Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life by JAY-Z
Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life is the third studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released on September 29, 1998, on Roc-A-Fella Records in the United States. The album propelled Jay-Z into superstar status and cemented him as a household name in the post Biggie/Tupac Shakur era of hip hop. This album also won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album in 1999. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, and also went to #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. (This marks the first of nine consecutive chart-topping albums on both charts to date from Jay-Z, not counting the collaboration albums with R. Kelly or Kanye West.) Upon its release, the album received generally mixed to positive reviews from most music critics, while hip hop purists felt his aims to be a crossover success had compromised the quality and complexity of his music. In the liner notes of the album, Jay-Z gives his thoughts on various tracks. The lyrics to the fast paced "Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originator 99)" are also included.
On 1997’s <i>In My Lifetime, Vol. 1</i>, JAY-Z aimed to prove that he could go mainstream; with 1998’s <i>Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life</i>, he made good on his promise, resulting in a smash-hit breakthrough that would storm the charts and introduce millions of listeners to the life and times of Shawn Carter. Thematically, <i>Vol. 2</i> finds Jay staying in some familiar lanes. He outlines his rough past on the irresistible (and inescapable) "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)”, boasts of his triumphant present on “If I Should Die” and bemoans being a hustler more absorbed by his business than the lifestyle affords him on the swaggering “Money, Cash, Hoes” (wait—money <i>and</i> cash?). But while Jay’s topical obsessions are by now familiar, he makes plenty of stylistic progress on <i>Vol. 2</i>. Everyone already knew he was a great storyteller, but on his third album, JAY-Z expands his lyrical arsenal, taking on everything from tongue-twisting futurism (“N***a What, N***a Who”, “Can I Get A…”) to classic hip-hop soul (“A Week Ago”, “Hard Knock Life”). It’s a mix that blends the shiny and the gritty, the cut-throat and the charismatic. As a result, <i>Vol. 2</i> would become Jay’s first No. 1 album, and his first to reach multi-platinum status. <i>Vol. 2</i> finds Jay putting his money on the long shots. Just remember that two years earlier, he was one too.
