#27: Mos Def and Talib Kweli are Black Star (1998)

Or: "Hello, everybody. Recording live from somewhere…"

Dan and Sam count down their 28 favorite albums of all time via e-mail conversation. Click the tag "The 28" for the rest on the list so far.

Place on personal list:

Sam—24 Dan—26 Average—25

Favorite Song:

Sam—"Definition/RE:DEFinition"

Dan—"Definition/RE:DEFinition"

Favorite Line:

Sam—Too many. I'll put them at the beginning of each song review.
Dan--"stop acting like a bitch already, be a visionary” (Kweli, Definition), and “hotter than tales of crack peddlin, makin ‘em WHOOP! like blue gelatin, swing like Duke Ellington” in Mos’ verse on REgarding DEFinition, my favorite line from any hip hop song ever, no joke.


Sam:
I'd generally say it's fair to characterize you as more of a Mos supporter, and me as more of a Kweli guy. In fact, I actually like Kweli and Hi-Tek's Reflection Eternal/Train of Thought at least as much as this album though it did not make the list. That said, re-listening to Black Star, I've come to the conclusion that, as great as Kweli is on this album, Mos gives one of the great MC performances of all time. Both drop killer rhymes all over the place, but Mos' flow has always been tighter, and it's just unbelievable how good he sounds here, not to mention that the dude can sing as well. I still say Hi-Tek's production improved in leaps and bounds—at least in consistency—on Reflection Eternal, but I have a lot more respect for his work this time.

I'll go through song by song, rating each 1-10. I'm going to try to match the standard you used on BIABH, which was a little harsher than I usually use.

1) Intro [NA]
"We feel that we have a responsibility to shine the light into the darkness. There's a lot of darkness out there. We watch it all the time. I'm busy lookin' at some darkness right now, sayin', man, there's some darkness."

A nice, funny intro.

2) Astronomy (8th Light) [7]
"What is the Black Star? / Is it the cat with the black shades, the black car? / Is it shinin' from very far, to where you are? / It is commonplace and different / Intimate and distant / Fresher than an infant"

I definitely dig this song. In a sense, this is the album's intro, giving an idea for what exactly Black Star is (defenders of black people that also like to have some fun?), while also giving a nice impression that this is going to be somewhere between an old school record and something totally different. It does a really good job of setting the tone, I think.

3/4) Definition/RE:DEFinition [10+]
"My presence felt, my name is Kweli from the Eternal Reflection / People thinkin' MC is short hand for misconception."

The best 6 minutes of hip-hop ever made? I'm not in a position to answer that question, but I've a hard time imagining anything better. Kweli's flow doesn't sound fantastic in "Definition," but that's only because it's so insanely fast*, and the lyrics are out of this world. Mos is even better, particularly his verse on "RE:DEFinition," which is probably the best hip-hop verse I've ever heard—"makin em WOOP like blue gelatin, swing like Duke Ellington." And everything he just says sounds so rhythmically right. It's beautiful listening to the man rap. I also really love the way the end of Kweli's verse on "RE:DEF" rhymes with the first line of Mos'. And the chorus is one of the catchiest this side of The Beatles.

The beat is, of course, phenomenal. This is probably Hi-Tek's greatest success, even above "The Blast" from Reflection Eternal. Both beats are fantastic independently of each other, but the way they run together, making these two tracks into one coherent creation, is brilliant.

I'm a little less sure if I prefer the two tracks being placed back-to-back, essentially making them one song for all intents and purposes. Would "RE:DEF" work better placed, say, right before or after "Thieves in the Night" as a reprise? I don't know. It certainly works the way it is though.

*Seriously, try rapping Kweli's first verse the way he does it. You can't do it. You just can't.

5) Children's Story [5.5]
"He was out chasin' cream and the American dream / Tryin' to pretend the ends justify the means / This ain't funny so don't you dare laugh / It's just what comes to pass when you sell your ass / Life is more than what your hands can grasp."

This is one of the more old school tracks on the album, just a very simple beat and a repetitive flow. It's okay, but not my thing at all. It's that Tribe Called Quest/De La Soul style of flow that I just do not get. I'm sure there's a good reason they're so respected, but I sure as hell don't understand it.

6) Brown Skin Lady [8]
"My brown lady, creates environments, / for happy brown babies, I know it sounds crazy / but your skin's the inspiration for cocoa butter."

Another very catchy song where Mos shines as a singer. I prefer Kweli's verse on here though, which has some of his best flow on the album. Another very solid beat from Hi-Tek (I assume; it could be someone else). These guys are really in top form.

7) B Boys* Will B Boys [5]:
*A B-boy or B-girl is a person devoted to hip-hop culture, specifically the breakdance element. (From Wikipedia)

This is my least favorite song on the album. There's really nothing much going on at all, and it actually sounds a little bit like the Fresh Prince theme song (am I crazy?), which I don't think is a particularly good thing for a serious hip-hop group.

8) K.O.S. (Determination) [7.5]
"Life without knowledge is death in disguise."

K.O.S. stands for knowledge of self, and I dig how the chorus uses the word self once to mean two different things—"knowledge of self…determination." I like this song a lot, it's got a nice simple beat, a pretty solid chorus by a female singer for a change and some of the album's more insightful lyrics, talking about the importance of self-knowledge (obviously).

9) Hater-Players [6.5]
"It's a small wonder like Vicki*"

*You may have to google "small wonder vicki" (as I did) to understand this one, but trust me, it's funny.

There are some pretty funny moments on the song, but it's ultimately a diatribe against commercial, heartless hip-hop like "Children's Story" is, a theme which Kweli would return to in songs like "Too Late." It's seems to be a particular concern for these guys, and that's understandable to people who the music is so important to. The song itself is also solid.

10) Yo Yeah [NA]

This is not really a song. In fact, I forget it exists unless I look at the track listing.

11) Respiration [9]
"I choreograph seven steps to heaven / And hell, waiting to exhale and make the bread leavened / Veteran of a cold war, It's Chica-I-go for / What I know or, what's known / So some days I take the bus home, just to touch home" –basically just Common's whole verse.

This is a much better song than I realized however many months ago it was I bought this album. I still think that opening part of the beat is borderline plagiarism of "Dream On," but it's really good regardless. Lyrically it's a sort of ode to New York (and later, Chicago) that remains realistic and conflicted. I love the image of listening to and feeling the city breathing.

And Common's verse, both lyrically and flow-wise, is spectacular, perhaps the best I've heard from him, except maybe the one on "Be." Plus, I just love listening to his voice.

12) Thieves in the Night [10]
"Not strong, / Only aggressive, / Not free, / We only licensed, / Not compassionate, only polite, / Now who the nicest? / Not good but well behaved, / Chasin' after death
so we can call ourselves brave, / Still livin' like mental slaves, / Hidin' like thieves in the night from life, / Illusions of oasis makin' you look twice."

I don't think there's a significant difference in quality between this and the "Definitions," but I give them a slight edge for their greater importance. The lyrics here are sublime, among the best I've heard, from both Kweli and Mos behind the perfect beat to highlight said lyrics. When they write things so insightful about society and living in false ideals created by it ("Caught up, in conversations of our personal worth / Brought up, through endangered species status on the planet Earth / Survival tactics means, bustin' gats to prove you hard / Your firearms are too short to box with God / Without faith, all of that is illusionary / Raise my son, no vindication of manhood necessary"), it's hard to believe how bigoted both men remain about homosexuality and other issues that are common to the hip-hop community. Regardless, the song is superb.

13) Twice Inna Lifetime [7]
We be lightin' shit up like phosphorus / Turnin' flamboyant n***** anonymous, depressin' to optimus / You stoppin' us is preposterous, like an androgynous misogynist."

Take a minute to just stare at those lyrics. Ah.

Okay, now remember how shitty Jane Doe is, and you start to understand why this is only a seven. Common is really the only guest who should be allowed on this album, everyone else is just worse than Mos and Kweli and takes away from the quality. It's unfortunate because the rest of the song is pretty excellent.

The problem is compounded further by making this the last song on the album. I really wish they had tossed this in the middle and ended with one of "RE:DEFinition," "Respiration," or "Thieves in the Night." It's just a moderately depressing way to finish such a great album.

Bonus Review—What's Beef? (From Chapelle's Show) [8]
"Beef is not what Jay said to Nas / Beef is when workin' n***** can't find jobs."

There's really no beat at all to speak of here, and Kweli's flow is actually pretty weak, but Mos really shines with insightful, meaningful lyrics (even if they're on a grander scale than I prefer, they're trying to alter a warped hip-hop perspective) and extremely tight flow.

All together, Black Star suffers from inconsistency like Bringing It All Back Home, but it offers perhaps a few more truly excellent songs. And actually, looking back at how many of my favorite lines were Kweli's, I might have to take back that thing about Mos being better here. I don't know; regardless, they're both incredible.

This isn't my absolute favorite hip-hop album ever, but I'd have a hard time arguing with anyone who claimed it was the best.

Dan:

I think that’s a fair characterization you make. I love Kweli, and generally I find the actual content of his lyrics resonates with me more, but only generally, and I enjoy Mos’ flow more so in the end he comes out slightly ahead. Yes, I do think he makes the album, but even if you just kept Kweli’s verses on all these tracks you’d have some great stuff. Both of them just give an unyielding performance here, with more good lines per song than a lot of pretty solid ALBUMS out there. I think Hi-Tek does great work here, especially with some cool musical things that you never hear in hip-hop which I’ll discuss later in greater detail. The other producers lay down good beats as well, and they all fit well together.

Intro: As far as hip-hop album intros go, this is probably one of the best. Nice, cool, mellow beat to set the tone for the whole album.

Astronomy (8th Light) (7): I like to think of this as an extension of the intro as well. Its cool to hear them explain what Black Star means to them, instead of just leaving it as a cool sounding name that may or may not mean something. The sonority is pretty similar to the intro which makes for a smooth transition. Even though I actually stated my favorite lines I like your idea so I’ll jot down some more of my faves at the end of each song if something strikes my fancy. In this one I really like is Kweli’s line “I love rockin tracks like John Coltrane love Naima.” The emphasis on both musical and philosophical roots throughout this album is probably my favorite theme. Its just some simple (albeit excellent) wordplay, but what he’s also showing is an appreciation for his musical tradition and a knowledge of that tradition (Naima was Train’s wife). I am sure I will discuss this theme again in future albums we review because I can already think of examples, but many of them (especially Beatles tracks) give props out via the music, not the words (exception to previous parenthetical statement, “for you blue”).

Definition (9.5)/REgarding DEFinition (10+) (overall a 10+ for sure): First of all, how funny would it be if they actually spelled it that way. Seriously though, title is such a meaningless thing compared to content but if you had to give out an award, this is about as cool as they come. I cannot imagine them not being separate. Yeah a reprise would be cool I guess, but together its just like whoa, incredible statement, followed by WHOA, INCREDIBLE STATEMENT. The flow throughout the whole piece is incredible, and I think Kweli’s is better than you give him credit for. It sounds a little out of whack when he gets going real fast, but I like how that provides contrast to some of the more straight-ahead feeling rhymes. Mos definitely rules this track though. Even when he gets flying in the second half of his verse in RE:DEFinition his flow is way in the pocket (the actual musical term, not that line that Kanye may or may not be referencing the actual musical term with) and sounds so much more relaxed. I like how you pointed out the difficulty in reproducing some of the lines in this song. I think a good metric for how inventive and skillful someone’s flow is is to see if you can just rap it acapella. Usually most stuff is pretty easy once you memorize the words, but even after listening to this song tens of times I have trouble reciting “my presence felt, my name is kweli….etc.” This is an easy one to recite, but just on the note of cool lines, I really like when Mos raps “me and kweli close like Bethlehem and Nazareth/after his you be pressing rewind on top yo’ masterdisk.” If you REALLY wanted my favorite line I guess I should have just written out his whole verse in re:def. Its very similar to Subterranean in that its just a torrent of unbelievably wit/insight/humor/wordplay. I couldn’t even imagine something like that being written before I heard it. Simply incredible.

Lets talk about some cool things Hi-Tek does with what I think is his best beat. First of all, the intro is really cool. Also I like how the first half has a kind of lighthearted feel even with the heavy bass drum and the second half sounds dead serious, kind of like they were saying something in the first part, got pissed no one was paying attention (hip hop community?) and that mood permeated the second part. Besides Thieves in the Night this is the greatest accomplishment of Hi-Tek’s from a musical (not how cool it sounds, but the actual music of it) standpoint. Traditionally when DJs drop the beat it’s a very straight forward affair. Four beat measure, maybe they drop the whole thing or the first two or last two beats. In Definition the primary beat drop, which can be best heard at :59-1:04, lays out for a while then accents the second and third beat of the measure before it reenters, which makes for a very funky off-beat feel. I like the beat drop in re:def a little better, with the 1 and 3 of the second measure of the break accented. The placement is also a little better I think, especially the one that occurs right at the beginning of Talib’s verse. Throughout the album there are cool reversals of the beat or accents that make it more like a real drum beat as opposed to a computer-generated beat.

Children’s Story (7.5): This is a really cool concept of a song. Taking the Slick Rick classic and updating the lyrics is exactly the type of thing no one does but Black Star obviously would and does, making this album so good. Also a good moral about making art. I think the beat is pretty catchy too, and stripped down so the story comes through very clearly. I like that Mos doesn’t feel the need to lay down ridiculous lines like in the previous song, he just has a story he wants to tell and does so, although he has such good flow and cadence that it still sounds like he’s rapping beyond what the rhymes are. Music as storytelling is something that I think has become less and less important to mainstream performers since the advent of commercial recorded music, and I think that it’s bad for everyone. Some of the best music ever does nothing more than tell a story. Obviously these guys get that. This song goes on a little too long though, I think the other shit that goes on after the actual lyrics end is kind of stupid. As if we don’t know we’re listening to Black Star?

Brown Skin Lady (7): The intro is really cool, and I think the song is good but its around this point in the album that the similarity between beats starts to really set in, which I’ll discuss more at the end, but basically its not a good thing. I do like how the rhythm changes every now and then and there are some cool drum hits in here. This is actually one of my least favorite beats on the album though, and even another John Coltrane reference can’t save it from relative mediocrity.

B Boys Will B Boys (7.5): I totally disagree with you on this song. I think the album needs more tracks like this. Not in place of other songs, but in between. So many of these tracks are awesome but too mellow and blend together too much. A song like this, although one of the worst lyrically, at least has a cool upbeat tempo that changes the pace. Plus it gives some cool shout outs (native tongues for example).

K.O.S. (Determination) (7.5): Cool lyrics, cool beat, cool idea. Not much to say except again this song could really sound much worse if it came before the previous track instead of after it because of how mellow the beat is.

Hater Players (6.5): Still good, but starting to go downhill relative to the rest of the album. I would have preferred if they made this beat heavier, especially the part where the drums drop out.

Yo Yeah (4): Yeah its not a song, but its so shitty it still deserves to be poorly rated. It actually is pretty cool and the beat is good, but why in the name of the Universal Zulu Nation did they think it was a good idea to have that stupid fucking “yo/yeah” shit going on the whole song. AHHHHHH!

Respiration (8.5): Just the type of heavy beat I’ve been looking for since RE:DEFinition. Great flow and the beat is killer. I love Common’s voice too. All the flow here is great though. “Killers Born Naturally like, Mickey and Mallory/Not knowing the ways'll get you capped like an NBA salary.”

Thieves in the Night (9.5): Unbelievable song. The beat is so jazzy, way more so in a true sense of having cool chord progressions than any of that so-called jazz hip hop stuff like Tribe and De La Soul and whatnot. The only thing that keeps it from a 10 for me is the excessively long outro. Don’t you think its just a little much? Around 1:50-55 there is a really cool turnaround of the beat. Lyrics, what can one say? They are incredible and meaningful. “Same song, just remixed, different arrangement/they put you on a yacht but they won’t call it a slave ship.”

Twice Inna Lifetime (6.5): Shitty first verse, and even the rest, including that incredible line you cited and a pretty solid beat can’t make up for it. Why did this song have to be last. Thieves in the Night is the perfect song to end it. PERFECT! This just makes me angry. Well, too bad.

What is Beef? (9): First of all, this is the real title. They even say that it is “entitled, ‘What is Beef?’. I think the lack of serious beat is ok, because its heavy and allows space for the words to come through, especially important since it was recorded live, not in the studio. Not Kweli’s best as you say, but its pretty damn good, especially the acappella intro. Mos does rule this song however. I think it’s a really serious sardonic statement and I love it.

Overall I agree with your likening it to our last reviewed album. Some truly outstanding tracks, the ones I rate high are all among the best songs I’ve ever heard. The album is still great because there are few things that are really BAD, but it could be so much better with a few tweaks in the order and maybe one or two heavier tracks.

Sam:
First, let me object to your claim that "What's Beef?" is in fact called "What Is Beef?" That may be the way Mos introduces it, but in the song they clearly say "What's beef?" and every thing ever labels it that way. So, you know...

"Children's Story"--Someday someone is going to have to explain to me why I'm supposed to find rap like this to be good. I don't doubt that there's a reason, but it is completely lost on me. A repetive simple beat with repetitive simple flow and simple lyrics? Don't get it. And I suppose it's "a good moral about making art," but it's presented in about as superficial a way as possible. I don't think this song is bad, but I really don't see anything particularly worthwhile about it.

"B Boys Will B Boys"--This is basically the same disagreement, I think. I like the intro to it too, which I neglected to mention in my first email. But the flow at the beginning is weak, and the rest is super simple. Now, if I think of these two songs (and even "Hater Playes") more as interludes that break up the similarlity of the rest instead of real songs, then I'm much cooler with it. It's not like I'm asking that they be removed from the album, and maybe they actually add something to it in the way a skit or interlude can by keeping things fresh, but as songs, I don't think they're particularly good.

"Brown Skin Lady"--I really don't get what you're saying about this beat. I mean, if you don't particularly like it, that's fine, but it's really not similar at all to anything [ed. note: not similar to any beats before it] but the "Definitions." It's nothing like "Astronomy" or "Children's Story," and it's not that similar even to "Definition." Maybe you're getting too much mellow stuff in a row, and it would be better somewhere else on the album, but in and of itself I can't begin to understand how this gets a lower rating than the "Children's Story" and "B Boys." From my point of view, everything about this song is better than those two--beat, lyrics, and especially flow.

"Thieves in the Night"--Eh, I don't mind the long outro. Maybe it's a little long, but I really don't care very much. Also, I had never done this until you mentioned the outro, but have you ever turned the volume all the way up at the very end? There's this guy saying something about "Are you drifting? Get on the [something] train" or something like that.

That's it for now.

Dan:
I think it's an exercise in futility for me to try to explain to you what you're supposed to like about songs like Children's Story. I mean, there's something to be said for gaining an appreciation for things, but is someone really going to tell you why they like songs like that and it will magically make you like them? Anyways I guess I'll try since you ask. The beat is simple, but I think it's really catchy which is why the repetitive nature doesn't bother me. Also, I understand that this is all in degrees, and for a hip hop track this IS a very repetitive beat, but isn't the very nature of a beat a repetitive rhythm with varying shades of embellishment? I find all hip hop repetitive to some degree, but catchiness is generally what makes a beat good, although cutting down on the repetition (like i talked about in the definitions) certainly helps. Sure this beat makes Charlie Watts look like Buddy Rich, but I find the bass really catchy and I think the cadence of Mos' flow also helps lend some spice. I also don't get when you're saying it's presented in a superficial way. Isn't the point of the song to lambast the stereotypical rapper and his superficiality and lack of artistic integrity?

I don't think B Boys Will B Boys is particularly good, but I definitely think its an above average track and its especially good when it comes where it does. Maybe I was a bit too overzealous in my rating, but I'm not wiling to back down TOO much off of that number.

You have it all twisted about this beat. It doesn't have the weight of either definition at all, nor the musical complexity of RE:. The simplest way I can describe this track is a mild beat (way less bass drum than most traditional beats) with a moderately interesting bass line, really defined by the guitar riff with really mellow tone. That's also the way I would describe Astronomy except that it has a way heavier bass, K.O.S. except it has that vocal part and a little more embellishment with instruments, and Thieves in the Night except that its way way more interesting musically. Also, since very few of the other songs I don't think it outright sounds similar to have really heavy beats, to the ear as the album is flowing they begin to blend even more than they should.

How can you NOT mind the outro? Its over a minute long and as much as I love that beat I don't need to listen to below average singing and a restatement of various phrases we've already heard while I wait for it to end, they should've just faded it quickly during the rechorus or something like that.

Well, that was FUN! I will email you about the next album soon, and perhaps that Charlie Watts reference will be more fully examined (and by perhaps I mean definitely).