How big is Jay-Z's new album "American Gangster" going to be? Well, the first single "Blue Magic" (Roc-a-Fella) doesn't just have a video, it has a trailer. (The actual song starts at 1:05 if you're the impatient sort.) The hype on this is going to be huge, making the whole 50 Cent/Kanye thing look like a little marketing practice session.
And, judging from "Blue Magic," it may actually be worth it.
The thrill of it doesn’t come from his return to raps about the drug trade. It comes from the swagger of a master returning to familiar material. Imagine the hunger of “Reasonable Doubt”-era Jay combined with the older, wiser Island Def Jam President Carter and the picture of how great his “secret” album “American Gangster” may actually be.
“Blue Magic,” with Pharrell building a spare, icy beat and singing a reworked hook from En Vogue’s “Hold On,” is bold and beautiful. Jay boasts, “I don’t spin on my head; I spin my work in the pot so I can spend my bread” and he drops some knowledge. (“Blame Reagan for making me ‘to a monster, blame Oliver North for Iran-Contra,” he rhymes. “I ran contraband that they sponsored.”)
We’ve heard all about Jay-Z showing what he’s got and we know he’s still on top of the world. But “Blue Magic” shows he can still conjure up enough memories to fight at the top of his game too.