One hand in the air for the big city…

Jay-Z, the coolest man in the galaxy at the moment, played Madison Square Garden on Friday night in aid of the New York Police and Fire Widow’s and Children’s charity, Answer The Call.

Putting aside the motives for a moment (a benefit show for 9/11 victim’s families on the same day as the release of a new record was a little questionable), it roc-ed Manhattan from the Bronx to Statten Island.

A stellar guest-list for the night – Santogold, John Mayer, Kanye, Pharell, Mary J Blige, Diddy, Rihanna, Beyonce, Kid Cudi,  (did I miss anyone?) – a tight-as live band, a magical NY skyline backdrop and the biggest and best beats from his 15 year career… who could ask for anything more?

It was an astonishing night, an incredible concert and validation of Jay’s place in the hip-hop firmament. Hova has gone beyond genre classification, and with classy shows like this before an adoring audience, he shows that maybe, just maybe, he is the new Sinatra.

The only down-side was concert broadcaster fuse.tv’s insistence of dropping every profanity from the audio, and not in an elegant way. Armed with a mute button and no subtlety, whole lines and music were deleted – hopefully there will be an unedited version somewhere out there for those not so easily offended.

Open your ears, open your hearts and enjoy…

It’s Hova’s world, we just lucky to live in it

As the album leak spreads across the globe, it would be irresponsible not to do the decent thing, accept Jay’s invitation, and enjoy The Blueprint 3 before it officially drops on September 11.

So, eleven albums in, Jay-Z has delivered what will come in time to be considered as… about his fourth best album.

Reasonable Doubt, Blueprint 1 and The Black Album will always trump most things that other rappers release, hands down, and, in turn, those releases have become the yardsticks that Jay’s music will be measured by for as long as he’s in the game.

That’s not to say Blueprint 3 is a poor relation to those massive records. Its big production, its beats courtesy of Kanye West, Pharell, No ID and Timbaland, guest appearances and Jay’s own smooth, smooth flow, set it apart.

The best moments are the purest rap ones, where Hov just rhymes and amazes with his ability to weave words, dizzying with imagery and his stream-of-consciousness style.

But, on some tracks, Jay feels like the hype man, not the main attraction. Whereas it’s great to give props to the new life blood of hip-hop, you wonder if his presence might have served the collaborators better by these tracks appearing on their own releases, not this one. Would these songs absence have made Blueprint 3 a better cohesive whole, focussing on Jay and Jay only? Isn’t that what we really want?

That said, this is an exceptional ride, and, from start to finish, the mood is up and the chrome-shining production puts a smile on your face. You can’t help but bounce to What We Talking About, DOA, Empire State of Mind and On To The Next One, and the rhymes are packed and skilful, sending you back time and again to catch the meaning, nuance and humour.

If the album that follows takes the promised experimental direction, then The Blueprint 3 can be seen as a line drawn under a fine, if unexceptional, run of form since The Black Album, before Jay-Z hopefully jumpstarts another revolution in hip-hop and his own career.

Update: Here’s some visuals – ROC Nation is in the hay-oose!