B. Cox reviews Common's classic sixth album Be as it turns 20. In light of the commercial failure and mixed critical reviews, Common found some common ground in aligning with fellow Chicago hip-hop royalty Kanye West and his GOOD Music imprint on Geffen Record. A former pupil of No. ID, who produced the majority of Common's second and third albums (Resurrection and One Day It'll All Make Sense, respectively), West proved to be a good match to get Common back on tracks and back to his hip-hop roots in the Windy City.

Largely solely produced by West (with minor assists from J. Dilla, James Poyser and Karriem Riggins), Common showcased in depth lyricism marked by poignant stories about life in Chicago and themes of the streets, love, feminism, ambition and knowledge of self. Joined by collaborators such as The Last Poets, John Mayer along with label mate John Legend and West himself, the album was a well layered effort that served towards Common's strengths.

The album featured many singles, highlighted by "The Corner", "Go!" and "Testify". The album was Common's 2nd album to be certified gold and is often thought to be his "comeback album". It is also regarded along with Like Water For Chocolate as his best work.

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Show Notes

OkayPlayer: Common's 'Be' Getting 20th Anniversary Re-Release with 11 New Tracks

https://www.okayplayer.com/common-be-20th-anniversary

B. Cox returns with a look back at Common's landmark fourth album, Like Water For Chocolate as it turns 30.

After his breakthrough sophomore album 1994's Resurrection and his acclaimed third album 1997's One Day It'll All Make Sense, the Chicago emcee picked up his roots and moved to New York City and linked up with Questlove, The Roots and other creatives who were working within the Electric Lady Studios. There he collaborated with the aforementioned, D'Angelo, super producer DJ Premier, musicians such as keyboardist James Poyser, famed bass player Pino Palladino and horn legend Roy Hargrove among others. The catalyst for this collaboration, however, came from producer Jay Dee (bka J Dilla) who produced the lion's share of the album's tracks.

The album was widely acclaimed up on release. It is has been RIAA certified gold and is considered along with 2005's BE as is his best work.

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Show Notes

Albumism: Common's "Like Water For Chocolate" Turns 25 | Album Anniversary

https://albumism.com/features/common-like-water-for-chocolate-album-anniversary#google_vignette

Stereogum: 'Like Water For Chocolate' Turns 20

https://www.stereogum.com/2077724/common-like-water-for-chocolate-review/reviews/the-anniversary/

Grammy | Q&A: Common Tells Stories Behind 'Like Water For Chocolate'

https://www.grammy.com/news/qa-common-tells-stories-behind-water-chocolate-its-20th-anniversary

As we open 2025 to continue Season 7, B. Cox reviews The Game's debut album The Documentary as it turns 20. After coming up with a rough upbringing which led him to gang life, the drug game and shooting that left him in a coma, the Compton native embarked on a journey to become a rap star, studying the classic albums of his youth and adolescence as a blueprint to pattern himself after. After he got started and released mixtapes on Get Low Records with Bay area star, JT the Bigga Figga, he was discovered by Dr. Dre who signed him to Aftermath and he was placed with G-Unit Records and partnered with 50 Cent.

His debut album was a costly experiement, but one that was destined to make a mark. An all-star cast of producers (Dre, Timbaland, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, Kanye West, Hi-Tek, Eminem, Mark Elizondo and more) laced his freshman effort with a fresh sound for a West Coast Emcee. Paired with Game's flow and reality rap bars that spoke of his hard knock life, ambitions and dreams, it made for a true soundtrack of what the new West Coast hip-hop scene would like in this era.

The album was boosted several successal chart topping signals, most notably "How We Do", "Hate It Or Love It" (both featuring 50 Cent) and the Kanye West produced "Dreams". In total 5 singles all saw at least some success with the best charging the album towards a double platinum effort within two years. It has sold over 5 million copies worldwide and is recognized by many as The Game's best work and a notable album in the 21st century West Coast hip-hop scene.