Tim and Eric have had plenty of skits where one is squared off against each other, but I’m doing the unthinkable, nay impossible and having you pick either Tim or Eric! This should be the hardest CIY any of you have ever faced… that is if you’ve got good taste! Just sayin’. I fully expect a few heads to explode trying to contemplate life without one or the other. But before you make your pick, why not enjoy my favorite bit featuring Tim vs. Eric. Choice is Yours…
Now this is a pretty fuckin’ heavy weight throwdown right here… the titans of 16-bit gaming! When I was a kid you fuckin’ chose one side and stuck with it. Even if you were one of those rich kids with both systems. Thankfully we now have the fortune of hindsight to look back and accurately grade which of these two beasts were best. So I’m drawing a line in the sand and asking which side you’re on. Choice is Yours…
Alright this is a pretty dorky CIY but I want to know who do you want captaining your ship? Who’s hands would you entrust your life in hmmmm? Bald versus a full head of hair! Frack this is a hard one, but whatever… Engage! Choice is Yours…
*breathes out cloud of smoke* Even though most of the stuff we smoke today is a hybridized version, we’re takin’ it to the origins on dat ass. You know we’re not your average pot-smokers here behind the giant eyeballs and snake-tongued bears. No, we are connoisseurs! And we are implying that you are too, so don’t…whatever bro, pass me those peanut butter Newman O’s. What if only one could exist? Choice is Yours…
Here we go, two New York heavy weights and possibly the two greatest Hip Hop albums of all time! Can one man survive against a clan of nine? Can the RZA take it to both Pete Rock and Primo? Queensbridge vs. Shaolin? What if only one could exist? Choice is Yours…
Would have been nice to do a Meth vs. Chef CIY but lets face it, Meth’s never had any album on par with anything Rae or Ghost have done. This is a tough one… do you go with the greatest “Coke Rap” album ever written or the greatest… well just one of the greatest Hip Hop albums. Hell this may just come down to which one had the best Ghost verses. What if only one could exist? Choice is Yours…
In honor of Nevermind’s twenty year anniversary, and OK Computer’s fourteenth year anniversary from earlier this summer, I present to you this challenge. Two incredible albums. Two indisputable 90s classics. But what if only one could exist? You know the deal, share your opinion below in the comments section.
September 11 marked the ten year anniversary of one of Jay-Z‘s classic albums, The Blueprint. In observance of this anniversary, Complex decided to run a piece that claimed to finally answer the debate of which classic Hova album, Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint, is best. And while it’s a well-written, well-structured piece, and regardless of the fact that this question is completely a matter of opinion and there’s no way Complex is going to provide an answer that readers will then adopt as their own, it contains one major flaw.
The piece, entitled End of Discussion: Why Jay-Z’s “The Blueprint” Is Better Than “Reasonable Doubt”, is broken down into twelve categories, each of which examines and compares aspects of the two albums, from “Lyrical Content” and “Lyrical Structure”, to “Cover Art” and “Guests”. For each category one point is awarded depending on which album is superior. Most of the observations concerning the two classics are honest and accurate, however, in the end, The Blue Print comes out on top with the final score being eight to four.
Now, there is no way that TBP is twice as good as RD. Independent of your personal opinion regarding the two albums, this is just not even a possibility. Complex wants to rule in favor of The Blue Print, and that’s fine, but it is not a landslide victory as the 8-4 score makes it seem.
Here’s where the error is made: While each category won awards an album one point, some of the categories should not be considered equal in terms of defining an album’s greatness. For instance, “By The Numbers” and “Lyrical Structure” should in no way be on par. Numbers are interesting when discussing classic albums, but they cannot possibly factor in to a true musical discussion in any way similar to the structure of lyrics. Look at Weezer‘s Pinkerton, as a great example of a group’s clear magum opus (along with Weezer (The Blue Album), which, again, is another timeless debate) that, by the numbers, was frail in comparison to subsequent releases. While much of Rap’s subject matter is indeed “the numbers,” and turning a profit, it’s the actual lyrics themselves that should how classic an album is.
In that respect, the scoring of Reasonable Doubt is considerably flawed, with “Lyrical Structure” and “Flows” deserving, at least, two points each, bringing the would-be final score to 6-8, with The Blue Print still coming out on top. And whether “Sequencing” and “Cover Art”, or “Cover Art” and “Guests” can, similarly, be considered equal is up for debate, but the point value of the lyrical categories certainly need to be more endowed.
And yes, true, that would suggest that “Lyrical Content”, of which Complex deems The Blue Print the victor, should also be afforded two points, bringing the final score to 6-9. This is not necessarily the case, however, as it can very much be considered a case of “It’s not what you say; It’s how you say it.” While Jay is discussing solely drug dealing on most of Reasonable Doubt the way in which he does it is so magnificent and inventive that it does not once feel repetitive, making TBP’s more introspective, topically-varying lyrics both less standout and less deserving of two points.
Whether 6-8 is an accurate score is another discussion entirely, and one that will never be finished, but it is at least a more believable score than 4-8. There is also another, more abstract dilemma inherent with comparing two albums and trying to obtain an be-all, end-all ruling, that being the indescribable essence of the different collections of music, along with the different perspectives that each listener brings to the table. Like I said, it is completely a matter of opinion, so even attempting to end the debate is futile. Having said that, 6-8 would at least be a score that I could happily say Complex unnecessarily awarded.
2Pac - “I Get Around (feat. Shock G & Money B)” (1992) // Produced by Shock G
Vs.
2Pac – “I Ain’t Mad at Cha (feat. Danny Boy)” (1996) // Produced by Daz Dillinger
Tupac was shot and killed 15 years ago this day and while I doubt anyone is going to argue his legacy, Pac has many sides to his personality that got expressed in his songs. Part of what made him such an incredible emcee. Over the years I think 2Pac’s more pensive and heartfelt rhymes get quoted and remembered more but dude was also one of Hip Hop’s most charismatic rappers. EVER. He could drop a party anthems like it was no thing.
So this Choice Is Yours isn’t so much about either of these two songs but just which Pac do you prefer? Or which Pac springs to mind first when you think of him? Choice is yours…
