Young Jeezy - The Recession: Album Review
Young Jeezy, The Recession (Def Jam, 2008)
Atlanta coke rapper Young Jeezy is known, among other things, for having actually once been a drug dealer (rather than, say, a cop), and for his penchant for ad libbing. This is his third album.
THE RECESSION
Wait, Jeezy really is gonna be rapping about the state of the economy on this album? He's not actually broke, is he? I'm at a loss for what anyone who's actually broke could get from this.
WELCOME BACK
The second song in a row about how Young Jeezy is back, as if he's been gone for a significant amount of time. On this one, he seems more concerned with rubbing his wealth in people's faces than inspiring those of us who are less fortunate. Clearly, the man contains multitudes.
BY THE WAY
Oh no, it's a choir of school children. And in the chorus, he does that Juvenile thing where ends each line with "by the way."
CRAZY WORLD
Crap, more choirs. This bombast is making me depressed. And these song titles alone should be a sign that Young Jeezy just isn't trying very hard anymore. I mean, even less so than he had been.
WHAT THEY WANT
Young Jeezy claims he can teach me how to make a million dollars right now. Let me guess: I get a million dollars worth of drugs, then sell it to somebody. Er, I guess it'd have to be more than a million dollars worth of drugs, to cover however much the drugs cost in the first place. (See, this shit's not easy!)
AMAZIN'
This sounds so much like one of the songs from the first Young Jeezy album that I'm wondering if a lawsuit might be in order. The sad thing is, for that reason alone, I like this more than any of the garbage on here so far.
HUSTLAZ AMBITION
It's like 2Pac's "Ambitions as a Rider," if it was filler on the third Young Jeezy album.
WHO DAT
The obnoxious synths on this one (so far there hasn't been a song on here without them) are especially Phantom of the Opera-ish. How gay.
DON'T YOU KNOW
Young Jeezy calls out some unnamed straw individuals for claiming to be drug dealers, similar to how Pimp C once did him.
CIRCULATE
Perhaps the most listenable production on a Young Jeezy record to date, even if it is just a wanton flip of some classic soul record. It makes you wonder what southern rap could be, if there was anyone talented involved.
WORD PLAY
The second non-completely awful track in a row. This one sounds like something Rick Ross might rap over. Honestly, aside from Young Jeezy being a real drug dealer and Rick Ross being a cop, Rick Ross > Young Jeezy.
VACATION
A song about traveling to other cities to sell drugs, disguised as a song about needing some time off from work. Wow, this is brilliant.
EVERYTHING
Anthony Hamilton + Lil Boosie, on a Young Jeezy record = umpteen kinds of painful all at once.
TAKIN' IT THERE
The requisite song for the bitches. As is often the case with these things, I can't imagine very many girls actually liking this.
DON'T DO IT
Fails where "Circulate" succeeded in adding more of a classic soul element to the usual Young Jeezy blend of awfulness.
PUT ON
The single, with Kanye West rap-whining in AutoTune about how he can't go back to Chicago, and how his mother becoming a plastic surgery disaster. To put things in perspective, as much as I don't care for this, "Put On" > almost everything else on this.
GET ALLOT
As you might have guessed, one more song about how Young Jeezy has a shiteload of money. Just to drive the point home.
MY PRESIDENT
Maybe the most retarded political rap song evar. And that's saying something, in a year that brought us Nas' Untitled. Of course, Nas guest raps on this.
COMMENTS: Just like a real recession, this new Young Jeezy album is awful and just seems to go on forever. Thug Motivation > The Inspiration > Hurricane Katrina > The Recession.
BEST TRACKS: "Circulate" "Word Play" "Put On"
BONUS VIDEO: "Vacation"
