Maps of Music

The Black Album (2003)

Where the lyrics of The Black Album take you, and where it was really made.

Advertised as Jay-Z's final album before retiring, yet he resumed his recording career in 2005.

Key places

Recording at Baseline (New York) (2003)

Recording site Record Plant Studios — The Black Album lists Baseline in New York among its recording studios. The point is placed at the city centre because the building position is not confirmed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording at Hit Factory Criteria (Miami) (2003)

Recording site The Hit Factory Criteria — The Black Album lists Hit Factory Criteria in Miami among its recording studios. The point is placed at the city centre because the building position is not confirmed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording at The Mansion (Los Angeles) (2003)

Recording site The Mansion — The Black Album lists The Mansion in Los Angeles among its recording studios. The point marks the studio's building location. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording at 54 Sound (Ferndale, Michigan) (2003)

Recording site 54 Sound (Ferndale, Michigan) — The Black Album lists 54 Sound in Ferndale, Michigan among its recording studios. The point is placed at the city centre because the building position is not confirmed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• The Black Album: eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z
• Released 14 November 2003 through Roc-A-Fella Records and The Island Def Jam Music Group
• Advertised as his final album before retiring
• The retirement theme recurs throughout the songs
• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 463,000 copies in its first week
• Promoted with a retirement tour
• Three singles: 99 Problems, Change Clothes, Dirt off Your Shoulder

Background

• Jay-Z resumed his recording career in 2005
• He wanted a different producer for each song
• Producers include Just Blaze, Kanye West, the Neptunes, Eminem, DJ Quik, Timbaland, 9th Wonder and Rick Rubin
• Pharrell Williams makes an uncredited guest appearance
• Encore, Dirt off Your Shoulder and 99 Problems also appear on the mashup EP Collision Course with Linkin Park
• In 2004 Danger Mouse released The Grey Album, which combines this album's vocals with the instrumental of The Beatles' White Album

Recording

• Recording studios: Baseline (New York), Hit Factory Criteria (Miami), The Mansion (Los Angeles), 54 Sound (Ferndale, Michigan)

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Early life

• Shawn Corey Carter, born December 4, 1969, in Brooklyn, New York City.
• Raised in Marcy Houses in Bedford–Stuyvesant; mother Gloria Carter raised him and his three older siblings after his father left when he was 11.
• Dropped out of Trenton Central High School during his sophomore year.
• Adopted the stage name Jay-Z in homage to his mentor Jaz-O.

Career

• Began recording in the late 1980s, contributing verses to Jaz-O's records.
• Co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records; debut album Reasonable Doubt (1996) was critically acclaimed.
• Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life (1998) became his most commercially successful album, certified 6× Platinum in the US.
• The Blueprint (2001) debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.
• Led Def Jam Recordings as president and CEO from 2004 to 2007.
• Founded Roc Nation in 2008 and later 4:44 (2017) and Everything Is Love with Beyoncé (2018).
• Has 25 Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Metacritic: universal acclaim, weighted average score of 84 out of 100 from 19 critic scores
• AllMusic's John Bush: said Jay-Z was retiring at his peak with the album
• Vibe magazine: called it remarkable as an apotheosis of his genuinely thoughtful songwriting and lyrics
• USA Today's Steve Jones: said the album was elevated by Jay-Z's uniquely deft and diverse rapping style even with top-shelf work from elite producers
• The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin: felt Jay-Z returned to brevity and consistency
• The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), Jon Caramanica: called it both old-school and utterly modern
• Rolling Stone's Touré: judged it slightly inferior to Reasonable Doubt (1996) and The Blueprint (2001)
• The Guardian's Dave Simpson: was more critical, dismissing the music as an aural equivalent of the schmaltzy biopic
• The Village Voice's Robert Christgau: gave a back-handed compliment, comparing Jay-Z to Elvis in Vegas

Reappraisal

• Christgau's 2011 retrospective review: was impressed by the stretch of songs from Encore to Justify My Thug
• Christgau: felt the celebratory moments sounded prophetic because of Jay-Z's later entrepreneurial success and fame
• Pitchfork: ranked it number 90 on its decade-end list of the top 200 albums of the 2000s
• Slant Magazine: ranked it seventh on a similar list
• Complex: named it one of the classic records of the previous decade in 2012

Records

• US Billboard 200: debuted at number one, Jay-Z's sixth US number one album
• First week sales: 463,000 copies, according to Nielsen Soundscan
• Second week: number four, 288,000 copies
• Third week: back to number one, 288,000 copies
• Fourth week: number ten, 124,000 copies
• RIAA: triple platinum on 16 August 2005 for over three million shipments
• As of July 2013: 3,516,000 copies sold in the US
• Billboard: Jay-Z's top selling record of the 2000s
• Grammy Awards: nominated for Best Rap Album in 2005, lost to Kanye West's The College Dropout
• Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums: number 349 in 2012, number 155 in 2020
• Singles: Change Clothes and Dirt off Your Shoulder reached the top 10 of the Hot 100; 99 Problems peaked at number 30

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album also blocked the Tupac: Resurrection soundtrack and the G-Unit debut album Beg for Mercy from the top spot in its first week
• In December 2004 Roc-A-Fella released a vinyl version with no beats under Jay-Z's lyrics, which spurred producers to remix it
• EMI tried to halt distribution of The Grey Album despite approval from Jay-Z and the two surviving Beatles; Downhill Battle organized Grey Tuesday on 24 February 2004
• Over 100,000 copies of The Grey Album were downloaded on Grey Tuesday alone
• Christgau's 2011 retrospective review revised his view of the album as its songs came to sound prophetic

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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