OMi - The Blueprint 3 Review

The cover promises a futuristic evolution but the contents showcase a rapper who is clearly aging and is slowly losing pace with his peers.

Contrary to popular belief, Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3 is far from being a classic. The supposed follow up to 2001’s critically acclaimed The Blueprint & 2002’s The Blueprint²: The Gift & The Curse (though in truth the three albums have little, if anything, in common other than name) comes after a long wait. In September 2008, Swagga Like Us was released — a great single which we were led to believe would appear on both T.I.’s Paper Trail & The Blueprint 3 —followed by Jockin’ Jay-Z, Brooklyn (Go Hard) & History (the latter being a wonderful Kanye West produced track in homage to newly elected President Obama). The signs looked good for the forthcoming album… but this proved to be a false dawn.

The album starts off well enough with What We Talkin’ About being a solid track featuring flavours of the month Empire of the Sun. One of the album’s best tracks Thank You precedes the two lead singles D.O.A. (Death Of Auto-Tune) & Run This Town. D.O.A. is a great song but for me the radio friendlyRun This Town is pretty poor. I usually love anything produced by Kanye but for me this is a pop song put on the album for the sole purpose of shifting records. Empire State Of Mind brings me to a recurring problem with this album… good verses, bad choruses! Alicia Keys’ hook doesn’t work for me at all. Similarly the hooks on Venus vs Mars & Reminder are dismal. As a consequence, these Timbaland produced tracks are two of the album’s worst. The other track produced by Timbaland, Off That featuring Drake, (another flavour of the month) is probably the best of the three but in truth none of these songs are worth remembering. They sound like something Timbaland had left over that took him 5 minutes to produce. It is hard to believe this is the same person who gave us Dirt off Your Shoulder.

The album cover alone conveys the move by Jay-Z to try & come out with some futuristic sound. Hate is a great example of how this doesn’t work. This is not the typical “Chipmunk Soul” we are used to from Kanye. More filler tracks include the Swizz Beatz produced On To The Next One & The Neptunes produced So Ambitious. It’s not all bad though. Real As It Getsfeaturing Young Jeezy is a very solid tune, whilst A Star Is Born & Already Homefeaturing Kid Cudi (another flavour of the month but the real thing in my opinion!) are two of the best tracks on the album. Perhaps the song that will split opinion most on the album is the Kanye West produced Forever Youngfeaturing Mr. Hudson, which samples the 80’s song of the same name by Alphaville. With this song you are either going to love it or hate it. Right now I am of the opinion that it is a good song but I do think I could get sick of it very easily.

Overall The Blueprint 3 is a solid effort.You can easily put it on and enjoy it. But is it a masterpiece? Is it a fitting end to the Blueprint Trilogy that started so well 8 years ago? Probably not! This album is easily a step forward from the abysmal Kingdom Come but a definite step backwards from American Gangster. In terms of Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint or The Black Album… it doesn’t even come close! I suppose Jay-Z is only human despite the ‘J-Hova’ moniker. The fact that he has yet to make an album that has failed commercially will keep his ego sky high in the stratosphere, hopefully the next one can hit us more convincingly.

TheBrotha.

3/5

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Congratulations King Henry

The Arsenal fans amongst us will have been extremely happy with the outcome of this years Champions League final. The man voted by Gooners everywhere as the greatest Arsenal player of all time has finally gotten his hands on the prize that was agonisingly missing from his glittering career. I think that I was among the few who was not disappointed when he left us for Barcelona. He had done everything he could for us but was clearly getting on in years. His patience was clearly wearing thin on Wengers ‘Project Youth’ that he decided to leave the club that meant everything to him in search of the Golden Fleece. And now that he has it, his decision has been vindicated and he can now seriously be taken down as one of the greatest footballers of all time.

When we finished as runners up to Barca in 2006, I honestly believed that Henry would leave us there and then thanks to all the speculation that Barcelona were chasing his signature.With the fact that we had already lost Patrick Vieira the previous season, I felt that it was the end of the road. However, after the match, Henry was defiant and claimed that he was staying. Gooners everywhere celebrated. I felt that Franck Rijkaard was right, that maybe disappointment had clouded his judgement.

When he eventually left us the following summer, The Emirates shed a tear and wished him the best of luck. But now that he was playing for a Champions League rival, we secretly hoped that he wouldn’t be too lucky (La Liga and the Spanish Cup, maybe, but not the Champions League, that’s ours thanks).

This season’s run to the semi finals for our team showed up a few flaws that have been glaringly obvious for a while. We don’t have the defensive solidity we had during the days of Adams and Bould; the midfield enforcement of Vieira and Gilberto; and we definitely miss Henry’s ability to link everything together and finish opportunities that lesser players can barely achieve in a game of Pro Evolution (Adebayor, take notes). And after getting schooled by Manchester United over both legs, we all prayed in unison that Henry would be fit enough to finish the fight for us.

Images of THAT goal past Barthez is still debated by us as arguably the greatest Arsenal goal of all time and something equally show-stopping would have been delightfully welcome. His contribution to Barcelona’s form this season has been understated by the media as everyone goes Lady GaGa for Leo Messi, but I doubt anyone can claim that they could have been equally successful without Titi.

Unfortunately, he did not get onto the scoresheet as real life rarely imitates the dreams and imaginations of the passionate, but the outcome remains the same. Henry has been crowned a king of European football at last.

A dream that has finally come true in the middle of the Eternal City. Long live King Henry.

Hayes leaves us at 65

News courtesy of CNN

Soul singer and arranger Isaac Hayes, who won Grammy awards and an Oscar for the theme from the 1971 action film “Shaft,” has died, sheriff’s officials in Memphis, Tennessee, reported Sunday.

Relatives found Hayes, 65, unconscious in his home next to a still-running treadmill, said Steve Shular, a spokesman for the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department.

Paramedics attempted to revive him and took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after 2 p.m., the sheriff’s department said.

No foul play is suspected, the agency said in a written statement.

Hayes was a longtime songwriter and arranger for Stax Records in Memphis, playing in the studio’s backup band and crafting tunes for artists such as Otis Redding and Sam and Dave in the 1960s.

He released his first solo album in 1967, and his 1969 follow-up, “Hot Buttered Soul,” became a platinum hit.

In 1971, the theme from “Shaft” topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and won an Academy Award for best original theme song. The song and the movie score also won Grammy awards for best original score and movie theme.

Hayes won a third Grammy for pop instrumental performance with the title track to his 1972 “Black Moses” album.

From the late 1990s through 2006, Hayes provided the voice of “Chef” for Comedy Central’s raunchy animated series “South Park,” as well as numerous songs.

The role introduced him to a new generation of fans, but he left after the show lampooned his own religion, the Church of Scientology.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

Every cloud has a Silva lining

A new league season is almost upon us and the questions have been flying since the close of the last. Is Adebayor going? Will we get a replacement for Flamini? Where is the defensive priority signing that we failed to get in January? Are we strong enough to challenge on all fronts? Why does Arsene lack respect for the Carling Cup, after all, it’s silverware? With the way the pre-season has unfolded so far I have to admit to having the same quiet confidence I had last year.

It seems that Arsenal are one club that always has to fight against all odds in order to triumph. Last season we lost players to the African Nations Cup, giving rise to calls for a summer tournament instead (can’t be done, however, as most African countries are in the midst of a rainy season, but us Europeans wouldn’t know anything about that). Then we were plagued by a series of injuries to key personnel (Eduardo, RVP, Sagna). We had contract and loyalty issues with particular players who were eventually ejected from the club (Flamini, Hleb). A media circus surrounding the fallacy that Adebayor was after a transfer to AC Milan or Barcelona, which was clearly instigated by forces who were out to destabilise our club. And just as everything seemed to be calming down, London’s favourite Ivorian contracted malaria whilst on holiday in his native Ivory Coast. So with all this negativity why am I still smiling?

Fair enough, we’ve only had three arrivals in Bischoff, Nasri and Ramsey who all lack experience, but as far as I’m concerned, these guys will help to supplement the already ultra-talented squad that we possess. Nasri appears to be more than capable of replacing Hleb and is already an international for Les Bleus. Ramsey continues Wenger's philosophy on youth development, and with him snubbing the likes of Everton and Manchester United, it appears that he will feature in and around the first team for this coming season. Which brings us to Amaury Bischoff. Arsene Wenger described the young Portuguese as “a young, promising player who we have taken a gamble on because he has been out for a long time.” The player is recovering from the after effects of surgery and is training to build up his fitness levels. We probably won’t see what he can do for a few months yet. Time will tell if that “gamble” will pay dividends.

We were also blessed with the belated arrival of young Carlos Vela. His pre-season was amazing and looks as though he will be pushing Walcott all the way for the right to play alongside Van Persie or Adebayor. Certainly, he’ll be in our Carling Cup squad. I have a feeling that the boys down the other end of Seven Sisters Road will be hoping that their Mexican (Giovani Dos Santos) is at least half as talented as ours if they are to have any chance of improving on last term.

And for all those that believed that Arsenal was not about giving local English boys a chance (Bentley and Pennant, I’m looking in your ungrateful direction), 16 year Jack Wilshere is proving that Arsenal’s world famous youth academy can produce English talent good enough to play for us. Due to his tender years, don’t expect him to be pushed too deep into the first team but to at least be on the periphery with a view to coming off the bench from time to time. He was very lively last week against European heavyweights Juventus and Real Madrid and was utterly unfazed. Very similar to Fabregas when he was 16, which has led me to remain optimistic.

So what about the holding midfield position? Well Alex Song is currently in Beijing playing for his native Cameroon. He is actually my favourite for the position. Although employed as a centre half towards the tail end of last season, we all know that he thrives in front of the defence. What about the Vieira look-a-like, Abou Diaby? He is another one who I feel is capable but we haven’t really seen what he can do yet. Again, he was played out of position on the wing so maybe a run of games while Song is away is what he needs in order to cement his intentions. I think we can agree that one player who did poorly out of position last season was Manu Eboue who had a sublime time the year before. The man is a very dedicated player and his ball-winning ability is second to none, but with Sagna showing talent of almost deity proportions, maybe his future lies in either being a back up for Bacary or maybe in a more central position in defence or midfield.

Wenger still has until 11:59 pm on 31st August to bolster his squad in preparation for what could be the most important season of his career. The media rumblings keep on with the fact that we have failed to acquire any trophies since 2005’s FA Cup win over Manchester United. Could this be make or break? His insistence on getting one experienced midfielder or nothing could in fact be a smokescreen in order to blind people from the truth of his transfer activities. Remember the stories of how he was dressed in disguise at Sevilla’s training ground before signing Jose Reyes? Maybe he has discovered a centre back that could sort out our problems but doesn’t want to alert moneybags Chelsea, Liverpool, United and the nut jobs at Spurs. Whatever he’s doing, be sure that it is in the interest of the club.

So there are plenty of reasons to be cheerful. Last year we were expected to finish outside the top four with Tottenham claiming that they would finish ahead of us and qualify for the Champions League. How we all laughed at the prospect of their relegation only months later. This year, they are at it again. They have been ever since George Graham taught them how to play football. I think that realistically there are only three teams who are capable of taking the title (Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United), with every other team fighting for the final Champions League qualifying spot and the subsequent UEFA Cup berths. Spurs will be playing for the right to be taken seriously.

Keep smiling brothers and sisters. The 2008-2009 season is about to get underway, and it could be the most exciting season in a long time. Maybe we’ll finally have something to polish at the Emirates other than our sparkling passing skills.

TheBrotha!

Morgan Freeman released from hospital

News courtesy of CNN

Morgan Freeman was discharged Thursday from a Tennessee hospital after the Oscar-winning actor was treated for broken bones and other injuries sustained in a weekend car crash in Mississippi.
Kathy Stringer, a spokeswoman for the Regional Medical Center, said Freeman was discharged but gave no other details.
The 71-year-old actor was hospitalized after the accident Sunday left him with a broken arm, broken elbow and shoulder damage.
Demaris Meyer, 48, of Memphis, a passenger in the car driven by Freeman, was also injured in the crash.
“Access Hollywood” reported Wednesday that Freeman’s lawyer, Bill Luckett, said Freeman and his wife of 24 years, Myrna Colley-Lee, had been separated since December and are getting a divorce. Luckett was also quoted in several newspapers Thursday, but did not give further details.
There was no answer Thursday at phone numbers for Luckett or for Freeman’s publicist, Donna Lee.
No divorce papers have been filed in Tallahatchie County where Freeman owns a home with Colley-Lee, according to Tallahatchie County Chancery Clerk Anita Mullen Greenwood.
The actor was injured after a car crash in neighboring Mississippi. Freemanwas driving a 1997 Nissan Maxima that authorities said belongs to Meyer when the car veered off a rural road Sunday night a few miles from Freeman’s home in the Mississippi Delta. The car flipped at least twice.
Bill Rogers, a retired police officer who was the first person to arrive at the scene, said a dazed Freeman told him that he and Meyer were headed to his home in Charleston, a small town some 90 miles south of Memphis.
Meyer apparently is a friend of the Oscar-winning actor who had offered him a ride home, said Rogers.
“He said that she had offered him a ride home; that they were friends and she had offered him a ride home and she didn’t really know the way and so he was going to drive the vehicle,” Rogers said Tuesday, recalling a conversation he had with the actor.
Rogers said he talked to Freeman and Meyer in attempt to keep them conscious — something he was trained to do as a police officer.
“They said they were coming from Clarksdale,” Rogers said.
Freeman owns several businesses in Clarksdale, about 40 miles from his home, including the Ground Zero Blues Club and a restaurant named Madidi. Ashley Norris, the club’s manager, said Wednesday that Freeman had not been there the night of the accident. No one answered the phone at Madadi.
Rescuers used a jaws-of-life machine to free “The Dark Knight” star and Meyer from the wreckage. Freeman was then airlifted to the Regional Medical Center in Memphis.
Freeman won an Oscar for his role in “Million Dollar Baby.” His screen credits also include “Driving Miss Daisy” and “The Bucket List.”

Noel: "I was misrepresented...!"

Noel Gallagher has claimed his comments about Jay-Z performing at Glastonbury were taken the wrong way.

The Oasis star created a stir when he said of the decision to feature the hip-hop star in the line-up: “I’m sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance. Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music … I’m not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It’s wrong.”

But Gallagher tells the latest edition of NME magazine: “I wasn’t saying I was better than Jay-Z as a person or rock was greater than hip-hop as a thing or whatever it is.

“I said what I said, and it was wrong, or it was taken wrong, and now all this.”
He added: “My f****** single went back in the charts, Jay-Z’s profile went through the f****** roof. Everyone’s a winner.

“He knows that I was misrepresented, as I guess he was, so let’s f****** move on.”
Gallagher said he watched Jay-Z sing Oasis anthem Wonderwall at the festival.
He said: “For my own part I can sit here and say I never dissed that f****** guy. I never would.”

Bashir's lack of taste

News courtesy of BBC News

TV journalist Martin Bashir has apologised for making what he called a “tasteless” comment about Asian women.

Speaking at the Asian American Journalists Association annual banquet in Chicago, he said: “I’m happy to be in the midst of so many Asian babes.

“In fact, I’m happy that the podium covers me from the waist down.”

But in a letter published in New York magazine, the 45-year-old said: “Upon reflection, it was a tasteless remark that I now bitterly regret.”

‘Serious error’

He added: “I am grateful to you for the opportunity to address those present and hope that the continuing work of the organisation will not be harmed or undermined by my moment of stupidity.”

Bashir currently hosts the news documentary show 20/20 on US TV network ABC.
Jeffrey Schneider, a spokesman for the channel, said: “This kind of remark has no place in any setting and Martin knows that and is truly sorry for his serious error in judgment.”

Bashir made the speech last month with his 20/20 co-presenter Juju Chang standing nearby on the stage.

He went on to say that a speech should be “like a dress on a beautiful woman - long enough to cover the important parts and short enough to keep your interest - like my colleague Juju’s”.
As audience members booed the comment, Ms Chang said: “See what I have to put up with?”
Bashir, who was born in London, moved to the US four years ago. He is best known for his 1995 interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.

In 2003 he also interviewed Michael Jackson for his controversial documentary, Living with Michael Jackson, which led to the pop star being charged with molesting one of the boys featured in the programme.

Jackson was later acquitted and filmed his own response to Bashir’s interview, accusing him of editing the tapes in a sensationalist manner.