Jan 6, 2020 9.5/10 - Some of the greatest songs of the decade are on here. So let's go over, track-by-track. No Church in the Wild starts off this album. A wild journey into the psyche of two men who live so large, the Nephilim would be jealous. A perfectly simple yet grandiose beat laments one of Jay-Z's best verses since his original run. He evokes images of ancient rome, dabbles in philosophy, and compares Kanye to Jesus, a clever way to insinuate he himself is god. Meanwhile, Kanye's verse is one of his best here as well. This song would be the standout track had it been on MBDTF the year prior, that's how great it is. Throw in a classic Frank Ocean chorus, and my favorite part of the song - the beautiful bridge from The-Dream Lift Off is perhaps my least played track on the album, but that doesn't make it a bad song. It's just underwhelming from Kanye and Jay-Z, and really feels out of place in the sequencing. Would probably be more enjoyable as a closing track or something. N**** in Paris is the most hype track of the decade. If you're looking to rile people up, get them pumped and singing along, throw it on. Everyone knows nearly every word, down to the genius Blades of Glory sample. Otis is the best collab Jay and Kanye have and will ever make. The clever writing, seemless flow, and beautiful production make this song unforgettable. "Uhgh, I invented swag" might be the greatest opening line of the century. Some standout lines to this day are "sophisticated ignorance, write my curses in cursive", "photoshoot fresh, looking like wealth, I'm bout to call the paparazzi on myself", "I made jesus walks I'm never going to h---", "we driving benzes, with no benefits, not bad huh, for some immigrants". The song maintains a modern feel while keep trademarks of each artists sounds that could have been lifted out of 2003. Gotta Have It meshes two distinct styles and artists into one coherent song, with memorable moments being each rapper interjecting lines in each others verses. The album continues thematically following black luxury and the cost it has on the black community. New Day is a wonderful look into the concept of the sins of the father passing onto the son. Kanye uses his verse to explain the faults he's made in his life, and how to prevent his one day son from following his footsteps. Jay-Z looks into his haunting fatherless past, vowing not to repeat him. The song is raw, emotional, and a welcome addition into the personal stories of Ye and Jay. Also, me and the RZA connect. That's My b---- is one of the weaker tracks on the album, but is by no means bad. Both rappers talk about their love interests, but the track does break up the pacing on the album. Welcome to the Jungle is essentially a Jay-Z solo song. Once again connecting to the themes of black excellence, black struggle, and black on black crime and competition, Jay explores 'The Jungle' and the heartache living in it. Connecting the ghetto he grew up in to the jungle he still lives with. Who Gon Stop Me asks the essential question of Watch the Throne, who can stop Jay-Z or Kanye when they are on top of their respective games? No one. Some of the hardest hitting raps, best production on the album, and best flows. Murder to Excellence is the thesis of the album. The first part focuses on black on black crime and how it affects the black community overall. It cuts to the second part which is the excellence earned at the expense of other black men. Made in America is Kanye's toast to himself and his team, on how far they come. Although Kanye's verse is great, Jay-Z's verse dedicated to his hardworking grandmother is very forgettable. Perhaps Made in America should have been Kanye's answer to Welcome to the Jungle with two solo verses instead. The beat, the frank ocean vocals, and everything else is great. Why I Love You is a great song, but is once again essentially a Jay-Z solo song. It's a great closer to the album, and documents Jay's rise to fame and what he did for his people to get them where they are at. One of the best Jay-Z songs of all time, and is only hurt by a lack of Kanye. I'm not as familiar with the bonus tracks besides H.A.M. so I'll refrain from going over them, but overall, this album is the best you could hope for from two GOATS, one at the tailend of a remarkable career, the other at the height of his powers. Even though Kanye was the better rapper at the time, Jay, as the greatest rapper of all time should, usually walked away with the better verses, but this might be the last glimpse into 'classic' or 'the old' Kanye, As part of Kanye's unbelievable 2010-2013 with the two greatest albums of all time on either end of it, the album is amazing. Unfortunately, Jay couldn't keep the momentum up into MCHG, a forgettable, but enjoyable and overlooked album. Perhaps if he saved more WTT songs the way he did Holy Grail, he would have had another classic on his hands. Either way, this album is great and a testament to both remarkable figures and their careers.
Jan 6, 2020 Definitiley a historic moment for Hip Hop however I wouldnt say it was undeniable classic. Few tracks are skippable, I'd give it a solid 7.5/10.
Jan 6, 2020 But that's exactly why I don't understand where the legitimate hate comes from. Do I wish they were on it more? Sure. But they're not on it enough to ruin the song and people always talk about that song like it's THAT horrible when, as I said, it's middle-of-the-road and inoffensive at worst.
Jan 6, 2020 When this album dropped back in summer 2011 was peak life. I remember Otis getting premiered by annoying a--- funk flex and he kept running it back time and time again without finishing the song. NIP was huge and you couldn’t go anywhere without hearing it. I remember waiting around for it to leak, but they put the digital copy out first to stop that from happening. I also remember That’s My b---- leaking the same day MBDTF came out. Sheesh. Idk if anyone has ever had a period of better music than Kanye did from November 2010 through the summer of 2011. 9/10
Jan 6, 2020 I can't answer this question man because I don't hate it. To me its just this is the only song on WTT where I'm like yeah this could have been a lot better... all the other songs can't be better imo and some proper verses could make this a 10/10. That kinda dissappoints me because they were at their best here. Maybe some people feel the same but overreacting saying they hate it? You can't hate on Beyoncé or this beat here tbh
Jan 6, 2020 Yeah that's really what I meant was the hate on it seems to be an overreaction. It's one of the weaker cuts on the album, but I've always found, like, the Welcome to the Jungle hook to be more of a detriment to that song than Jay/Ye's parts on Lift Off was.
Jan 6, 2020 You mean Swizz Beats? Yeah he''s an annoying f--- on almost every song he does this I agree, but after a while I don't even hear it anymore. Luckily its only short and doesn't really take my focus away from Jay murdering that beat.
Jan 6, 2020 if i had to guess, i would say albums where 2 rappers are basically on every song are more difficult to make. i'll give jay-z and kanye the benefit of the doubt. however, this album to me was solid. i don't think it was great. many of you gave it a 9 or 10 which really surprises me because there's no way this is on the same level as something like blackstar. at this point jay-z wasn't as good as he use to be. but there's some fun songs on here and its an enjoyable album--just not a great one. i'll go 7 out of 10
Jan 6, 2020 It's not that I hate the song, and I'm sure no one really hates it. But it doesn't belong on this album for all the reasons already mentioned. So I guess I'm not hating on the song, I'm hating on the song being part of this project.
Jan 8, 2020 WTT gets an 8.5 out of 17 ratings! Next up: Lupe Fiasco - Tetsuo & Youth Tracklist: 1 Summer 2 Mural 3 Blur My Hands (ft. Guy Sebastian) 4 Dots & Lines 5 Fall 6 Prisoner 1 & 2 (ft. Ayesha Jaco) 7 Body Of Work 8 Little Death (ft. Nikki Jean) 9 No Scratches (ft. Nikki Jean) 10 Winter 11 Chopper (ft. Billy Blue, Buk Of Psychodrama, Trouble, Trae Tha Truth, Fam-Lay & Glasses Malone) 12 Deliver 13 Madonna (And Other Mothers In The Hood) (ft. Nikki Jean) 14 Adoration Of The Magi (ft. Crystal Torres) 15 They.Resurrect.Over.New. (ft. Ab-Soul & Troi) 16 Spring Lupe Fiasco alsways was kinda hit or miss. The Cool , Food & Liquor were great.. Lasers and F&L didn't really do it for me except a few gems. His 2015 fifth studio album was a lot better to me. I still remember hearing Prisoners for the first time thinking 'd--- he really turned that cringy yet catchy song (RTN) into an actual good one'. Production was overall nice and Dots and Lines is one of my favorite Lupe songs sonically. 7.8/10 @RateThisAlbum S/o @Enez
Jan 8, 2020 this s---’s an art gallery in rap form. after lasers and f&l2, it’s hard to guess where lupe would go next. in came T&Y, expectations were exceeded far and out. some of the best production he’s rapped on ever. mural is a godly introduction, potentially one of the best intro tracks this decade. with the elongated tracks (shoutout chopper, dope posse cut) lupe gets more time to get his s--- straight. it’s more fully fleshed out than most of it’s predecessors and i truly believe this is his 2nd best album. one of my favorite albums this entire decade. 9.5/10
Jan 8, 2020 Honestly don’t feel like T&Y has any business being mentioned in this thread. It’s better than Lasers and F&L2 obviously, but I’m not gonna give the guy who made The Cool props for doing the bare minimum. 5/10
Jan 8, 2020 Well it's been praised by many people (including critics for what it's worth) so it qualifies for this thread. Eventually it's up to the people that rate it here to decide whether it belongs (high) on the list or not
Jan 8, 2020 ^ but @Winter you gave Watch the Throne a 10--which suggests its as good as Blackstar lmao that's a joke---another album that has 2 rappers throughout the entire album- anyway, lupe's first two albums we're very good and then he took a step back with Lasers and the one that came after that. however, T & Y was a bounce back album for Lupe. he went back to spitting like he did when he first came out and showed he still has something left in the tank. great album. 9 out of 10
Jan 8, 2020 your writeups are good, but I think it’s clear that jay-z and Kanye’s lyrics don’t come close to reaching the level of mos and talib on Black Star Watch the throne is a fun album with lots of commercial, radio friendly songs. Black star a masterpiece
