So as I’ve said before, I’m a big rock guy – and my exposure to rap and hip-hop has been extremely limited… I typically know the more popular tracks from a couple of artists, but that’s about it – so the 1,001 has forced me to listen to a number of rap and/or hip-hop albums so far, as I’m about 150 or so in right now… So far, I’ve had some NWA, Public Enemy, Run-DMC, Queen Latifah, Outcast – and a few others – but hands down, Jay-Z is the best rapper in my opinion, and this album was absolutely fabulous… - Love his style, and how clever and witty his rhyming is… I almost added “writing” as well, but from what I’ve read – it sounds like much of what he creates is spontaneous – which makes it even more amazing… - His songs are genuine, and far-less focused on “thug life’ as opposed to like “Doggystyle” by Snoop Dogg – and the lyrics are more about his rise and work ethic – which sends a much more inspirational message… - I found the musical tracks backing his raps, to be among the best quality when compared the 15 or so other rap albums that I’ve listened to so far… The vibe I get, is that either Jay-Z is way more detailed oriented than most of the rappers I’ve listened to, or most of the others either don’t really care all that much for the music, and or aren’t that detail-oriented (i.e. making sure that every aspect of the album is top-shelf) – or both… - Best tracks IMO were – “Takeover” – Loved the backdrop of The Doors track on this one, and exceptionally well done… “Izzo (HOVA) – Really enjoyed this, as well as the story behind how the HOVA name came to be – do yourself a favor and Google it… Great track… “Blueprint” – This one is really well done as well, and a great way to close the album… The rest of the tracks are incredibly solid – and there is great diversity throughout the album, although the weakest tracks were the 2 “Girls, Girls, Girls” tracks (i.e. certainly catchy, but not nearly as good as the other material on this album…) – and surprisingly, the Eminem track “Renegade”, was not nearly as good as I thought it would be… Fells like this should be a 5 – and I don’t give many of those (i.e. maybe 10% of the 150 or so albums I’ve listened to so far…), so that’s what I’ll give it…