Jay-Z
American rapper and actor Shawn Corey Carter, better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is now one of the most successful representatives of contemporary hip-hop. Nine of his eleven studio albums topped American charts. Every album was certified platinum one way or another, making the performer richer and more powerful year after year – in 2006 Forbes magazine ranked him as the richest rapper. Though, Shawn started his career from the very bottom – an ordinary boy from Brooklyn slums, he managed to become a millionaire thanks to his talent and effective investments. You never know, however, and experience of street life might have been of use..
Debut album of the performer «Reasonable Doubt» was released in 1996 and is now considered to be hip-hop classics, although at that time it peaked at #23 in charts. Eventually, the album was certified platinum, but the performer didn’t wait and, catching the trend, he released a number of successful albums. 1997– «In My Lifetime, Vol. 1», platinum, #3; 1998 – «Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life», which lead single became the most successful one in Jay-Z’s career and brought him a Grammy Award. «Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life» helped the rapper blend in the industry, topping the charts and becoming multi-platinum with five million copies sold in the USA.
«Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter» (1999) and «The Dynasty: Roc La Familia» (2000) released next went on with platinum statuses and first positions in charts in many respects, but failed to surpass the success of the previous one.
In 2001 the performer released «Blueprint» which critics called one of the best albums of the decade. Despite this achievement, hip-hop circles didn’t welcome his name much, because at that time the rapper was in legal proceedings as for possession of a firearm when prohibited and assault. The album yielded three singles: «Izzo (H.O.V.A.)», «Girls, Girls, Girls» and «Jigga That Nigga».
Double album «The Blueprint2: The Gift & The Curse» (2002) didn’t have some special concept, but sold three million copies in the US. The most popular singles were «03 Bonnie & Clyde», performed with his future wife Beyoncé, and «Excuse Me Miss».
In 2003 «The Black Album» was released, which was meant to be the last studio album of Jay-Z, but just resulted in the first long break in rapper’s work. On releasing singles «Сhange Clothes», «Dirt Off Your Shoulder» and «99 Problems», the performer withdrew into shadows for long three years and worked on different individual projects (including collaboration with Linkin Park). He came back only in 2006 with album «Kingdom Come». Jay-Z initially planned to dedicate the album to his music «retirement» and release it under his real name (it’s no coincidence that the music video for «99 Problems» from the previous album ends with a shot of musician’s death), but decided not to risk a well-known name and possible success.
Tenth studio album «American Gangster» (2006) was marked by leaving record labels Def Jam and Roc-A-Fella Records. This album became the first thematic one, because it was created under the impact of the movie of the same-name which greatly impressed the rapper. As for the selling rates, «American Gangster» was one of the worst albums of Jay-Z, but the fact didn’t disturb the performer.
Released under another label, «The Blueprint 3» (2009) completed the trilogy which began in 2001 and continued in 2002. Critics thought that Jay-Z decided not to experiment and just made a commercially successful album, although gave mainly positive reviews. The most popular singles from the album were «D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)», «Run This Town» and «Empire State of Mind».
