Be

I can’t believe the top review for this record (as of Dec 2023) is from someone trying to use their PhD in Mathematics as justification for not liking hip-hop. Weak.

I really don't get rap, and I am completely aware of why. I'm a STEM guy, specifically a Ph.D. student in mathematics. Although my verbal intelligence is quite high, it's still about a standard deviation below my quantitative intelligence. Therefore, it should not be too surprising that I prefer melodies to lyricism, and that a genre based on the latter doesn't wow me. I know I'm pretty far out of step with public opinion on this one, but that can easily be attributed to the fact that hipsters with humanities degrees (i.e. extremely verbal-dominant people) are considered the ultimate arbiters of taste for some reason. (Side note: this also explains why prog rock is seen as being for losers.) Best song: Be (Intro), which had a decent instrumental part at the beginning. Everything else just sort of ran together.

“The sweet taste of victory. Go ‘head, breathe it in like antihistamines.” I can’t tell you how excited I was to see this pop up. This is one of my favorite hip hop albums of all time, at least top five. It’s beautiful, it’s perfect. Produced almost entirely by Kanye West, save for two tracks produced by the late J Dilla. Features from Kanye, John Legend, and John Mayer—a galaxy of rising stars all together for this moment. Every track is immaculately produced, and Common makes a case for why he belongs in the pantheon of greats. “You love to hear the story, again and again, about these young brothers from the City of Wind.” It’s maybe the most organic hip hop album in existence. Hip hop almost seems like a misnomer, it’s pure poetry. The intro track is one of the best openers of any album ever. “I wanna be as free as the spirits of those who’ve left.” No matter how many times I hear it, the closing track always makes me cry. “Be amended....five fifths.” I would fight anyone for this album. I’d give this to the aliens. “I wish I could give you this feeling.” I’ll stop gushing but man, this is enough to make every two or three-star album worth it. Time to put the vinyl on and fall in love with it all over again. Favorite tracks: Be (Intro), The Corner, GO!, Faithful, Love is..., Chi City, The Food, They Say, It’s Your World. Album art: Iconic. Incredibly simple photo, but the contrast and colors immortalized this for me. I’m obviously biased, but this cover is imprinted in my DNA. 5/5

"They say because of the fame and stardom I'm somewhere in between the church and insane asylum I guess it's messin' with my health then And this verse so crazy when I finish I'm just gon' check myself in" If only Kanye would've listened to himself in 2005

I am definitely not the target demographic for this album, but I still thought it was very good. There's a lot of skill and artistry put into these tracks, so much so that it is almost invisible. 4 stars for me, plus an extra star just to spite the mathematics PHD guy.

Rap isn't my preferred genre of music. But I'm a shitty mathematician so I enjoyed this.

THIS CAT RAPS AS SMOOTH AS A PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY SANDWICH.

Bro. Fuckin perfection holy damn!! Mad I’m so late to the game but happy I finally got to hear !!

I used to think of Common as the noughties rap Dementor, sucking the joy out of whatever song he popped up on, sounding like another rapper's dad come to the the studio to balance the bragging and naughtiness. I appreciate him more now, though I was kind of right. He is dad-ish--temperate, reasonable, calm--but not overbearing. Worst of all to bratty kids, he's genuinely open and empathetic towards people who aren't the same as him, i.e. he never pretends the street life his raps explicate was his own, just wants to understand and communicate it. So not a rap Dementor but a do gooder doing good for anyone not dumb enough to not want good done to them. Plus he's got poetry (more than that last sentence) and some pacified Kanye beats to boot.

Wow, a rapper who really has music in his production. Plus he's speaking in language that isn't full of cuss words, adolescent misogeny, and is spoken slowly enough that an aging white girl like me can understand it. I don't know why, but this reminds me of Al Green. Go figure. But I like it. I'm surprised! And I listened to the entire album. I don't always. The last song, It's Your World, is just lovely!

Some good parts but a bit too smooth and "Kanye-pop" for my tastes. I've said it before, but the rap I like is either angry and fast, or built virtuosically from Funkadelic samples. Common sounds too much like a lifestyle brand to keep my interest, sorry.

This is a solid album. Like, legitimately great. The only reason it didn't get a 5 is because there's a significant amount of batshitcrazy on display that detracts from the overall goodness. Also, as a point of personal preference, I'm not a fan of the overly R&B tracks. So, yeah. Great record docked a star because "it's me, not you."

Common: the intelligent rapper. I love his storytelling. He seems to be one of the more enlightened, and enlightening, rappers to ever do it. Hip Hop Golden Age has referred to this album as Common's mangnum opus. It came out in 2006 and is produced by Kanye West, who was at the top of his producing game way back when circa Late Registration and Graduation. The good old days. This album, Be, is just so smooth from front to back. I loved the tracks Go, Be, Chi-City and Love Is... A solid rap album. Thougtful. Enlightened. Long lasting.

Really enjoyed the intro, “Be” and “Faithful” Didn’t expect the beat to be so swaying to the point where I am melting on the floor.

The intro is a classic

When people say they “miss the old Kanye” THIS is what they are talking about, even if this album is technically Common’s. The soulful production sounds great rather than dated and the social commentary and songs like “Love Is” give us the opposite experience from the Marshall Mathers LP. Hip hop can be a beautiful genre as this album, and later work by Chance the rapper (clearly inspired by this and samples it) shows. Would give 4.5 if I could but what the hell.

Love this shit. It makes me love Chicago rap even more. Common talks about real shit as cringy as that sounds, and features Kanye all over the album, notching it higher in my book. Bars are smooth as hell, beats are the same. Be, Chi-City and They Say are the best songs. There is probably heavy bias here because of how much I love this kind of music, but fuck it it's my rating, 8/8, a hip hop classic.

To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Be by Common. The themes are extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of the English language, most of the jokes will go over a typical listener's head. There's also Common's hopeful outlook, which is deftly woven into his personality - his personal philosophy draws heavily from the streets of Chicago, for instance. The fans understand this stuff; they have the intellectual capacity to truly appreciate the depths of this music, to realize that it doesn't just sound good- it says something deep about LIFE. As a consequence people who dislike Be by Common truly ARE idiots- of course they wouldn't appreciate, for instance, the humour in Common's existensial catchphrase "Be," which itself is a cryptic reference to Descartes Discourse on the Method. I'm smirking right now just imagining one of those addlepated simpletons scratching their heads in confusion as Kanye and Common's genius unfolds itself on through their headphones. What fools... how I pity them. 😂 And yes by the way, I DO have a Common tattoo. And no, you cannot see it. It's for the ladies' eyes only- And even they have to demonstrate that they're within 5 IQ points of my own (preferably lower) beforehand. Best Songs: Be, The Corner, The Food Worst Songs: Faithful, Testify

not my usual, but very engaging

Is it because I never finished my Ph.D. in 20th century literature that I can't fully connect with this album? Obvious sarcasm here. You've read the top reviews in this section, so you already know who I'm laughing at with those words. Glad that such an insufferable app user didn't go further than 20 albums or so. After all, that maths dissertation ain't gonna write itself, right? 🙃 That said, and even if that lame review makes me want to bump this record's grade a notch or two, *Be* is admittedly a somewhat overrated album in my book. Potential hot take here (hopefully not as ridiculous as the one of that poor misguided maths student): a lot of people who love this album probably need to explore the fifteen years before its release to find smooth-sounding, intelligent hip hop that still managed to *pack a punch* in spite of its potential use of laidback, jazzy and soul-infused moods. Music by ATCQ, De La Soul or Mos Def for instance. In comparison to those acts, *Be* sounds way too polished as a whole, even streamlined to a fault. And it's so loaded with sacharine layerings that listening to it can become sickening in the long run--with a sugarcoated presentation that can even become borderline-annoying for cuts like "Faithful" or "Love Is..". Yet the trouble does not really stem from what's in the music. It rather comes from what you *can't* find in it. I understand why some folks missing the "old Kanye" enjoy this record, since it allows them to enjoy Mr. West's production chops without having to bear with his grating persona as a rapper (which has since worsened to cringeworthy and even politically concerning proportions I don't need to elaborate on here). The thing is, without Kanye's abrasive persona (at least when the latter was still bearable to an extent), the soft-sounding production and instrumentals on this record come off as a little devoid of personality and lacking in genuinely thrilling dynamics. Admittedly a little ironic in hindsight, huh? There are still clear stand-out tracks in this album, however, which explains why the ride it offers was enjoyable for a lot of rap fan in 2005. There's the enticing "Be (Intro)", and also "The Corner"--probably the most solid cut in the tracklist when it comes to painting a vivid picture of the state of society through rapping. Not to mention "Go" and "Testify", whose scope might not be as sweeping as the one of "The Corner", and which yet both shine thanks to their many hooks. Said hooks are more lackluster on the second side, unfortunately. First single *The Food* is nice enough, for instance, but even Kanye West's interpolations can't make it that much of a stand-out track. And speaking of Kanye, some of his trademark chipmunk flourishes have aged like milk. It was a sonic phase that suited well West's off-kilter, loony persona when he was the center of attention in his own early albums. But for someone else's record, using those sped-up vocal samples doesn't exactly feels like a marriage made in heaven. Common's flow, as skilled as it is, is a little too demure and aloof for such zany musical aesthetics. And the second side is where this discrepancy is felt the most. When Common's steady pace covers jazzy laidback elements, the whole thing lacks clear dynamics (which is where it is "streamlined to a fault", as I said earlier). And when that steady rap flow is interrupted by a hysterical high-pitched vocal snippet, either one or the other sounds out of place. The music becomes *too* dynamic, in a way (read "messy"). It's a neverending conundrum. The tail end of the record is fortunately way much stronger and more cohesive, thanks to the last two cuts "They Say" and "It's Your World". The latter song even serves as a moving conclusion nicely wrapping up the topical overtones found here and there throughout those 42 minutes--overtones which started with the introductory track praising self reliance and self-confidence against all odds, and paving the way to the emancipatory message gracing the last minutes of the album. Conveyed through a preacher's voice, along with all those moving vocal snippets of children having dreams about their successful lives as adults, that message has lost none of its potency today. So even if it's the official name of the "intro", "Be" is first and foremost the hidden name of that last song, and it's affecting that its contents rhyme so well with the one showcased on the first track in the album. In spite of that nice touch, *Be*'s topical program never strays too far from a somewhat predictable surface level, though. And from time to time, Common's reach also exceeds his grasp. Case in point: "Testify". It is a courthouse yarn that's admittedly vividly told, but the ultimate twist in its final lines comes off as either pointless or unwarranted. And for a song supposed to suggest how mature, thoughtful relationships with "ladies" should be handled, *Go* also misses the intended mark somehow. Having lyrics comparing love interests with cars--not once but *twice*!!!--... well, that might be a little cringeworthy, right? Not gonna elaborate on notions of male gaze and the objectifying of women... I just find it interesting that for both songs, said women are the topics of the lyrics, and that the subject Common chooses to explore there is not exactly shown under a truly "reliable" angle, let's say. Of course, he doesn't paint all women as "hoes" the way Snoop Dogg does. But what's the worst? A provocateur/entertainer no one in their right mind can take seriously on those topics? Or a Philistine that's a little out of his depth when tackling said topics, thereby taking the risk to convey regrettable conceptions while claiming to be thoughtful and on the "right side"? The jury's still out on this one. Long story short, there's apparent wisdom on the surface of *Be*, but its waters might also be a little too shallow in some spots to elicit the sort of deep emotional response Common aims at eliciting. Of course, some funny punchlines bob up that wise surface from time to time, sending some needed jolts at appropriate moments (I like this one: "They ask me where hip hop is goin' / It's Chicagoan"). But as said earlier, those jolts might appear as too far in-between compared to the ones found in the other hip hop albums I consider as truly essential (either released before or after that album). But maybe it's because those records do better than just *be*. They come alive. And in the end, whether you're wise or raucous, whether you play the gangster card or, conversely, the "conscious" one--in other words, whether you're a jester, a tough guy, or a preacher, that's what great rap album should do. *Come alive*. *Being* is not enough. You have to know *what* you want to be. Ironic that it's the very message of this record, and yet that Common doesn't fully apply this message to himself in my eyes. 3/5 for the purposes of this list. 8/10 for more general purposes (5+3) Number of albums left to review: 142 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 369 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 218 Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 275 (including this one)

Listened to this twice through, and both times it became good and enjoyable background music. The element that pushes it over the top, and potentially justifies its place here are those J-Dilla beats, chopped up, bouncy, flowing like water following the natural lines of the earth. The whole thing feels very well constructed and probably warrants further attentive listening.

meh

Typical 2000er hip hop

Very repetitive but not unpleasant to listen to.

This was fine, I guess. But it also has Kanye West on it so to hell with it.

It sounded ok I guess, didn't connect with it though and won't be back. Seems like a waste of my time to give it a longer review.

TWIST HIS DICK!

Common, who is a fairly underrated rapper, shines on this album not just with quality verses but with the overly upflifting energy that he provides with them. The album starts and ends fun. His optimistic and warm deliveries that are also very concious of himself and his surroundings is something not many Hip Hop artists can envoke this strongly. While the album isn't perfect and merely scratching the marks of incredible, it is still a beautiful piece of 2000's Hip Hop music. Most of the album is also produced by Kanye West who back then was still a very cool person and that very much shines in the Jazzy and Soul inspired beats. The album introduces itself with the Jazz bass sound of 'Be (Intro)' that is quickly added on with synths and piano until it creates a grand and orchestral Boom Bap track that sounds just awesome and not just with the beat itself. Common's verses and flows are impeccable, the themes of life, freedom and going forwards just speak with true soul. And once the song finishes I just want to play it again and again, it is such a beautiful mix of ideas and influences and is simply a perfect start. The early Kanye production is very present on 'The Corner' which not only makes an incredible Chipmunk Soul track but also gets The Last Poets on the track as well as the background vocals. The different MCs including Kanye pull the entire track off beautifully even if I wished that at some points they put in a little more focus but that doesn't take away from the song being simply incredible. With the start of 'GO!', the album more and more feels like a Kanye collab but to be honest, he was so good back then that I am not even mad. Common still shines with his verses and because Kanye only does the chorus, it still works perfectly. The song isn't just beautifully produced but overall just makes fun to listen to. It flows and not just with the verses on their own. Another incredible track and while I don't love it as much as the intro, it is still wonderful to listen to. The very Christian and Pop Rap 'Faithful' not only brings in the typical Kanye Soul sound but also a theme that Kanye often talks about. I do think that the sample gets a little bit annoying after a while but Commons verses are incredible enough to even that out. The song is absolutely incredible and I really love the vocoder elements as well as the Gospel backing vocals in the outro a lot. The change of flow and voice on 'Testify' comes in a little bit surprising and even if I am not the biggest fan of the very choppy sounding beat, the verses that Common is pulling of are among the best performed on the entire album. Thematically, it is a little bit darker and while I appreciate that, it frankly doesn't work on this beat. This could've been one of the best songs on the album in terms of rapping but the beat destroys that. It's still great though. 'Love Is...' really reminds me of a couple of moments on Kendrick Lamars "To Pimp a Butterfly", which means that I really like this track. The beat is rather "simple" as are the more relaxed sounding verses and even the sung chorus. But it all feels so low-key, in the best way possible. I love the thematic, I love the sound, I love performance, this is a perfect track. 'Chi-City' opens the albums second half with a change of sound and thematic. Not only does the song sound like a more "typical" Hip Hop track with a lot of turntable sounds but it also brings in a couple of Hardcore Hip Hop themes. The song feels angry and powerful but is performed incredibly well. It does sound much, much different than the other songs here but is easily as great in quality. I absolutely love everything here from the beat but especially the flow and the lyrics. Honestly, another perfect song. Next comes the live recorded, 'The Food (Live)', with Kanye on the Dave Chappelle Show. It's a pretty good song and the live setting and sound are definitely a nice touch. I also like the beat but it all feels a little bit unfitting. It's definitely not bad but it feels quite weak in comparison. It's still a pretty good song. The return to the Jazz sound 'Real People' together with the cleaner recording is sonically much more pleasing. Common performs really some great verses and the beat definitely keeps the thing steady. I really, really like the track but I feel like something is missing. Maybe it's the drums but I do like the Drumless sound of it at some points. I don't know, still really great. 'They Say' with Kanye (now as an official feature) and John Legend (who wrote the track and has backing vocals). The song is pretty good and the Soulful vocals in the chorus that feel nearly Gospel-like and especially the Kanye verses are really great. But again, I feel like something is missing that would improve the track a ton even if it's still great the way it is like this. The album closes with the two parted 'It's Your World (Part 1 & 2)' that stretches to over 8 minutes of playtime, the albums longest track. Luckily, the track is pulled off incredibly well, so that it doesn't actually feel stretched. The beat is beautiful and Common's verses are performed wonderfully and at one point the song removes any vocals and adds a recording of kids that tell about their aspirations in the future and what they want to be when they grow up. Then comes a poetic finale that talks to us directly that this is in fact our world. It's a beautiful and simply perfect track to finish the album off with. favourites: Love Is..., Chi-City, Be (Intro), It's Your World (Part 1) least favourites: Real People Rating: light to decent 9 https://rateyourmusic.com/~Emil_ph for more ratings, reviews and takes

Just absolutely stellar production from Ye and Dilla. Easy 5.

Yeah, that’s a 5. Obviously, it kills me to give Kanye any kind of credit in 2024, but as I’ve said; the version of the man that existed in 2004 is the version of the man I want to remember and admire if I ever think of Kanye, and his influence is felt all over this album, whether it’s in writing credits, production credits, or just the reshaping of Chicago rap that came in after College Dropout. Make no goddamn mistake about it, though; this is Common’s album, and he has the final say on everything here. What emerges from this collaboration is something that is distinctly more of his voice than Kanye’s, and that’s why I can sort of look past how much of Kanye’s fingerprints shape this album, because Common is the star here. He’s the main writer, he’s the one rapping, and overall, these are his stories to tell. He tells them beautifully – there’s not a single wasted line here, even when he’s horny as hell on Go!, it’s still delivered with such a confident flow that he just rolls with it without missing a beat. Speaking of the beats… yeah, Kanye cooked on a lot of these tracks, but so did J. Dilla – I don’t know that I’ve ever really heard a J. Dilla beat (sue me, I still haven’t heard Donuts), but the swirling piano that surrounds the outro of the entire album (and really, most of the beat on It’s Your World) is utterly perfect. I can’t remember the last time an album stuck the landing on the ending that hard. I could keep gushing here, but it’s just a fabulous rap album for 2005 – obviously, Kanye’s star power after College Dropout is probably what gave this album a bit of commercial appeal, but the end result is all Common’s, and it’s all great. It’s an easy 5 – it might even be a 10/10 for me, genuinely. I don’t think there’s a skip here. I loved this.

Common's first 6 albums are milestones of the more sophisticated jazz rap of the 90s and early 2000s that was influenced by neo soul too. 'Be' doesn't waste time and puts you into all the things you would need to know as a Chicago kid. Common's lyrics are better than ever because he puts some subtle humor in the stories he tells. And then of course there is producer Kanye West. I never thought of him as a genius (albeit a great producer, of course always aided by an army of other talented people). I think 'Be' shows more than his own albums that West has talent.

I knew I was going to love this album just based off the first bass-line. The introduction of the synths and strings hit like a truck, and the lyricism right out of the gate showed that this was going to be a mind-blowing experience. I love how this album has classic Kanye all over it, it gives me so much joy to hear that unique production style, given that I haven't heard this album before, I feel like this is the closest I can get to what a Kanye "revival" would feel like. I know it's cliche, but I do miss the old Kanye. Common's voice is so commanding on each song, his flow is like syrup, slow and heavy but it packs a punch. The story telling and poetry on this album is astounding. I love so much about this album and it makes me reminiscent of a by-gone era in hip-hop, probably one of the best ones in terms of mixing intelligent lyrics with catchy and bombastic production.

Every track is masterful, beats fantastic. One of my favorites.

He so real about being soft af and I love him for it

I used to be a big fan of this album, it definitely has some great tunes on it, but Common gets a little bit corny sometimes. A lot of the beats on this have that old school Kanye feel though which I absolutely love. Oh how about that it was produced by Kanye, crazy how recognizable his style was back then. Overall a great album.

Seemed rather good. Hip hop isn’t my thing but I enjoyed a few of the songs, especially the title track and “They Say.”

Ugh, ugh, so, so, huh, yeah no. no. no. no.

Dope

Great album to have playing in the background. I really listened to the lyrics the second time listening, and Common might be one of the greatest storytellers of my generation. Great great great album.

Easy 5. Good vibes, amazing production. Ye COOKED with them beats. Common's rapping is fun and overlays on them nicely. No bad tracks here for me. Definitely open to revisiting this one in full (already listened 3x times). "The Food" was my standout fave, but I gotta shout out 'Chi-City' and 'They Say'.

Arguably the coolest rap album I've ever heard. Such a soothing and satisfying listen. Has a very modern sound that was fresh and engaging throughout. No weak spots either. Top tracks: The Corner, GO!, The Food

Loved. Very chill r&b / rap. Great throwback to 05.

- This is exactly my type of rap/hip-hop. I fully own that. - Lyrically solid. Melodically interesting. Contains deep messages. But still a bop. Common does a good job of mixing up rhythms and keeping me invested, no matter his speed. - Like most of the tracks on here. In particular, "Be," "GO!," "The Food," and "It's Your World." But honestly, I am more impressed that it all blends without feeling monotonous.

WAY better than i expected, listened to it three times yesterday. Apparently I actually like (old) Kanye??????

Absolutely one of the best albums all time with Kanye again doing a masterful job on the production.

Why haven’t I listened more to Common? I guess I lack Common sense! Great album with silk smooth beats, slick bars and he flows like hell. Only track I have heard before is the Kanye-produced GO! Hard to pick a favorite as all tracks are great. The intro that builds on one layer at the time is clever! This really reminded me about pre crazy Kanye times!

Simpelthen røvhamrende lækkert

Man, that opening baseline always gets me going! Really timeless production. Thoughtful lyrics. Great flow from track to track.

Very pleasant, easy music that hits in the right places with cutting lyrics and well placed breaks. I'm happy to be introduced to this album as it's not something that I normally listen to. It might be now, though.

Banger of an album, no doubt produced by Kanye

Classic album. While Kanye really molded the Chicago hip hop sound into what we know today, it was Common who provided the clay. It's a jazzy twist on the 90s New York sound. Where Common's style lacks in flash, he more than makes up in a cool, smooth delivery and buttery beats. I enjoyed how he ends the album with an empowering message to the listener to be their best self.

Before this album to me Common was just a good rapper but never really liked his flow or producers arrangements, enter Kanye West who 100% produced and arranged the beats for the tracks. Common finds a beautiful flow where you can listen to the lyrics be above most rappers at the time. A revival of a dying career and a push into another level all at the same time. This is really one of the best rap albums Ive heard in a lo g time as its sounds biographical life of a black man in america. Common is a god in Chicago but never had that commercial success like I believe he can specially with this album which is flawless. Great to sit down listen and think about everyones privileges.

sem palavras mano plmds muito bom

5 - art. Especially where he treads the line of spoken word and rap. Lots of bangers. It was kinda funny to see how much influence early Kanye had on this record though

love

It was very good and I liked the lyrics

One of my favorite rap albums. I love this record. I think what really works with this record is that its never trying to be more than it is. The beats and bass lines are smooth, jazzy and chill. The lyrics are smart and important but also visceral and deep. The guests artist never take over or are overbearing, they show up and do their thing to elevate each song. The tracks with Kanye honestly might be some of my favorite Kanye songs. I also feel like this album is a good transition between new rap and old rap, but more than anything its truly just *rap.* He's not really getting experimental or trying anything new. He's just really executing on a style and genre that he's obviously mastered. In some ways this reminds me of Neil Young. Neil Young is a masterful songwriter who definitely has interesting tracks with cool guitar, bass etc, but that's not why you listen to Neil Young. That's exactly how I feel about this record. Its the storytelling and songwriting. He kind of just opens a door for you to live in this record and live in these songs. Nothing is ever too much but I'm never underwhelmed. I love the themes on this record. He challenges masculinity, family, relationships, conventional perceptions of god and deity, law enforcement, racism. He kind of packs it all into each song, but tells it in story form that it draws you in. -I think Be (Intro) is probably my favorite song on the record, but really each song in the first 5 tracks just really catches my attention. The sampling behind the bass lines and drums is so groovy, but the lyrics are my favorite. -The Corner is deep and thought provoking -GO! is so fun and deep. I also love the Kanye versus. -Faithful is such a wild ride and play on words. Its deep, punishing and thought provoking. -Testify is perfect follow up. Its interesting, because I really see his influence on rappers like Macklemore in that song. -Chi-City is so sick. I like that its more than just an ode to the city he's from. Again, the story telling and meaning behind is what changes everything for me. -The Food is a perfect duet with Common and Kanye. I love it. -Real People, again super deep. Love the beats as well. -They Say. I love how this switches between John Legend on the chorus and Kanye on different versus. -Its Your World. Chills. Perfect ending to a record.

I venture today into an album from one of the Soulquarian movements strongest MC’s. Common is an artist that not nearly enough people have spent time with. But you can really tell the difference between a hip-hop fan who knows him and one who doesn’t. Be is by far the most acclaimed record he’s ever released. And it represents the transition that hip-hop was going through in the early 2000s. Remnants of the 80s and 90s gangster rap era were still floating around, but we were also starting to see artists like Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, The Roots and the aforementioned Common take center stage. They were revitalizing the boom bap sound of the 90s with a refreshed and modernized pop rap twist. And Common immediately makes himself out to be an impressively charismatic rapper. And he does the whole album with very few features. I was also surprised by the length of the record. A flaw many 2000s hip-hop albums suffer from is just being too long for their own good. This is honestly the perfect length. Now, say what you will about what he has gone through and the circumstances he has ultimately led himself into, but Kanye during this time period was on top of the world. There really wasn’t anyone like him. The College Dropout had come out the year prior, and Late Registration would release only a few months after this. And this is simply some of the best work he ever got credited for. Although he is technically only listed as a feature on one song, he plays an instrumental part in almost every track. The only two songs not produced by him are Love Is… and It’s Your World, which were done by J Dilla. I haven’t really had a chance to properly talk about him here before, so I’m taking that opportunity now. I have a very personal connection to his work, and really value just about everything he ever did. And that closing track genuinely made me emotional. Those kids talking, plus the beautiful poeticism backed by the gorgeous piano honestly almost got the tears flowing for me. It’s what cemented this in my mind as a true passion project from two of 2000s hip-hop’s most talented artists. Rating: 9/10

Jo en een Roald album hoor Wouter

Good.

Really nice.

Surprisingly great album. I wasn't expecting to be vibing to this. This album slaps

A masterful blend of soulful production and introspective lyricism, showcasing the rapper at his best. Kanye absolutely nailed the production; rich, soulful samples that perfectly compliment Common's verses.

Kanye at the peak of his chipmunk powers and some of the last J Dilla on this plane? This album is a love letter to the Aughts: Dave Chapelle, John Legend, John Mayer all on the same disc?!? DAMN. Seriously, Kanye steals the scene with most of his flow but Common is an honourable silver medallist. I knew of this album but had never listened until now. Turns out it was aimed straight at me.

anal bum a day 3 LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOO! I'm so glad that whoever made the list included this one, Common used to be one of my favorite rappers a couple years ago, and this was my favorite from him. I'm familiar enough with Be to say that it is one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever created. Riddled with Kanye West and Dilla production, the instrumentals are extremely uplifting and soulful. "I was rollin' around, in my mind it occurred What if God was a her? Would I treat her the same? Would I still be runnin' game on her? In what type of ways would I want her? Would I want her for her mind or her heavenly body?" Common's verses are fantastic and his storytelling is inspiring. I can't hear these songs and be in a bad mood. 9/10

Be was such a great album. Everything that came out of commons mouth you could tell came straight from the heart and I love it. Alongside Common was he amazing production. This album was awesome.

actually insane production by kanye and really incredible flows and lyrics. genuinely goated

Go!

this really took my by surprise

Be (intro) is probably my favourite Kanye beat of all time, and that is saying a lot. (Number two is probably jay-z - this can’t be life). I never got past the opening on earlier listens of this album as it’s too hard to follow. It’s such a perfect track. But after keeping this on rotation several times today I see my mistake. It’s a great album from Kanyes golden era when everything he touched became gold. I’ve always liked common but never loved him. Although he is technically a great rapper his voice register is rather monotone. But Be is a treasure trove of soulful jazzy hip hop productions topped with good lyrics and delivery. Such a nice vibe.

Great album, fantastic beats. I forgot how much I love Common.

Classic.

Production quality going crazy, and the rhymes are out of this world

love the sampling - this is GOOD music, and you can tell it's old Kanye producing it. extremely solid album, with extremely solid bops. fight me.

Yes. Yes. Absolutely yes.

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

Klassikkoalbumi vailla turhia fillereitä.

Super good album really enjoyed it. A teir. Rhymes are super retro, feels like 90s hip hop which is a great vibe. Beats are great and that Kanye feature is out of nowhere and super fun to hear. Very early 00s.

I was going to give this 4 stars, but the Ph.D. student in mathematics review was so cringeworthy that I'm going with 5 to offset it. Truly a really fun hip hop album on its own merits, either way.

Damn, I love Common... this genre of Conscious Hip Hop appeals to me a lot, but I've never listened to this one all the way through. This is a phenomenal album. 4.5+ tier for me I think.

I listened to the album a lot in my late teens and still listen to it from time to time. I love the beats. Such a good mix of oldschool sampling and more modern production. Creates a nice mood for me. And I like Common's voice and his way of rapping. I haven't paid much attention to the lyrics so far and now I've found that he's very good at telling stories that create very vivid images in my head.

Gets an extra star for not being filled with pointless filler and skits like most rap albums.

Wow this is fantastic, one of if not the best hip hop album I've got so far. It just has such a warm feel to it, like I'm listening to it and I just feel so calm and immersed in the music. Not a lot of albums can give that feeling.

Easily one of the best hip-hop albums of the 00s.

One of the best 2000s rap albums

THIS CAT RAPS AS SMOOTH AS A PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY SANDWICH.

I like this album. This is the era of hip hop that really pulled me where there were lots of samples and overall influence from soul music. And the fact that mid-2000s Kanye is all over this album is 💯 The longer I listened to this album the more I liked it. This is one of the few albums I've felt like that about on this list

The flow is CRAZY

perfection, i have nothing else to say. no standout tracks because they were all 5/5

One of my favorite hip hop albums. Strong lyricism, strong production. Good album flow.

There's a very good argument that this is the best hip hop album ever made. Incredible production by Trilogy-era Kanye and the late J Dilla, fantastic writing throughout, and some of the most powerful songs ever made in general. Thank you to Ruff Criminal for putting me on to both this site and this beautiful album.

this was so groovy. am i allowed to say that word in 2024?

This is good as hell! I love this and I am only 4 songs in. Just finished! Very good! Some more current songs sample this album! 5/5

One of my all-time favorite albums. Kanye and J-Dilla at their peak as producers, Common returning to the top after somewhat of a slump with Electric Circus to deliver an incredibly tight, enjoyable album from start to finish with some of the sweetest melodies and strongest beats of his career.

This is a huge contrast from Like Water for Chocolate from 2000 which had a more indie underground aesthetic and chiller vibe. This is much more accessible, and you can tell it's produced by Kanye, with a sample style reminiscent of his other Kanye works at the time. This album puts more emphasis on the sample and production, which sounds fantastic. His rapping is a bit weaker here on many tracks, but you can still hear his incredible talent in "Be" and "Faithful". With a richer cleaner sound, several hits and collabs, creative ideas in all the cuts, and a suitable 42 minute runtime, it's by far one of the best and accessible albums of the period. I was impressed one after the other with the engaging diversity. Excellent track ordering with a powerful opener, some strong follow up tracks to keep engagement, and an emotional satisfying closer. Only a few complaints. "Testify" had an annoying sample but it still sounded cool and fortunately was the shortest song. "Love Is..." and "Real People" were pleasant and had good lines but didn't add much. "Chi-City" is the weakest, skippable but not bad. Really, no complaints about any of the others, which puts it at near the top of mid-2000s hip hop.

This has always been one of those flawless albums I "forget" exists. In many ways, that's because when I was first getting into hip-hop, this was a typical ✨introduction✨ album. Plus, with time, Common has become a bit of an Award Season Man™️, which I think makes his classics easier to push out of your memories vantage point. Most of all, though, I think this album was very purposefully trying to fly a bit under the radar, at least as much as it could. But it's an album produced largely by Kanye in his prime as a producer, and the two songs that aren't Kanye are by the greatest producer in the whole genre's history, J Dilla. And every single song just hooks me. They're both gorgeous, like flowers in my ears, but also complex while still remaining actually fun to listen to. And the same goes for Common's rapping here. Always technically proficient, most of his discography is filled with unfit bravado or annoying holier-than-thous, and therefore boring. While both of those issues are still present here and may be the albums sole flaw if you look at either to closely – "Go" is a bit awkward, many songs are preachy, most notably "Faithful" and "Be (Intro)" – they're mostly forgivable because Common's storytelling is peak here, arguably the best in the genre's history, and it's only elevated by the context of the production. In many ways, Be is the Platonic Ideal of a hip-hop album: socially conscious, poetic, insightful and observant storytelling, with angelic production and a varied vibe throughout that could be rock a party and a church equally. Sometimes, that idealism can be its own Achilles Heel depending on your mood, but even then, I imagine it's hard to straight-up hate this album, because try as I might, I really can't see this as anything but perfect.

Common is simply a talent. I love his work, particularly this album. Dilla's influence shapes things....Kanye's popularized it. (And he got more lost afterwards).

I love this record. Great production all round, just a joy to listen to. Had it on repeat for 5 days now. Favourite tracks: the whole thing.

All time album.

Solid!