mixtape maestro (2.0)

With the ‘Net world currently immersed in “new Jay-Z = meh” banter (thanks to the like 52 fine, but mostly underwhelming, maybe-or-maybe-not B3 Jigga tracks that have leaked this past week alone), it’s kinda easy to forget that things didn’t look so depressing waaaay back in January when a likable ditty titled “When The Money Goes” mysteriously bubbled onto the Web.

While it took a minute to figure out whether it was the first taste of the Blueprint junior volume or not (it was later revealed to be nothing more than an American Gangster outtake), what we did know was that we immediately liked it. And how could we not? Backed by crisp R&B-like production that honed in on a champagne glass-clinking, “livin’ the good life” luxuriousness, “When The Money Goes” featured Jay delivering a tight and concise narrative based on the tried-and-true “Can I Get A…” concept: “I know you riding with a nigga through the Gucci store/ All through Prada…but what if I had nada?”.

Hey, it sounded like a surefire hit to us. But somewhere along the line, Jay decided that he didn’t need to cater to radio so blatantly (he’d rather play the cantankerous old fogey role and denounce everything the kids liked, whether it be Auto-Tune or allowing Drake his own verse), so he opted on handing off the track elsewhere. Whatever. In the end, it makes for a nice grab for Fabolous, who adopts the “When The Money Goes” concept and beat, laying down three verses that are so sharp, Jay really isn’t even needed beyond the hook duties he’s reduced to here.

Catch the “Money Goes, Honey Stay” clip below, followed by MP3’s of Jay’s unreleased original and a nice “Jamerican Remix” of “Off That” featuring reggae/ dancehall newcomer Atiba:

DL: Jay-Z “When The Money Goes (Original)” (alt)

DL: Jay-Z featuring Drake & Atiba “Off That (Jamerican Remix)” (alt)

Uncategorized atiba, fabolous, jay-z, reggae remix, the blueprint 3