The Blueprint

Before he was \"a businessman\" or \"a business, man,\" JAY Z was one of rap’s best rhymers. Soul samples courtesy of Just Blaze and Kanye West gave 2001’s *The Blueprint* the glossiest sounds money could buy. The exuberance of the single “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” is balanced by the poignancy of “Song Cry.” Even if JAY Z weren\'t sitting on the pop and rap throne, his cold diss track (“Takeover”) directed at Nas would still show he wasn’t a man you\'d want to cross.

"Damn right I love this life I live/ 'Cause I went from negative to positive/ And it's all... good ...

Check out our album review of Artist's The Blueprint on Rolling Stone.com.

The album adds ’70s soul to the rapper’s predictable mix of self-declaration and catty peer-dissing.