Eyo, can you believe this freakin guy? I have no clue where I stand on Kanye West. Why is he the only rapper whose ego bugs the fuck out of me? How did he have the sack to bust out on live tv with "George Bush doesn't care about black people"? Is it more self-righteous bullshit or is Kanye the real deal? And closer to the point, how the hell did he make another damn near perfect album? Sometimes you just gotta put your mind at rest. It's not worth it, cause Kanye's back with another full album of hits, and he's got all your favorite mugs riding for him. Cam'ron dripping his ridiculous syllables on the Otis Redding sampling "Gone," Paul Wall on "Drive Slow," poppa Jigga on the "Diamonds Remix," even Game on "Crack Music," Nas and the dude from Maroon 5 (ok, that's a yikes along the lines of too many pink polos, but I had to throw that in there). Just Blaze comes through with the guest production spot, "Touch The Sky," that joint that samples Curtis' "Move On Up." Can't believe nobody did that before, but that shit is undeniable. Never mind the singles "Gold Digger," and "Diamonds." Bottom line, this is real good. Again.

• black double vinyl pressing
• full color printed insert
• original release year: 2005
• music label: Roc-A-Fella 2021

reviewed by the mgmnt 10/2005