But I did still expect great stuff given the track record of both artists individually and collectively. “Never Let Me Down,” “Diamonds From Sierra Leone (Remix),” “Run This Town,” and “Monster” are all top-notch Jay & ‘Ye collaborations. Not to mention the Pete Rock produced “The Joy” which was part of Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Friday’s releases. Their catalog speaks for itself.
The comparisons to classics like The Blueprint, Reasonable Doubt, College Dropout or My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy may not be fair, but their inevitable. Those albums are the standards set by Jay and Kanye and that’s what this had to live up to.
So how would Watch The Throne fair? Initial reaction was good, not great. After repeated listens, the verdict remains the same. It’s good. It’s enjoyable. It has some highlights. But it’s not great. It’s not an instant classic. It’s not the album of the year. It’s just good.
The album opens with “No Church In TheWild,” featuring Frank Ocean on the hook. It’s a good opener, as Jay seems primed right from the start. The only thing I have to question is the inclusion of The-Dream singing some auto-tune in between the first and second verses. Didn’t Jay put auto-tune to bed with “D.O.A.” And now he’s got it on one of his projects? On the other hand, Kanye loves him some auto-tune so I guess he got his way on this one.
Next up is “Lift Off” featuring Beyonce. This is the weakest song on the album for Hov and Yeezy as they hardly make an impact on this track. They should’ve added a verse from Beyonce and just stuck it on her latest album instead of putting it on here.
“Ni**as In Paris” follows and it’s a song I could easily hate, but at times enjoy. In terms of overall quality, it’s a throwaway track, there’s no doubt about it. But I do like some of the lines on here, especially Kanye’s line, “Prince William ain’t do it right if you ask me/Cause if I was him I would have married Kate and Ashley.” Otherwise the song’s pretty forgettable.
One of my favorite joints is next in “Otis,” the album’s lead single (kind of, depending if you count “H.A.M.”) This shit is so soulful as Jay and Kanye spit right on top of an Otis Redding sample of “Try A Little Tenderness.” This shit bangs, no doubt about it. It’s no surprise every rapper in the game has recorded their version over the instrumental to this track. This is one of the few moments on the disc that reminds me of The Blueprint or College Dropout, when you hear a song and you go “Oh shit, that’s nice!”
The album rides the momentum built by “Otis” nicely over the next two tracks, as the Neptunes use a James Brown sample for “Gotta Have It” and Jay and Kanye go back-and-forth on the mic, giving us a nod to the old school without sounding dated. Then comes the song that fans and critics alike are throwing a lot of praise on, the RZA produced “New Day.” I will say the production is nice and the concept is even better as Kanye and Jay spit verses to their unborn sons. It’s perhaps the only humble track on the album as Kanye opens up with advice for his son to avoid all the mistakes he’s made. It’s refreshing to take a break from all the designer names and black card references that flood this album.
“That’s My Bitch” is another miss, as I loved the Public Enemy influenced sample for the hook, but the rest of the song falls flat. It’s not a bad song, but it’s nothing more than filler. As I’ve listened to the album more and more, it’s apparent that this song will always be forgettable for me.
“Welcome To The Jungle” is another of my favorites, with the exception of Swizz Beatz yelling. I said this in an earlier post, but I’ll repeat it, this isn’t a mixtape! There’s no need for anyone to be yelling over Jay’s vocals. I hate it on mixtapes too, but I understand it comes with the territory. But this is supposed to be a monumental, blockbuster album and you got someone acting like a damn mixtape DJ on one of your best songs? Unacceptable.
“Who Gon Stop Me” takes a sample from Flux Pavilion’s “I Can’t Stop” to allow Jay and ‘Ye to create their version of dubstep. I’ll give them credit for stepping out of their comfort zone and trying a new style on for size, but I hope this isn’t a trendsetter for hip-hop. Dubstep has its own place in music, and as someone who lived in England at one time I understand the importance of dubstep to the club scene overseas, but I’m a hip-hop head through and through and this is supposed to be a hip-hop album, so one such song is enough. I’m not close minded to other music, but this is Jay and Yeezy, give me “Heart of the City,” not dubstep.
And just as I hope for “Heart of the City,” I get “Murder to Excellence” which is one of the best head nodding hip-hop songs on the album. The first half (or “Murder” half) has Jay and Kanye discussing black-on-black crime over a great beat from Swizz. The second portion is the S1 produced celebration of black success. Great concept for this song and it’s executed to perfection. Both beats compliment each other just right and Hov and ‘Ye provide good commentary on both.
Frank Ocean returns for “Made In America” with a chorus that makes me chuckle inside every time I hear it. I’m sorry, but when Ocean sings “Sweet Baby Jesus,” I picture Ricky Bobby saying his prayers in Talladega Nights. It slays me every time. As for the song itself, I love Kanye’s verse talking about his mom introducing him to No I.D. and then spitting, “Ni**as hustle every day for a beat from Ye/What I do? Turn around and gave them beats to Jay/And I’m rappin’ on the beat they was supposed to buy/I guess I get high off my own supply.”
“Why I Love You” sounds like it belongs on The Blueprint 3 as Mr. Hudson shows up for the hook. Hov absolutely slays this track lyrically with one of the best lines on the disc, “Caesar didn’t see it so he ceased to exist/So the ni**a that killed him had keys to his shit.” This is definitely a Jay-dominated track as Kanye makes little impact.
As for the bonus tracks, it’s a combination of good and bad. “Illest Motherf**ker Alive” would be okay, but as I stated in an earlier post these assholes decided to start the track with 3 minutes of dead silence. There’s dumb shit out there and then there’s unacceptable nonsense like this. Yes, it’s better than listening to 3 minutes of a Waka Flocka Flame song, but that doesn’t make it right. After a few listens, I skip the song now because I’m so irritated with it.
“H.A.M.” left me feeling meh the first time I heard it and it hasn’t grown on me at all. I’m sure the initial response to the song is what made Jay and Kanye push the album back initially because it’s very uninspiring.
The best reasons to buy the Deluxe Edition are “Primetime” and “The Joy.” No I.D. comes correct on “Primetime” as Jay brings some more heat on the mic. Okay, so I already had “The Joy” from the G.O.O.D. Friday downloads, but if you haven’t heard it, you need it! It’s tremendous. Kanye should’ve switched “So Appalled” with “The Joy” on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. In fact, it would’ve made even more sense now since MBDTF is far superior to Watch The Throne, much like “The Joy” is far superior to “So Appalled.” Great way to end the disc.
So is Watch The Throne worth adding to your collection? Certainly. It’s got enough good music to make it a worthwhile album. But it’s not going to go down in history as one of the all-time great albums. It’s been 7 years since The College Dropout was released, 10 years since The Blueprint came out and 15 years since Reasonable Doubt dropped and all three are still classics that deserve regular rotation. Watch The Throne will not have that sort of shelf life and that’s where it falls short.
Final Grade: B
