Jay-Z - The Blueprint

Roc-A-Fella

It's 20 years to the day that Jay-Z released 'The Blueprint' which was Jay's sixth album in six years, solidifying his presence as a constant creative and music mogul. You know you're onto something when your album coincides with what is looked upon as the worst day in recent US history, and still sells a near half million copies in its first week on sale.

The confidence it takes to call your work 'The Blueprint' must mess with ones head a little. Lucky for Jay he could back up the claim. That kind of belief and conviction is the kind of thing that gets people sent to asylums for being out of sync with reality. Only a fine few manage to muster up work and a career that legitimizes the best of the best averment. Time being the key component in its crucial role of influence and hindsight. Some know their place before time tells them however.

The only guest appearance on the album comes courtesy of a man at the height of his reign over the game, beside Hova, that man being Eminem. The business man of the rap realm meets the renegade of the music world on a track aptly titled 'Renegade'. Produced by Eminem it has an air of 2002's 'The Eminem Show'.

Little known producers of the day, Kanye West and Just Blaze, make their names known on The Blueprint. It would take another three years for Kanye's debut 'The College Dropout' to drop...out but the sound and soul of said album can also be found in the DNA of The Blueprint. Jay may not be the best out and out rapper or artist of his time, some would say he's far from it, but he understands what it takes to make it like no other. He knows how to get his foot in the door and pull things to work in correlation with his direction.

September 11th, 2001.