Personnel: Jay-Z, Scarface, Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, Snoop Dogg (rap vocals); R. Kelly, Freeway (vocals); Just Blaze (vinyl scratches); Lil Mo, DJ Clue, L. Dionne, Rell, Pharrell Williams, Static (background vocals).
Producers: Just Blaze, Rick Rock, Pharrell Williams, Chad Hugo, Kanye West.
Engineers: Chauncey Mahan, Duro, Shane "Bermy" Woodley.
Recorded at Baseline, New York, New York and Enterprise Studios, Los Angeles, California.
"Change The Game" was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group.
Recording information: Baseline Studios, New York, NY; Enterprise Studios, LA.
Jay-Z released REASONABLE DOUBT, his solo debut, in 1996. Only four years later, he dropped his fifth album, THE DYNASTY. Matching his unique off-beat delivery with hip-hop's most impressive lyrics, the Brooklyn-native reinforces the idea that he is one of rap's most profound MCs. Once again, Jay-Z shows us he knows about "big pimpin'" with tracks like "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" and "Parking Lot Pimpin'," tales about the fast life, women, and money.
Still, the rapper doesn't abandon the street ethics that have made him famous, as evident on the hustler's anthem "Streets Is Talking." Limiting the guest appearances to a minimum, besides his Roc-a-fella camp, he is joined by heavy hitters such as Snoop Dogg on "Get Your Mind Right Mami" and R. Kelly on "Guilty Until Proven Innocent." Inspiring other rappers to think deeply before they put their pen to the pad, Jay-Z keeps getting better, and despite multi-platinum status, he hasn't lost his street credibility.
At the time of The Dynasty Roc la Familia's release, Jay-Z had already established himself as a towering figure in the rap world. His previous two albums -- Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life and Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter -- spawned numerous gigantic hits and were filled the brim with the biggest hitmakers in rap: producers like Timbaland and Swizz Beatz; rappers like Juvenile and DMX. So rather than try to one-up these albums with yet more super-producers and big-name rappers, Jay-Z took a different approach on The Dynasty. He brought in a stable of up-and-coming producers (the Neptunes, Just Blaze, Kanye West) and handed the mic to his in-house roster of Roc-a-Fella rappers (Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Freeway) with the intention of bolstering his rap "dynasty" (i.e., Roc-a-Fella). The approach works well. The Dynasty Roc la Familia still sounds like a Jay-Z album, but it's different enough from his past work to make it exciting and unique. In particular, the productions set Jigga apart from his peers in 2000, especially "I Just Wanna Love You (Give It 2 Me)" by the Neptunes, a fun, playful song a world apart from the rugged Ruff Ryder beats Swizz Beatz had been offering Jay-Z a year earlier. In terms of rapping, the omnipresence of Beanie Sigel and Memphis Bleek spices up "Parking Lot Pimpin'," another album highlight, but is a drag on other songs, where Jay-Z seems like a guest on his own album. Guest appearances by Snoop Dogg and Scarface are much more welcome, two of only three non-Roc-a-Fella guest features here. The Dynasty plays overall like a Roc-a-Fella mixtape rather than a Jay-Z album, which means you'll have to endure a lot of promotional posse tracks, particularly toward the end of the album. Still, the few standout tracks here are career highlights for Jay-Z and well worth wading through the occasional filler to find. [The clean version censors all instances of profanity.] ~ Jason Birchmeier

Rolling Stone (1/4/01, p.110) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Top 50 Albums of 2000".
Rolling Stone (12/7/00, pp.109-10) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Jay confronts the new, unfamiliar demands of being a father figure with the same determined egoism and intelligence that he used while hustling in Brooklyn...adding another dimension to an already intriguing figure..."
Q (1/01, p.111) - 3 out of 5 stars - "...He impresses most when bypassing the guns/ho's/Gucci shtick for some inventive musical twists...or commenting on ghetto life and absconding fathers..."
Q (p.136) - 3 stars out of 5 - "THE DYNASTY is solid enough. Aside from his obvious lyrical dexterity, it's all high-octane street dreaming and emergent family obsessions..."
The Source (1/01, p.188) - 4.5 mics out of 5 - "...[His] most collectively spiritual and introspective LP to date - a flurry of party frolickin' and honest, compelling notes...sprinkled with Brooklyn gunfight mentality..."
NME (Magazine) (11/25/00, p.35) - 8 stars out of 10 - "...A showcase for the up-and-coming rappers on Roc-A-Fella...16 hard-knock ghetto fables....All the Jay-Z trademarks - quality, consistency, slamming beats and lyrical prowess - are here..."