Jay-Z is coming out of retirement during one of the busiest hip-hop seasons in memory–competing with new releases from Diddy, the Game, Nas and Young Jeezy, among others.
True to form, Jay-Z claims to be optimistic. He said he expected longtime fans to follow his evolution on the new album, “Kingdom Come.” But would a teen Jay-Z have enjoyed the album?
“It would have been aspirational to me,” he said, adding this analogy: “I used to like James Bond when I was little.”
When his album drops Tuesday, Jay-Z will vie against two rappers with whom he’s been sharing the charts for the last decade: Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur.
Even after Shakur’s 1996 death, his output has paced that of Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg. Here’s a look at how the three have matched up over the last 10 years.
1996
Feb. 13 2Pac “All Eyez On Me”
June 25 Jay-Z “Reasonable Doubt”
Sept. 13 Tupac Shakur dies six days after being shot in drive-by.
Nov. 5 Makaveli (2Pac) “The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory”
Nov. 12 Snoop Dogg “The Doggfather”
1997
Nov. 4 Jay-Z “In My Lifetime, Vol. 1”
Nov. 25 2Pac “R U Still Down? (Remember Me)”
1998
May 5 Jay-Z “Streets Is Watching”
Aug. 4 Snoop Dogg “Da Game Is To Be Sold Not To Be Told”
Sept. 29 Jay-Z “Vol. 2 Hard Knock Life”
Nov. 24 2Pac “Greatest Hits”
1999
May 11 Snoop Dogg “No Limit Top Dogg”
Dec. 14 2Pac + Outlaws “Still I Rise”
Dec. 28 Jay-Z “Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter”
2000
Oct. 31 Jay-Z “The Dynasty: Roc La Familia”
Dec. 19 Snoop Dogg “The Last Meal”
2001
March, 27 2Pac “Until The End of Time”
Sept. 11 Jay-Z “The Blueprint”
Dec. 18 Jay-Z “Unplugged”
2002
May 15 Jay-Z w/ R. Kelly “The Best Of Both Worlds”
Nov. 12 Jay-Z “The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse”
Nov. 26 Snoop Dogg “Paid Tha Cost To Be Da Bo$$”
Nov. 26 2Pac “Better Dayz”
2003
Nov. 11 2Pac “Tupac: Resurrection”
Nov. 14 Jay-Z “The Black Album”
Nov. 25 Jay-Z announces retirement.
2004
Oct. 26 Jay-Z w/ R. Kelly “Unfinished Business”
Nov. 16 Snoop Dogg “R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta) The Masterpiece”
Nov. 30 Jay-Z w/ Linkin Park “Collision Course”
Dec. 14 2Pac “Loyal To The Game”
2006
Nov. 21 Jay-Z “Kingdom Come”
Nov. 21 Snoop Dogg “The Blue Carpet Treatment”
Nov. 21 2Pac “Pac’s Life”
[AMAZON.COM]
