TM 103 Hustlerz Ambition

ヤング・ジージー 2011年4thアルバム『TM:103 Hustlerz Ambition』の2枚組LP。

2011年12月20日にCTE World / Def Jam Recordingsからオリジナル・リリースされたヤング・ジージーの4thアルバム。『Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101』(2005年)、『The Inspiration』(2006年)からなるThug Motivation三部作のラストを飾る作品。Ne-Yo、Snoop Dogg、Jadakiss、Jill Scott、Fabolous、T.I.、Andre 3000、Jay-Z、2 Chainz、Wiz Khalifa、Plies、Lil Wayne、Trick Daddy、Freddie Gibbs、Mitchelle'l、Futureという豪華なゲスト陣が参加。
180g重量盤ブラック・ヴァイナル2枚組。

Rolling Stone (p.53) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "The beats, produced by Southern luminaries like Drumma Boy and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, are full of imperious synthesizer pageantry, rumbling bass and frenetic percussion."

After releasing The Recession in 2008, Young Jeezy suffered his own three-year layoff due to legal problems and a fight with the crippling disease Bell's palsy. Add a paradigm shift in hip-hop radio, where the introspection of Drake and Kid Cudi found favor over Jeezy and T.I.'s extroverted pusher music, then top if off with a slew of missed released dates and the whole thing stinks of a setup, which is why any fond appreciation of TM:103 must come from the "warts and all" department. This unforgiving return to form doesn’t suffer from being over-thought and it’s not even overwrought, but it is overstuffed at 14 tracks (make that 18 for the deluxe version) and the most welcoming moments are pushed to the back (the "F.A.M.E."/"I Do"/"Higher Learning" sequence is like a trap music glitter dome with Jay-Z, Andre 3000, T.I., and Snoop Dogg all on the guest list). These minor complaints will matter little to returning fans as their needs are put first with the front half of album rolling like a steamroller fueled by grind-time anthems. Even the hack "game needs me"-styled opener is welcome as the rapper forces "Waiting" out of his hoarse throat like it was gravel, and after "What I Do" does something infectious and incredible with an economic hook and a Drumma Boy beat, the bold "OJ" comes along filled with iffy metaphors and a trailer load of controversy. The scattershot and irresponsible number is a red herring and kept a safe distance from the album’s true key track, "Trapped," where Jeezy and Jill Scott offer a crafted and complicated social statement, one that’s soulful and the worthy successor to "My President." What’s made Jeezy's evolution as an artist interesting is that this rebel without a cause sometimes finds one, and even when he's more Hulk than Bruce Banner, his changes are driven by emotion rather than something calculated. Here he's driven by the hunger to put things back where they were and live up to TM:103's official subtitle, Hustlerz Ambition, along with its unofficial one, Trap or Die Tryin'. ~ David Jeffries

度重なる延期により前作『The Recession』から3年以上のブランクが空き、シーン内で微妙な状況下に置かれていたジーズィの新作は、ジャスティス・リーグら馴染みのメンツに加え、リル・ロディやマイク・ウィルといった新進のホットなプロデューサーを積極的に起用した意欲的な仕上がりに。ドープでスリリングなトラップ・ビーツをバックにドライなサグ・ラップを聴かせ、これまでとほぼ変わらぬ路線ながらハイライトとも言えるジェイ・Zとアンドレ3000を迎えた“I Do"はジーズィにとって新たなアンセムになりそうなバズり具合だし、T.I.やスヌープ・ドッグ、ニーヨの参加など話題も多々あり、結果、初週で全米3位にランクインする劇的なカムバック作となった。“OJ"での梶芽衣子“晩夏"使いもお見事。
bounce (C)升本徹