or the classy veneer of the entire proceedings. All this determined detachment keeps The Element of Freedom from packing a primal, passionate punch, but there is charm in Alicia's enveloping, quiet cool: she may never break a sweat, but she knows how to sustain a sultry, not necessarily sexy, mood, and she does so here quite fetchingly. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Recording information: Conway Studios, LA; Oven Studios, NY; Strawberrybee Studios, NY. Photographer: Yu Tsai .

Blueprint 3 buy CD music Following up his crossover-ridden return from retirement KINGDOM COME, Jay-Z presents a concept album, AMERICAN GANGSTER, inspired by the Ridley Scott movie of the same name. Contentwise, Jay is in his element, spinning street corner imagery and tales of the drug trade in the same spirit as the film, while, on the production end, 1970s R&B and soul samples dominate. The production team of Diddy, LV, and Sean C accounts for much of the record's cohesion, providing six beats built on loops from the likes of Marvin Gaye, Barry White, and Rudy Love & the Love Family. Jigga finds plenty room to get jiggy on tracks like "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)," "Party Life," and "I Know," a Neptunes-produced gem that sounds like a tricked-out "It Ain't Hard to Tell." Undoubtedly Jay's tightest effort since 2001's THE BLUEPRINT, AMERICAN GANGSTER features a few choice guest verses from Lil Wayne, Beanie Siegel, and Nas. Recording information: Audiovision Studio, Miami, FL; Baseline Studios, New York, NY; Daddy's House, New York, NY; Hot Beats Recording Studios, Atlanta, GA; KMA Studios, New York, NY; Roc The Mic, New York, NY; SoundTrap Studios, Atlanta, GA; South Beach Studios, Miami, FL. Editor: Hector Helgado. Photographers: Arthur Elgort; Hype Williams; J. Peter Robinson . Arrangers: Hector Delgado; Kenneth Whalum. Personnel: Adonis Stropshire, A.J. Walker, Leisa Johnson, Jayms Madison, Angela Wood, Kanye West, Shannon Jones, Cheri Dennis (vocals); Ed Goldson, Marty Reid, James Lewis (guitar); Matthew Lehmann, Liza Lim, Jeanine Wynton, Sarah OBoyle, Minyoung Chang, Sandra Park, Lisa Kim, Sharon Yamada (violin); Sue Pray, Dawn Hannay (viola); Eileen Moon, Jeanne LeBlanc (cello); Arden Altino (strings, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Mario Winans (strings, drums); Timon Abuptah (strings); Andy Snitzer (alto saxophone); Kenneth Whalum, Charles Pillow (tenor saxophone); Keyon Harrold, Jeff Kievit (trumpet); Saunders Sermons, Mike David (trombone); Still Phil (drums); Bashiri Johnson (percussion); Drew Hollywood (programming); Juan Carlos Perez, Keon Bryce (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Supa Engineer "Dura"; Victor Abijaudi; Gimel "Young Guru" Katon; Hector Helgado; Jermaine Dupri; Ken "Duro" Ifill; Phil Tan; Chad Hugo.

Blueprint 3 songs Nobody could accuse R&B torch singer Trey Songz of ADD. From the intro of his third record, READY, Trey is focused on seduction, sometimes sensual to the level of sex-crazed, sometimes vulnerable, but always swaggering. Songs like "I Invented Sex" and "Neighbors Know My Name" are as straightforward and brash as their titles, but he also proves he is not too proud to beg as on "Does He Do It" (although even that narrows to a list of his many charms). Luckily, his silken voice backs it up, as he (mostly) eschews the auto-tune fad and wraps his early-`90s new jack style around the slick, soulful sounds. Liner Note Authors: Paul Gregory Senior; Paul Gregory. Recording information: 11th Street Studios, Atlanta, GA; D2 Music Studios, Atlanta, GA; Doppler Studios, Atlanta, GA; Paramount Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Patchwerk Studios, Atlanta, GA; PMCK Studios, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Roc The Mic Studios, New York, NY; The Black Room, Atlanta, GA. Photographer: Ben Watts. Arranger: L.O.S. DaMaestro. Personnel: Trey Songz (vocals, background vocals); Craig Love, Dwayne Cotton (guitar); Christopher "Deep" Henderson (keyboards, drum programming, background vocals); Jack Manning (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Jaycen Joshua; Dave Pensado; Noah Shebib; Jean-Marie Horvat; Phil Tan.