just in case you need a refresher...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tWmyPMf3wU

Poll question: honest question: do you actually like "h to the izzo"?

Poll result (64 votes) you know what? nah, i really don't... (24 votes) Vote yep! still feelin' it!! (40 votes) Vote

Mainly because they got so much air play that I didn't want to be miserable every time his songs would come on, so I looked for the parts or aspects of the songs I like. This is definitely one of the ones I had to force myself to appreciate.

"i just wanna love u" was fun and super-addictive when it was out.
"hey papi" has a dynamite beat and jay more than competently holds it down.
"change the game" is raw as hell.
"girls, girls, girls" is great.

"h to the izzo" is flat, dull, weak.

they brute forced this one to be a hit just by playing it everywhere on the hour and half-hour every day for like 3 months in nyc.

the track itself really wasn't hitting like that.

and the lack of throwback love it gets/got is proof.

the weak self-congratulatory verses?
the groupie bish (who sued jay for writing credits, lol) struggling to stay on beat saying the hook?
fa shizzle my nizzle?
the wack ass green screened dave meyers video?

there's honestly nothing i actually "enjoy" about this song.

even back in summer '01, it was always just meh - it's cool i guess.

the beat is the best thing about the track and tbh it feels like it would've suited another rapper much better.

in all honesty it's like an impotent celebration track (jay-z celebrating his favorite person, himself).
if it had been like 3 bpm faster with better drums it might've had some bite to it.

>if it had been like 3 bpm faster with better drums it might've
>had some bite to it.


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Twitter: @chuy_vuitton

I thought it was the best thing ever when he debuted it at the BET Awards. In '14, I'd put it on the list of songs I never have to hear again.

Cool song. Not wack and not great. Cool beat cool lyrics.

The entire Blueprint album save the 3 Bink tracks, girls girls girls & that breathe easy song where he stole cormegas beat was always some overrated, PR'd classic, snoozy ballroom rap to me.


i know people love 'you don't know' but that beat borders on shrill and piercing to me.


Renegade has aged terribly too btw. warbly ass redneck CAC beat.

that nigga jigga
hola hovito
renegades
h to the izzo

and yet...

Accolades

Album of the Year

Ranked #4 in NME's 50 "Albums Of the Year 2001".
Ranked #5 in Rolling Stone's "Top 10 of 2001".
Ranked #7 in Spin magazine's "Albums of the Year 2001".
Ranked #12 in Wire magazine's "50 Records of the Year 2001".

Best Album of the 2000s

Ranked #1 in Complex magazine's "The 100 Best Albums of the 2000s".
Ranked #7 in The Stylus Decade's "Top 100 Albums of the 2000s".
Ranked #5 in Pitchfork Media's "The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s".

Top Album

Ranked #6 in Billboard's Critics Pick of the decade 1999-2009
Ranked #2 in Pitchfork Media's "The Top 100 Albums of 2000-04".
Ranked #5 in Stylus Magazine's "Top 50 Albums of 2000-2005".

Best Album of the Decade

Ranked #2 in Entertainment Weekly's Best Albums of the Decade.
Ranked #42 in Paste Magazine's 50 Best Albums of the Decade.
Ranked #4 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 Best Albums of the Decade in 2009.
Ranked #20 in Rhapsody's "100 Best Albums of the Decade" in 2009.
Ranked #8 in Vibe's "The Greatest 50 Albums Since '93" in 2013.

Greatest Album of All Time

Ranked #456 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time in 2003.
Ranked #252 in Rolling Stone magazine's revised list of the 500 greatest albums of all time in 2012.

hard to call a 13 track album a "classic" when 31% of the songs are skippers.

after all the hoopla of the late-00's decade end lists, it's quietly become one of the most overrated albums of the 00's.

gimmie Volumes 1, 2 & 3 ALL DAY over the Snoozeprint.

>




if i play the blueprint, i can play the whole thing. But because of "good" songs as weak as renegade & Izzo, i rarely, if ever play the blueprint.

I can't even listen to that album...shit borderline sucks.

I think the album deserves its classic accolades. That Nigga Jigga sucked, and I can understand people not liking H To The Izzo, even though I did. But the only flaw with Hola Hovito was that it didn't fit the sound of the album. Renegades is great: one of Eminem's career highs, and Jay actually held his own, IMO.

I remember the big debate about whether Em really did murder Jay on his own shit, some said he did, others that he didn't, there was no consensus.

Then Ether dropped and cats were like damm I guess Em did murder him.

It's a classic track, and the fact that Jay took the risk knowing damm well he could get outshined got him respect

Ruler' Back - dope intro
Takeover, Izzo, Girls - all novelty tracks
That N Jigga - sucks
U Don't Know - dope
Hola Hovito - it's cool I guess but it's whatever
Heart of the City - best song
Never Change - dope but damn...he stole the shit
Song Cry - never really liked this shit. But I won't make it as a negative.
All I Need - nah
Renegades - aged terribly
Mama Loves Me - dope song

So for someone like me the album is about half dope. That's far from classic status in my opinion.

Ruler's Back: Great
Takeover: Great
Izzo: Novelty, can do without it, but I enjoy it
That N Jigga: trash
Girls: Novelty, but well done enough for me to consistently appreciate
U Don't Know: Incredible
Hola Hovito: As I said, very dope song, just didn't fit sonically on the album
Heart of the City: Incredible
Never Change: My favorite track on the album these days
Song Cry: Dope, well done
Renegades: I think it aged fine. Eminem fucking snaps, and I liked Jay's verses too
Mama Loves Me: Dope

Legitimate classic to me

Wack sample, pathetic drums - but lots of y'all thought it was the greatest shit ever because of the time period.

Fuck that chorus.

I don't even remember the rhymes.

Hated it then, somehow hate it even more now. Thanks for bringing it up.

"like i told you 'sell drugs' - NO. hov did that so hopefully you won't have to go through that..."

just awful awful bullshit raps.

no wonder he didn't like that shit.

I'm dying laughing about Hov saying "home of the turbans" on some shit that came out on 9/11.

Servin' 'em in the home of the terrapins.

..okay, player.

addicted to the game would have been a better fit,
assuming they got a getter vocalist for the hook.

decent verses, catchy hook, cool sample,
cool pop song, terrible rap song-- if that makes sense.

Do I now? Fuuuck no

I'm a Jay-Z hater though. knowing he can put out better music than he does so I expect more out of him.

tacky.

It's not great by any means but there are far, far worse songs.

It's whatever.

Plus the third verse is on point...

You've also got to give him at least some credit for being at the peak of his commercial status and putting out a song that was so unlike just about everything else on the radio at the time. Wasn't the safest choice in the world for the lead single of your most anticipated album (after just throwing rocks at a sleeping dragon in Nas and knowing there was really no margin for error) to be produced by a total unknown and having a sound that was a pretty big departure from the mainstream sound of that era. If that shit flopped in the midst of that "battle" it would have been a major L.

Obviously none of that necessarily makes the song itself good, but overall it's still one of Jay's least offense singles, IMO. (For example, the Lead Single Which Shall Not Be Named from his subsequent album is about 1000 times worse...)

I used to hate this shit, and over the last 5-6 years, began to really enjoy this track.


werd.

i think it's good for what is it because the chorus is kind of infectious
anything beyond that? nah

probably liked it more then but never loved it.

though some of the enjoyment of listening to it has worn off. Class Kanye banger.

Never liked it. The beat was cool. The hook was awful. Any song saying "fa shizzle my nizzle" got automatic hate from me. The verses were mediocre.

It wasn't as bad as some of the other singles on the radio then, but I wasn't a fan.

My block>Izzo

Love the "My block" beat, although it's a bit obvious.

MOP - World Famous > My Block

but i was a hater, still am.

CHECK OUT AND DOWNLOAD MY FREE BEATS @ WWW.SOUNDCLICK.COM/SYLANA
~i dont deal with colors including black n white ,letters or any morse codes or beams~

it's g to the izzay


Bitch.

Yup

... but always felt some kind of way about the hook. Like a poster said above the shizzle my nizzle was about keeping up with the times. I'm sure if any of us knew Jay on a personal level you'd dog him for that hook or he'd tell you how much he hates to perform that song.

We covered by the Blood which never loose it's power



http://soundcloud.com/rayandersonjr

Definitely the most skipped track on that album for me.

sounds like 'real hiphop' to me. all of the blueprint did

nothing wrong with it in my opinion, aside from the soft ass drums, but it's just not an interesting song to me is all

then and now. so fun.

i always felt that way about this song.