The Blueprint

Before he was "a businessman" or "a business, man," JAY Z was one of rap’s best rhymers. Soul samples courtesy of Just Blaze and Kanye West gave 2001’s The Blueprint the glossiest sounds money could buy. The exuberance of the single “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” is balanced by the poignancy of “Song Cry.” Even if JAY Z weren't sitting on the pop and rap throne, his cold diss track (“Takeover”) directed at Nas would still show he wasn’t a man you'd want to cross.