Be

Yxi wähä rucous kiria monil iumalisil ia tarpelisil rucouxil ia kijtos sanoil sekä entisistä suomen kielen että mös muista rucous kirioista lisätty/ enätty ia vdhistettu Iumalan cunniaxi ia suomalaisten tarpexi. Kaxi wähä rucous kiria monil iumalisil ia tarpelisil rucouxil ia kijtos sanoil sekä entisistä suomen kielen että mös muista rucous kirioista lisätty/ enätty ia vdhistettu Iumalan cunniaxi ia suomalaisten tarpexi. Tyypillinen albumi. heh tajuutko.. ymmärätkö? Yxi wähä rucous kiria monil iumalisil ia tarpelisil rucouxil ia kijtos sanoil sekä entisistä suomen kielen että mös muista rucous kirioista lisätty/ enätty ia vdhistettu Iumalan cunniaxi ia suomalaisten tarpexi. chi-city

Never listened to this. Not once. And to be honest, I probably have never listened to any song by Common (at least not deliberately or that I could remember). But damn...that was smooth as hell. Like a mix of rap and jazz. Enjoyed that a lot more than I thought I would.

Like this more than I thought I would, but I still cringe at some of the language.

No-one can honestly say that there aren't some genres they like less than others. For me Rap is one of those. However, this albun was a very pleasant surprise for me. I can't say that I really heard the lyrics, but I really liked the overall musical sound of it all. I shall listen to this album again

Ok

I'll always cherish this album for allowing me to listen to some prime Kanye beats without having to listen to Kanye. Well, most of the time, at least.

Impeccable flow catchy verses and

Really enjoyed this! Can absolutely hear Kanye’s influence as a producer on this album. Was also cool to hear connections between tracks on this album and Kanye’s later stuff (Chi-City —> opening of Homecoming). Common is a legend and I enjoyed the chance to hear more of his solo stuff

really liked it, the beats are good, and it's actually such an optimistic album toward the end. feels like something childish gambino would have drawn from. I don't listen to hip hop at all so this was a nice change

Not my normal genre but I really enjoyed this. Especially loved all the Chicago content

Technically a great rapper but this music has always left me cold. The best verses on this are by Kanye

CHICITY BABY dope album

Holy shit this is awesome.

7/10 definitely not the typical music id listen to, a few songs I like the sound of and whole album has a nostalgic feel which I really like. Not a huge fan of the kanye participation for obvious reasons but i can appreciate its a greatly produced album

Bit of a genre change.. liked this album, real smooth listening, classic 2000 rap

Not a fan of rap really

Production on this is great, def see its merit

I've heard this album when I was 24 years old. And what I loved most, he had so much soul... (no, for real, putting aside the fact that mentions of Dave Chappelle aged horribly and that I wished Kanye kept doing great music instead of trying so hard to offend everybody, this is a very, very good rap album!)

Truly enjoyed this album. Fun yet meaningful.

Not at all my jam - but more musicality than I've heard of others in this genre...

maybe the most likeable album ever lol. for some reason i always remember this as a debut even tho i know its not, but i always forget specifically that common had been releasing music for over a decade by the time this came out...obviously a big part of this record's enduring legend is the involvement from golden era k@ny3 but im glad things worked out to get a bunch of eyes on common at this stage. not that he has Everything Figured Out or whatever, but the level of lived experience is oozing out of everywhere and is just in general the stage i wish a lot more artist of all types and mediums got to reach...being rich and successful esp can hold u in a myopic personal stasis (like some of the collaborators here, famously!), but at least at this stage common feels like he has never stopped living and thoughtfully accruing new experiences and understanding...just one of a myriad contributors to this being a very sweet and assuring record, esp for these Times,,,,bush-era stubborn optimism rly does hit nice about now

Very chilled album. No fillers

Bra album. Chicago-rappare precis som Kanye (som är feat.) på någon låt. Stabil, känns som en klassiker?

Meh.

It’s good, it’s not my thing but I enjoyed spending time listening

great album, liked the melody and young kanye features

It was okay. Rap is not really my thing. The last couple of minutes tied the whole album together though.

I’ve heard of Common but never listened to him. Very bluesy and r and b. Also very much messagey. Didn’t mind it but not my total jam.

Similar in sound, themes and rhythm as other hip hop recordings on this list. It is good to hear this point of view while at the same time maintaining a realization that I am not the audience.

great stuff. EZ listening. good vibes only

Nice and relaxing

i have a bias toward rap albums, but this one is pretty good. maybe the reason for this is the presence of ye as the producer and the co-writer, who is still half a genius at then, before becoming that wanker that he now is. even though i was a fan of taylor when i was in middle school, i still miss the old kanye. 4/5

Instrumentals and beats were on point actually.

Favourite tracks: be (intro); the corner; go!; faithful; love is...; they say

An enjoyable album

Don’t know this smoother type of rap very well, Pleasant enough, not the target audience and didn’t connect/get into it enough to reach/know the content, which is on me which is fine.

i love the intro

This one didn’t click with me. Production is good, but I didn’t like the style overall. Guess it’s my mathematics phd and lack of verbal intelligence

Seemed reasonably unemarkable to me.

Pretty good stuff, although I do find it a little over produced and sheened - definately prefer his slightly rawer, jazzier albums such as Like Water for Chocolate..

An easy enough listen but I couldnt quite find reason to give 4 stars. Thought it could have been a Jay-Z produced album to begin with but clearly heard Kanye’s influence later in the album. Loved the last track.

Tydelig Kanye produktion. Det her er hiphop messigt mere mig. Det er melodierne som bære oplevelsen. Så det var ret let at komme igennem.

Tydelig Kanye produktion. Lyden er meget hen af hans egne tidlige albums. Men uden de samme bangers som der var på de skiver. Første nummer fanger mig, men derefter fader jeg nemt ud af albummet.

Motown Rap. The more Motown, the better.

kinda chill. kinda angry

Somewhat overseen rap album that shouldn’t be overseen. Feels like Illmatic 2.0

One of Common’s best albums in my opinion. His smooth voice and Kanye’s beats were meant to be together.

Not my thing

Honestly, more enjoyable than I was expecting, but not for me.

Rap/pop sur samples

I've never even heard of this, but then I'm not that well versed in hip hop Got a bit nervous with some Owl City esque sounding keyboards on Be (Intro), thankfully that didn't come back. It's maybe vaguely in the Kanye pop-rap realm (unsurprising since he produced it), where I tend to prefer stuff like ATCQ, MF DOOM, but I like Common's voice enough that it kept me engaged. Kanye is/was pretty genius at sampling too so that helped keep my attention as well To be fair, I am a hipster with a humanities degree so it's unsurprising that I like this Highlights: Go!

Never even heard of the artist before and for sure won’t remember him in a few weeks time…nothing special, decent hiphop grooves, lyrics don’t stand out for me…

Started out promising, but ended up just being OK. Plenty of other 2000s acts blow this out of the water

Background rap influences by tu pac and kanye

Feeling bad I laughed at: "I was rollin around, in my mind it occurred / What if God was a her?" Highlights include: Be(Intro), Testify, Chi-City, The Food - Live, Kanye's verse on They Say Good album, but I am not used to rap lyrics/production being kind of saccharine? I could see this pairing well nice with a sunny day, but some of the lyrics are a bit corny.

great instrumentals great voice thoughtful reflective lyrics nice best tunes: go!, faithful, love is..., chi-city, real people

My first Rap LP listen, ever! The samples give BE a 70's vibe. I like this. Some off the song ends are super cold. Strong; The Corner & They Say

This album has one of the strongest intro/outro combos imo. I’m particularly fond of It’s Your World, feels like a summation of the album in its entirety

I know who Common is but not much about his music. I did not realize how long he's been around. On this one, Common has a smooth voice and there was a nice groove that seemed to run through the whole album. Ye produced and it sounds good. He definitely had some talent back when he was still on his meds. Definitely a good way to spend some time and worth a listen.

Album #12 (After almost a year of breaking from this!) - 5/5 Hell yeah. Great sound. Amazing lyricism. Beautiful themes. Rad album art. Fuck Kanye West.

4.6/5

I appreciated this, but nothing on the album really got its hooks into me on a first listen. It seems like an album that would reward multiple listens, though. Hope to return to this in the future.

Really strong rap album. Lyrics, flow, beats: everything on point. Favorites: Chi-City, Be, They Say

Apart from some interesting rhymes in the first couple of tracks, this didn't do anything for me, and the final track, It's Your World, I just found mawkish.

Yeah

Hooked me at the start with the Intro's heavy groove of 70's soul. Unfortunately, that influence seemed to wane as the album went on.

Another let down of an album. I have standards and those standards for hip hop don’t fit the “Common” slate. Parental Advisory alert? Check Anything else??? No Musically well produced, decent samples as well but the delivery of his rhymes are weak. There doesn’t seem to be any conviction, anger, direction with his delivery. I know who Common is, that says something but I clearly don’t know it from this album. Choice cut: Love Is

Once is enough

Generic

Definitely not for me. Nothing particularly interesting going on.

Good chill hip hop, but of Kanye mixed in with him in his prjme. 3.2

I'm more familiar with Common the actor than Common the rapper but consider me pleasantly surprised. Appreciate the soul/R&B-influenced backing tracks. Favorites: Be (Intro), Chi-City, The Food, They Say Would I listen to it again: Probably

7/10 Nice album, production amazing Common doesn’t quite live up to Kanye’s production Best: they say

Quite nice, quite pleasing, but nothing absolutely new.

Cool production, honestly not too many thoughts on this. Good album don't see myself coming back in the future.

4 star. Nice easy listening hippity hop.

Really digging Common's lyrics throughout this album, and the music hit me in good ways. There are a handful of touches that I'm not sure about on my first spin, but I'll definitely listen to it a few more times to see if my opinion changes. For now I'm not sure it's great, but it's definitely worthy of attention and I'm glad this project gave me a reason to listen to it. I may need to dig into his other albums too.

F*ckin great. Go! is one of the few songs my daughter and I can both groove to. Just great. Listen to it!

Some records can be hit or miss in Atmos but this one is mixed well. Really good story telling on Testify. Haven’t listened to a lot of Common’s stuff but I’m giving him a Chappelle’s Show bump like I did with Q-Tip. Favorite song: The Corner Least favorite song: Faithful

Not bad, but not an album that belongs on a list of the best 1001 albums of all time, either. 3/5

Bad language

super chillll

Another classic here. An incredibly smooth listen thanks to Common’s delivery and production from Kanye on the top of his game. Everything from this period that he touched is just incredible, which makes his recent output just seem so much worse.

I think someone in the comments referred to Common as someone who writes “dad rap”? Is that true? I’m not a dad, I’m not even a guy, but I didn’t mind this album. It was easy to listen to, because there wasn’t a bunch of cussing and yelling. Will I listen again? No. Did I listen to the whole thing? No. But the fact that I listened beyond the first song is really saying something, because I don’t like rap. And you know what, I don’t care if that makes me “uncool” or “a wet blanket” or “no fun at parties.” I know my truth.

As with most rap albums, this really wasn't for me. I've heard worse, but this made no impression on me

Intro klingt wie ein 80 Nintendospiel. Und dann hört man 90er hiphop. Klingt cool, aber bekommt much nicht.

Solid album

Man I miss 2005 rap: when Kanye's screws were loose instead of left behind in 2015. Common really nailed the comeback with his poetic and powerful lyrics while Kanye really laid down some of his better tracks I've heard outside his own music. Simple, but powerful. 3.75/5

Be is an album that clearly wants to be important, conscious, and uplifting, but too often settles for sounding polite and self-satisfied. It presents itself as soulful and reflective, yet much of it feels smoothed down to the point of blandness. The production is warm and tasteful, sometimes too tasteful, wrapping everything in a comforting glow that removes any sense of urgency or tension. Instead of pulling you in, it keeps you at arm’s length, nodding along rather than feeling anything deeply. Lyrically, Common is thoughtful and articulate, but the delivery rarely hits with real weight. There is a lot of talk about growth, positivity, and self-awareness, yet very little that feels risky or emotionally raw. The verses often circle familiar ideas without digging into them, and the hooks drift by without leaving much of a mark. Even when the beats hint at something richer or more dynamic, the songs tend to flatten out, choosing reassurance over impact. What ultimately holds Be back is how content it seems with being agreeable. It wants to inspire, but it rarely challenges, provokes, or surprises. There is nothing here that feels outright bad, but there is also very little that truly demands attention or repeat listens. It is an album that sounds good while it is on and evaporates almost immediately after.

Great. Listen again

I never considered myself a fan of Common. I’m not a fan of hip-hop or rap in general, but for some reason I specifically never liked Common. I think it might have been back when Glory from the movie Selma won for Best Original Song at the Oscar’s, which felt like it won because it was close to Eric Garner’s death, as well as the Oscars So White controversy. I remember hearing the song and thinking it was ridiculous that the song won since it was basically just a chorus repeating the word Glory over and over again. Now this was a decade ago, so I was younger and stupider, but it made me think Common was this straight edge, social justice rapper who was more notable for his activism than his songs. I was low key dreading doing this album as it popped up. Fortunately, this was not as bad as I thought it would be. However, I wouldn’t call it great. The album has great production and it’s nice to hear Kanye West before he completely lost his mind. And I didn’t know John Legend was singing around 2005. I mean, I was nine at the time this came out and I really didn’t know John Legend until All of Me. I know, I’m really ignorant. Anyway, most of the album is good Chi-rap. It covers all the bases lyrically; rapping about the problems facing the black population in Chicago with a semi-positive outlook. Most of it is good, but nothing particularly mind-blowing. And Common does like rapping about the cops a lot. I mean, I sympathize with him, but it’s a little repetitive. Overall, this wasn’t bad. I take back that beef I had with Common a decade ago. Favorite track: They Say Other hits: Faithful, Testify, It’s Your World, Go!

..

I loved this album at 14 without quite “getting it”, having had only a clean version, and being 14. Still luminous, now powerfully nostalgic—remember when Kanye was only known for rapping?? Simpler times.

great album, it was my second listen and went from a 3/5 to a 3.5/5, great production overall.

I love this album, everything is just perfect. I don't like Kanye West because he's a nazi (even though he is struggling with mental health issues currently) but he's a talented person regardless. What an incredible album.

Nice.

I don't do a lot of hip hop deep dives, but this was definitely a gem. I'd heard The Food before, but all of the other tracks were solid. It's Your World is such a powerful track, I'm still re-listening and mulling it over. Glad this one popped up for me!

Great samples, great beats and great production. Infused with a sense of joy and love

this is so fucking fresh

Dope

Decent outing.

man, wat is dit voor lijst... heb de indruk dat het 'Listen to these 1001 albums and you surely will die' is... kutalbum!

Better than I thought, nice chill jazzy rap album w/ great samples. Also features Ye (also produces the album) and John Mayer as guests, who kills it.

Favorite Track: Be

Not for me.

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.

Kanye DNA. nearly 20 years later it's still solid.

82/100

Enjoyed this one. Like Common’s message and the mix of hip hop and r&b. “GO!” Is a great song. 3.5/5 Will listen again

love the beats, not just the Kanye ones tho. He's a really good rapper as well, really no downsides at all, a near perfect rap album. Favorite songs: the intro, Love is, The live one with Kanye. Overall around 8/10

5.5/10. Be what? It’s okay. I don’t have much to say about this album. Be.

Such a fantastic pairing of voice and production, this is some thoroughly excellent work from Kanye…. A really great album

Dammit kanye

yeah i mean its undeniable. beautiful album ... somehow makes conscious rap not corny af and kanye and dilla's production is truly unreal. I actually really enjoy kanye's vocals being used as a 'production effect' i think it adds a beautiful texture to this album ...

Light ambient lounge

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'.

Here comes my usual hip hop review: More relentlessly monotonous hip hop about the same boring subjects: humble brag, whine about "socially conscious" subjects, rinse and repeat Nothing original here. No thanks. Moving on to the next album.

7.8/10

Maaaan this takes me back to high school/college. I used to love this album so much. And it hasn’t aged terribly either. Still bangs.

The Kanye production is so clear. What’s happened to him man :(

Supongo que no está mal y Común me parece buen tipo, pero cada que me sale un disco de rap en esta lista me confirma que no es lo mío y nunca podré con el género. Me cansa enseguida y todos los discos me parecen idénticos, sean de quien sean. Lo siento, Común.

Didn’t think I was going to enjoy this based on its genre, which I know is bad but I’m just not a rap/hip hop kinda gal. However, as albums go, this was one of the more listenable ones I’ve had on this list from that genre. If it’s got a more interesting beat and some different vocals and melodies then it just passes for me.

Always a welcome listen. Laid back, well produced. Not absolutely top-tier hip hop, but still bloody lovely.

Pretty solid outing this one. I enjoyed this after having never really listed to common before. Can hear the Kanye influence for sure. 3.5

Proper good. Go is a right song and the title track is as well. Very smooth and melodic.

The beats are nice

If I remember correctly, this isn't the first time a Common album has appeared here... anyway, great rap album! I really like it when an album like this sounds like the 90s, even though it isn't. His voice is very comfortable to listen to. It was a great start to the morning listening to this! I will leave 4 stars today.

Worth hearing again

Buena intro, me gusto mucho la primer canción. La segunda y tercera, también están bien, cumplen, pero fuera de eso no tengo nada más para destacar, en general me pareció bastante meh.

Kanye and Chappell on the same song lame

It's fine but I don't have a lot to remember or say about it. 5/10

I liked this. More than a lot of hip hop anyway.

Enjoyed it, not biggest fan of rap but thought this was well produced. Very nice flow. I particularly liked The Food - Live.

Excellent first half, ok second half.

decent but nothing special, a standard rap album

S'alright, which is a more than glowing endorsement when it comes to hip hop for me. I quite enjoyed the instrumentals on these tracks, and I found myself warming to some of the vocal performances and lyrics. The Kanye track was my favourite, which surprised me as I have next to no familiarity with his discography. I may give some of his albums a listen when I clear my current backlog

Cool stuff. Not so common after all.

Rap. Groovy, soulful. Lovely voice and flow. Melodic, soulful samples. Very easy to listen to. Like hip-hop more than I thought.

Probably should be a 4. I enjoyed it but don't see myself going back to it.

I know this one is considered an R&B classic but I just couldn't get into it

Common's 'Be' is timeless for the reason that while it may have dropped in the mid 00s and exhibits plenty of 00s typicalities, it may just as well have been a somewhat forward thinking 90s release, and a not at all out of place current drop.

7/10

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.

no

prime Kanye production, a perfect background for the low and smooth flow of Common. Didn't have time to get deeper into the lyrics (not a native speaker, always a challenge with rap) so it may still grow on me. "I miss the old Kanye"

Is that - wait - yes it is - *wholesome vibes* I hear coming from these hiphop tunes? I will never be a hiphop convert, but I can appreciate these beats much more than their vulgar counterparts.

I like most of the songs, but wouldn’t want to own the album which is what makes it a 5 for me. I would skip a few of the lesser known songs.

I'm not a rap fan but as far as rap albums go, this was actually tolerable. For me to give a rap album a 2.5/5 would be like giving a different kind of album a 4.

i think if i had been way into this at the time I'd probably love it, but as it stands it's just fine

kanye west

yea its alright

Great album, not usually a fan of hip hop and rap but this was poignant, varied, and sounds great

Just gangsters etc, i dont get the hype

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

Favourite song - Go!

Yeah. Some intelligent rap. Ace rhythms. No cussing or misogyny. It's a bit like early Kanye but smoother. Highly recommended.

At first i thought it wouldve been amazing because i previously knew the first few songs, but i feel like it was just okay overall.

I'm not honestly the best judge of rap but I enjoy the complexities of the backing tracks. I'd give it a solid three stars. Got a nice groove but I didn't find myself liking any of the songs for repeat listening.

Other than "Testify", it's a decent album. Testify is a pretty bad song though.

Not bad, but nothing really stood out either.

Maso

Pretty good

*some music, mostly rap.

tolle grooves, jazzig angehaucht und einfach zum mitwippen.

Unaufgeregter Rap welcher in seiner ruhigen Art zu gefallen weiss.

A really bright and fun album from Common, thanks in part to Kanye's lively production and Common's hooks. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.

One of the most innofensive rap album I've heard. Good tracks, but nothing's really awesome either.

This was a very good album, but I can't say any tracks was a total stand-out or will stay with me for a long time. Still, a pleasant listen and the beats were nice!

go

This is definitely it’s not you it’s me. But also didn’t hate it.

Good drum loops and that

Beats

I've kind of always liked Common, but I've also never really listened to him. His rhymes are very deliberate, at times this can be cool, but it can also get sort of boring. Still liked this album, but I'm not going to put that many of these songs on a playlist. Best Song: Chi-City Worst Song: Love is...

The production on this is so good, I love the soul and jazz influence. The tracks are solid throughout, and it's a testimony to Kanye West's brilliance as a producer. It's conscious and cohesive. Best song: The Corner Worst song: The Food

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

Nice beats and flow. A bit different than normal hiphop

Produced by Mr West. Really good flows and amazing beats as to be expected.

Nothing stuck with me on this album.

Loved it.

Nothing mind-blowing, but some killer lyrics/production and pretty consistently solid. 3.5/5

- 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.

Al señor "matemático" que escribió la reseña de cómo le gustan "más los discos por su naturaleza musical y no lírica", le digo: deja de justificar tu racismo. Este debe ser uno de los discos de Hip-Hop más melódicos e interesantes que he escuchados. Las bases producidas genialmente por Kanye West (antes de su irreversible caída a la locura) se mantienen frescas a través del LP, inspirando subgéneros como el Lo-Fi Hip Hop y adelantando el estilo de algunas de sus obras más interesantes. Common, por supuesto, destaca con su inmaculado flow e ilustraciones dramatizadas de las ocurrencias cotidianas de las comunidades afroamericanas. Sumamente recomendable.

goated production

I'm not surprised I'm not big on the Kanye West produced tracks, never got into his chipmunk soul thing. I am surprised that the Dilla tracks don't stand out. Maybe kinda shocked even? the natural response to J Dilla beats is supposed to be 'oh hell yeah'. I'd maybe think harder about whether it should be a 3, but if you've got both John Mayer and Kanye West on your album you have to really justify anything above a 2.

I remember kinda liking this when it came out, but it feels like a harder sell now. Maybe it’s the Kanye West connection, maybe it’s John Mayer. Maybe it’s that I know Obama really likes the guy. I dunno. It’s not good when any president thinks you’re cool.

Good hip hop, a little aged but good lyric and samples.

I appreciate it but just not my thing

Peak Kanye era production Maybe less well known than College Dropout but arguably just as goood

I am the wrong guy to be rating rap/hip hop. I’ll just say this seems quite adequate for the genre.

Well I never listened to Common before, and I definitely never knew what Kanye actually did before he became a deranged Nazi shoe designer, so I must say this surpassed my expectations by quite a lot.

I like Common in general but found this album pretty generic and lacking any distinctive feel or creativity to push it over the top. Very average, if not slightly below average.

The Corner was a good jam. The rest was a little heavy handed with the social messages

Moving out and tidying up to this album was a bop

3.36

Þetta rapp var nú ekki alslæmt. Ég næstum því fílaði það en samt bara næstum því. Ég þurfti ekki að bíða eftir því að platan kláraðist en ég mun aldrei reyna að spila hana aftur. Þannig að já, ekki alslæmt en heldur ekki sérlega gott

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.

I don’t have to have a degree or a career in STEM to know that using that as a criteria for judging music is cringey behavior. This album is a solid rap album from the 2000s.

Good, but nothing stand out to me. No track rattles around my head afterwards

This is good. I've always seen this around but never listened. Definitely would not mind coming back to this.

It was alright

Meh. Enjoyed some beats but mostly ruined by association with Kanye.

Good production but likely won't relisten.

It's ok

Not my culture, cannot relate and not interesting musically enough to make it other than repetitive. This has just enough small musical interludes not to dismiss it entirely. but please no more rap albums!

Upphafslagið er afar gott, næsta líka, og svo framvegis. Mjög góð grúv, ánægjulegt, yes yes.

när det rappas är det jävligt bra men sen kommer töntiga soulbitar emellanåt. en stark trea

3.75

It’s nice enough. But what’s the point in listening to it? It doesn’t break any new ground.

The best part of this album was Kanye West.

I absolutely love Common and this album is an essential Common album to listen to

ganz nett mal zwischendurch zu hören

Another rap album, a genre I don't really care for. But I listened to it three times and I kind of like some aspects of it. Rap delivery always seems quite samey to me, and I guess the critical thing here is whether one can go with the lyrics and gain from them. To some extent, that's going to be (at least in part) dependent on the cultural references. One thing I'm really not able to form an opinion about is the extent to which this album was influential on other artists.

Never got the hype surrounding this, I thought he peaked with Like Water for Chocolate. Once he dropped the Sense he was really just Common...YEAHHHHHHHHH

ну опять же, классный и мелодичный, но мне нехватает времени и языковой беглости понять его на 100% поэтому середнячок

Just pretty dull really

This will be my second, and subsequently last, Common album to review. I really didn't care for Like Water for Chocolate, so I don't have high hopes for this Be. However, I see that Be clocks in at just over 40 minutes, which is considerably shorter than Like Water for Chocolate's runtime, so that's already a big positive. Let's see what this is all about. Well, I'm not a STEM guy, but this album wasn't really my jam. From an objective standpoint, I think it's good, but I didn't really enjoy listening to it. The album has a really cohesive feel to it, and the production work and beats were really good, but nothing really hooked me in. The songwriting was pretty good, and there were some clever lyrics, but I'm just not a big fan of Common's rapping. I don't think he's bad, he's just not my cup of tea, and I wish that wasn't the case. This album was fine, but it's not the sort of thing I'd listen to again.

oh yeah. The Kanye West production is pretty clear. This era of hip hop is not always my favorite, but I can just imagine this playing at a bar and it would bang. Okay but Faithful is amazing. I really do like this, I'm just not the biggest fan of this sound. Maybe it will grow on me more

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!

I like this kind of rap- groovy and underplayed. Reminds me of DOOOOM!

Not for me thanks. I recognised the extra emphasis on the music, but the rapping was the usual...

Common in always interesting. His songs usually just have a basic beat and a chorus that does little more than tie the verses together. But those verses are FIRE. And of course, GO! is awesome. Love Is... is also a nice chill song. It's Your World was a great ending to it. Best song: GO!

Kind of a Kanye album with a worse rapper. Some good tunes but it proves that Kanye is kind of the talent here

Solid stuff!!! Think I’ve heard this before but enjoyed it. Kanye makes great beats unfortunately!

Gorgeous vocals over Tom and Jerry type beats

Best part of this album is Kanye. Great album etc but unfortunately I have an aversion to Common.

I’m not too cool for many things. But I’m too cool for Common.

This was GREAT. I loved digging into the production history here. Didn’t realize the star power on this album and that Mayer sang the “Go” sample. Fun flow for an album, didnt feel like a super perverted album either (maybe doggy style was just too much for me)

It's easy to hate Common for being a lax faux intellectual rapper. And I hate him for it. I'll give 2 stars for good production on this album though – a lot of socially conscious rap has such sparse and uninspired beats that you have no choice but to listen to the preachy lyrics, but the highest compliment I can give Common is that he picks good producers who can distract from his annoying persona. I actually found myself enjoying a few songs when I could just enjoy the beat without listening to him waxing poetic. But that's as far as I'll go

I fell asleep every time I tried to get through this - one time at 2pm in the middle of the work day.

Simpelthen røvhamrende lækkert

Very chill, but not a masterpiece

stands out for being a thousand times less gross than most of the hip hop on this list

I am familiar with Common the actor and unfamiliar with Common the artist, so I am excited. The opening bass line is sweet, and this is a welcome change compared to the Kate Bush drivel I had to suffer through yesterday. God, I love 2000s hip-hop with a passion. It's just so good on so many layers: the beats, the lyrics, the tempo.

Beats are AWESOME. I'd listen to a worse rapper with these beats tbh. 2005 Kanye complaining about the media LOL Fav Track - GO!

This is a great, engaging album. Love the rhythms, bases, and harmonies. Great time capsule!

Chill Rap jazz

Not my typical genre of music. Some nice rhythms but easily forgettable for me - no real lasting power.

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

Wow wow wow, how have I never listened to this before? I used to listen to a lot of Kayne West, so could hear his influence immediately. No notes, enjoyed every single song on this record. Will now be in my rotation.

I like how he looks more than his music

Liked the arrangements, production, and sampling (thanks, Kanye?) but the songs didn’t grab me.

I get a little annoyed with people praising Common for being conscious rap. He’s not that different from a lot of other rap artists. There was one song maybe on here where he mentions police violence. The rest of it was just 00s-era hip hop, nothing special. I do like Testify and The Food. The rest was common.

Early 2000s Kanye + J Dilla = GOAT hip hop production.

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.

truthfully i wanna rhyme like common sense

Banger of an album, no doubt produced by Kanye

enjoyable

Solid collection of tracks. Flow and beats were easy to listen to. A decent album overall.

FINALLY! No more mind numbing music! 9/10. This kindve feels like a collab album with Kanye, and maybe that’s why every beat is so refreshing. This album will feel even better after I slog through another 15 albums that go through one ear and out the other.

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.

No thanks. At least it wasn't hyper aggressive.

Mostly delicious, some duds Hate common the actor, like the guy, rate the rapper.

Chill hip hop, second listen needed but good first impression.

WHat a fantastic album!

I didn't listen to much of this. Wasn't bad...not really my thing though. 3/5

Great album! wish I’d known about it sooner. of course kanye as a producer is huge. Favorite songs were GO! and testify. And the sample of kids saying what they wanna be in the song it’s your world was special, loved it

Instrumentally - This is Kanye at the peak of his high-pitched soul sampling beat production. He took what the likes of Just Blaze and other producers were doing and reached an entirely new level by himself. Lyrically - Common shows us the experienced craftsman he is, which given this is his 6th album should be no surprise. To add, Common sounds just as hungry as ever on this. This album is the cherry on top of a great run of albums.

Favorite Tracks: They Say GO!

This album was a disappointment. It started strong, but the quality faded fast for me. I needed more Common and less Kanye here. Liked Songs Added: - Be (Intro) - The Corner

No tenía ni idea de su existencia. Empieza bien al menos. Me he guardado un par de canciones GO! y Faithful. No sé si lo volveré a escuchar, hay tanta música pendiente, pero debería.

I like this quite a lot. I could tell Kanye was involved without having to look it up. Haven't paid enough attention to the lyrics but I love how loose this sounds. The samples and beats work really great. 4/4.5

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

I really liked this album at a time. It helped me get into the genre. A 4 for the quality of the album and it's importance to me.

Nostalgic album for me. For some reason I have a very clear memory of listening to this on a bus to a field trip in high school on my portable CD player. Possibly an early mp3 player. Still holds up well.

I dug this album more than the other Common album I got a long time ago. Also what I loved is that it is a tight 42 minutes which is perfect length. Doesn't overstay its welcome. Shame about the Kanye connection but doesn't take away from it.

First album/artist I’d never heard on this list, reminds me somewhat of celph titled 4/5

So so easy to listen to. Such an easy listen. All the kanye on it reminds me of when he was actually a good musician. Commons voice is so chilled out, the album is fairly chilled out Great grooves, great production, perfect length, NO SKITS.

This is a solid album. Definitely sounds like it came out of the mid-2000s. Kind of like that Lupe Fiasco album I just had, so much from this era feels like it's got Kanye's fingerprints all over it. I didn't think I listened to much Common but much of this album was very familiar to me. 3.5 rounding up

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

I'm sure I might have heard this before, but it is catchy.

I liked this a lot.

Never heard of this, Kanye and Dilla on production, rooted in 70's soul. I would say it's very consistent, but not monotonous.

I preferred this one to “Like Water for Chocolate,” just a vibe.

Not for me

Better than expected. Felt more genuine.

"As high as the stakes get when paper get low..." I liked this one significantly more than Like Water for Chocolate. Reasonable runtime (not bloated) and a nice sound, with nothing I strongly disliked. Interesting sounds on "Be (Intro)." I also liked "Testify." I might return to this one, maybe. I believe there have been references to the film The Matrix in both of the Common albums that have come up here (here in "They Say"), which makes me think Common saw it and was obsessed. Maybe that was all of us for a time after 1999.

My buddies listened to this a lot in high school. It's definitely more pleasant and mellow than pop radio rap from the same time period. But it's a little serious. It's just not as much fun as ATCQ or De La Soul. Fine but not exciting.

love

Pretty nice experience however some songs are repetitive.

Kanye's production and Common's rapping creates a great hip-hop/rap album.

Not bad

Not bad, I've never heard any other Common songs to balance this album against his other work, but this is good, and you can hear Kanye's influence all over, not just in his performances. I enjoyed it, even if it's not 100% my thing.

The first album of a genre that I don't normally listen to. Very powerful themes that honestly did draw me in. I was honestly a little surprised how much the songs could draw me in despite the fact that I have had very different life experiences; I think that's a mark of a good storyteller. I especially like the songs that include some elements of spoken poetry, which give the whole album a stronger and grander identity. Favorite song: "The Corner" Best representation of the album: "It's Your World (Part 1 & 2)"

Common is a talented rapper that is unfortunately rapping on some of the greatest beats ever. I don’t think he was quite up to the challenge. Still a great project!

This was better than I expected. Found it didn't feel like it took forever to get through.

Shit

Good

It was very good and I liked the lyrics

This was a sick record. I liked the lyrics a lot and the music was good too. It kept making me think of Common in Small Foot though which is kinda funny.

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.

You can tell Kanye west produced this album. Very 2005

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

This wasn't too bad, but just I can't shake the feeling that this is just a 2pac wannabe

Solid hip hop album

Worth a listen. I liked the jazz sound. While listening I thought he sounded a bit like Kanye and then yesus appeared. Decent hip hop 6/10

Great lyrics

Jo en een Roald album hoor Wouter