Kingdom finally comes

By Jon Juliano
Collegian Staff
December 6, 2006

There definitely has been something wrong with hip-hop ever since Biggie died. Untalented rappers who have no substance whatsoever have been dominating the charts. But now, the C.E.O. of Def Jam himself, Jay-Z, is back to be “hip-hop’s savior” with his Kingdom Come.

Jay was originally in charge of leading hip-hop out of the dark after Biggie and Tupac died, so it is only fitting that he pick up the mic again after a brief retirement.

The album itself is very mature. It’s good because Hova is being himself. He is in his late 30s and can’t really talk about guns or drug dealing anymore — it just would not sound genuine if he did.

The majority of Kingdom Come is about his mid-life experiences. Jay does do a good job balancing this with a swagger and an attitude that he has kept all these years. “30 Something” is a great example of that.

Since his retirement, many of Jigga’s former friends have been throwing dirt on his name in their songs and videos. Jay, who was out of the game at the time, decided not to respond, but finally got fed up and came back hard on his former friends on this album. These diss songs are directed at Cam’ron, Jim Jones and his former business partner of Rocafella Records, Damon Dash.

The first of these songs is “Lost One,” which isn’t really an angry song. It’s got a soothing piano, and is just honest about how Dash got too obsessed with power and money.

The real hard diss song, “Dig a Hole,” is towards the end of the album and is where Jay advises his old friends to dig a hole and bury themselves. The best line in the song is, “N----- like ‘Hov why don’t you get at old boy’/Why kill a puppet and leave Cheppetto alive/Why not wait till you get ’em all together, that’s when you dig one big hole, one time.”

Put your hands in a diamond shape and throw ’em over your head. Whether you like it or not, Hov’s back.

julianoj3@lasalle.edu