Best of Both Worlds by R. Kelly & Jay-Z

Blame it on the Fiesta Remix - R. Kelly & Jay-Z are now an official recording duo. The R&B Thug and the King of New York collaborated to bring us "The Best of Both Worlds". I really think that this is an album that the music industry really needed. The major labels haven't been giving the people what they want. Go ahead and call me a hater, but I'm not feeling a lot of these "major" artists. I'm just very unimpressed by a lot of the "music" that I hear today. It's all about the money and I can hear it in the songs (you probably can too). The great thing about this album is that both of these guys are already established and they can afford to take a chance on this concept. This album would have never come to being if Jigga and Kellz weren't already multi-platinum.

After listening to this album several times, I can't figure out who was the MVP. Jay-Z does a great job of carrying the mood of each song. He doesn't come across exactly the same on each track. He alters his delivery accordingly and the dude has still got lyrics (he says stuff that you were thinking). R. Kelly is great as the R&B thug, but he gets lots of credit for production on most of the tracks. I think that the deciding factor is that you could probably find another rapper to play Jigga's position, but there isn't another R&B cat out there that could bring all the talents to the table that Kelly does. Maybe that's why Kellz takes a few shots at Sisqo on this album. I remember seeing Sisqo on 106th & Park many months ago and the dude said that no male R&B artist could get with him on a "singing" level. Kellz bluntly calls Sisqo a "bum".

Now to the tracks, The Best of Both Worlds features 13 tracks. Out of those 13 tracks, 10 of them are solid. These boys didn't just fall in the studio and pump out a bunch of bland-ass songs. The album features The Trackmasters production talents on most of the tracks and they came through with some very hot beats. The album starts with the traditional horn-filled intro/title track. Jigga brags and Kelly blows. "Take You Home With Me" features some of the tightest flows from Jay on the entire album and R. Kelly holds his own with vocal flows that rank right up there with Nate Dogg, the original "rap singer". "It Ain't Personal" is the pensive track on the album. The pace picks up on "Green Light", which features Beanie Sigel. "Green Light" is great, but it's far too short. "Naked" is just R. Kelly showing off his pipes, singing some old Bump and Grind interlude type sh-t. "Shake Ya Body" features Lil' Kim and it is the one MISS on the whole album, it's pretty bad. After that faux pas, Hova and Kellz end the album with a bang. Tracks 9-13 are all tight. "Somebody's Girl" and "Shorty" are my two favorite tracks. One of my favorite artists, Devin the Dude, shows out on "P***y".

The beats on this album are great. Jay-Z's fans might not be totally pleased by his efforts, but R. Kelly really shows his ass on this joint. I'm telling you that I've never heard anybody besides Nate Dogg add this much to a rap song by singing during the track. Kelly isn't just doing hooks, he's flowing and tearing the track up. Don't get all caught up in that sex tape crap, go out and buy this album because it is a classic. This album is going to change the game, because S. Carter and R. Kelly successfully created a new type of music by melding "The Best of Both Worlds".

Folks, I try not to be negative when I do my reviews. I don't like to diss folks because their music is something special to them. They work hard to put out a good product and I don't feel right hating them out in public. Only a few folks hit up my site, but I still like to feel like I influence a few visitors every now and then.

The simple fact is that this album only features one good song, "What If". The next best feature of the album is Jaguar's ghetto-ass liner notes. I'm dumbfounded by this album. Jaguar showed-out on Jay-Z's MTV Unplugged joint, but that powerful voice was rendered impotent by a bunch of lackluster songs. I listened to this album several times trying to find something good to say but I haven't found anything yet.

April 2, 2002

Murder Inc. Records is billing Ashanti as the Princess of Hip-Hop and R&B. It's probably a little too early to be giving out titles, but Ashanti has all the tools to make it big. She has Murder Inc. and Def Jam pushing her records. She has the support of Ja Rule, Hip-Hop's most overexposed artist right now. She's got a strong voice and she's DAMN CUTE!!! Think about it. She's just like a young Mary J. Blige, the reigning Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, except she's undeniably attractive. Folks like Mary J., so they start making excuses to make-up for the fact that she's not the cutest chick out there. Ashanti has the luxury of having a face that will make folks do a double-take even when she's not singing. A pretty face for an R&B chick is like height for an NBA prospect; it's their best chance of getting in the starting lineup.

Alright, we've already established the fact that Ashanti looks like my baby's momma but can she actually sing. The answer is YES. The chick can blow and her producers have supplied her with some strong beats. 7., Chink Santana, and Irv Gotti shoulder the production duties on this debut album. The hit single, "Foolish", features a popular sample used before on B.I.G. "One More Chance" remix. Ashanti's producers are afraid to borrow familiar beats to make hits happen. "Happy" features a sample of "Outstanding" and "Unfoolish" features another Biggie Smalls sample from "F-kin' You Tonight". My favorite song off the album is "Baby" which borrows the beat from Scarface's classic "Mary Jane". I already loved the beat from when "Uncle Face" hit me over the head with it, but Ashanti puts her own imprint on the beat with some solid vocals and songwriting. Ashanti shows that she is more than a pretty face and a strong voice by recording solid songs throughout 12 track debut. Ashanti even pumps out some solid "slow jams". The "slow jam" has become a lost art in R&B, but Ashanti has 3 solid ones on this album. "Rescue" would definitely be one to put on your next slow tape... the song is 8 minutes long!! "Movies" is a pretty slow jam and will probably be a favorite with the ladies.

Overall, Ashanti has hit the bulls-eye with her solo debut. The interesting thing is that her album is all R&B. She smartly doesn't take any unnecessary forays into dance music or Hip-Pop. She stays on the subject of love and relationships and doesn't go "Murder Inc." on us. I was pleasantly surprised by this album.