In Rolling Stone, Touré determined that The Black Album was slightly inferior to Jay-Z's best records, namely Reasonable Doubt (1996) and The Blueprint (2001). Jon Caramanica wrote in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004) that The Black Album was both 'old-school and utterly modern', showcasing Jay-Z 'at the top of his game, able to reinvent himself as a rap classicist at the right time, as if to cement his place in hip-hop's legacy for generations to come'. Club, Nathan Rabin felt Jay-Z returned to 'brevity and consistency' on an album that demonstrated his lyrical abilities and, more importantly, hip hop's best producers. Vibe magazine said it was remarkable as an apotheosis of his genuinely thoughtful songwriting and lyrics 'delivered with transcendent skill', while Steve Jones from USA Today said even with 'top-shelf work' from elite producers, the album was elevated by Jay-Z's uniquely deft and diverse rapping style. AllMusic's John Bush claimed Jay-Z was retiring at his peak with the album. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, it received an average score of 84, based on 19 reviews. The Black Album was met with widespread critical acclaim. The songs Encore, Dirt off Your Shoulder, and 99 Problems, are all on the Mashup EP, Collision Course with Linkin Park.Ĭritical reception Professional ratings Aggregate scores

It became Jay-Z's top selling record of the 2000s decade, and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2005. It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 463,000 copies in its first week. The album received widespread acclaim from music critics and was a massive commercial success. It was also supported by three singles: ' 99 Problems', also the Billboard top-ten hits ' Change Clothes' and ' Dirt off Your Shoulder'. The Black Album was promoted with a retirement tour by Jay-Z. The album also features a guest appearance by Pharrell Williams. For the album, Jay-Z wanted to enlist a different producer for each song, working with Just Blaze, Kanye West, The Neptunes, Eminem, DJ Quik, Timbaland, 9th Wonder and Rick Rubin, among others. It was advertised as his final album before retiring, which is also a recurring theme throughout the songs, although Jay-Z resumed his recording career in 2006. It was released on November 14, 2003, through Roc-A-Fella Records and The Island Def Jam Music Group. The Black Album is the eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z.

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