Black Friday (Jay Rock mixtape)
Encyclopedia
Black Friday is the 11th mixtape
by American rapper Jay Rock
. It was released on November 26, 2010 by Top Dawg Entertainment for free download and then on iTunes December 7, 2010. It was released to iTunes
and Amazon.com
. It was Jay Rock's last mixtape before the release of his debut studio album Follow Me Home
.
and fans also helped shape the album cover. Music videos were released for "No Joke", "Diary of a Broke Nigga" and "Get on Your Shit".
The production embodies astral atmospheric sounds that evoke feelings of an urban cement dreamscape over the traditional hip-hop elements. "Walk by Me" production was described as trademark G-Funk
synth on steady loop over the deep groove of drums and bass.
The mixtapes themes were described as "street" related and Rock's rapping was described as "reality rap". Ology described the mixtape as a "street narative"
, Schoolboy Q
and Ab-Soul), Big Scoob
, Trae
and Spider Loc
among others. With production coming from Focus...
, Crada, Sounwave, DJ Khalil
among others.
and described as a "banger". Ab-Soul's featurings were prasied by critics.
Mixtape
A Mix Tape or Mixed Tape is a compilation of songs recorded in a specific order, traditionally onto an audio Compact Cassette.A Mix Tape, which usually reflects the musical tastes of its compiler, can range from a casually selected list of favorite songs, to a conceptual mix of songs linked by a...
by American rapper Jay Rock
Jay Rock
Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr. , better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper. He was named one of the top 13 most street artists by XXL. His voice has been called a cross between Immortal Technique and Rick Ross. He is a part of the rap group Black Hippy which also features Kendrick...
. It was released on November 26, 2010 by Top Dawg Entertainment for free download and then on iTunes December 7, 2010. It was released to iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
and Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
. It was Jay Rock's last mixtape before the release of his debut studio album Follow Me Home
Follow Me Home (Jay Rock album)
Follow Me Home is the debut studio album by rapper Jay Rock, released on July 26, 2011 by Top Dawg Entertainment and Strange Music. The album is backed by the singles "All My Life " and "Hood Gone Love It". Guest appearances come from Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, Tech N9ne, Rick Ross and others....
.
Background
The mixtape is interactive as it gained some of its tracks thanks to fans' feedback on TwitterTwitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
and fans also helped shape the album cover. Music videos were released for "No Joke", "Diary of a Broke Nigga" and "Get on Your Shit".
Lyrics, production and themes
The lyrics stay true to the typical rags-to-riches street narrative style, adding a sense of regularity to the mixtape, though it rarely crosses over into redundancy, thanks to Jay Rock's delivery.The production embodies astral atmospheric sounds that evoke feelings of an urban cement dreamscape over the traditional hip-hop elements. "Walk by Me" production was described as trademark G-Funk
G-funk
G-funk, or Gangsta-funk, is a sub-genre of hip hop music that emerged from Westcoast gangsta rap in the early 1990s. G-funk incorporates multi-layered and melodic synthesizers, slow hypnotic grooves, a deep bass, background female vocals, the extensive sampling of P-funk tunes, and a high-pitched...
synth on steady loop over the deep groove of drums and bass.
The mixtapes themes were described as "street" related and Rock's rapping was described as "reality rap". Ology described the mixtape as a "street narative"
Guests and production
The mixtape features guest appearances by Black Hippy (Kendrick LamarKendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar , formerly known by his stage name K. Dot, is an American rapper, and songwriter. He first gained major attention after the release of his 2010 mixtape O D. In 2011, his album Section.80, released exclusively through iTunes, instantly ranked as one of the top digital hip-hop releases...
, Schoolboy Q
Schoolboy Q
Quincy Matthew Hanley , better known by his stage name ScHoolboy Q is an American recording hip hop artist. Hanley is signed to Top Dawg Entertainment and is a member of Black Hippy along with Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar and Ab-Soul...
and Ab-Soul), Big Scoob
Big Scoob
Stewart D. Ashby, Jr., better known by his stage name Big Scoob is an American rapper from Kansas City, Missouri and a member of Strange Music. Though he is one of the newest on the label, he isn't new to the rap game. He has been rapping since 1998 with a Local KC rap group called 57th Street...
, Trae
Trae
Frazier Thompson III, better known by his stage name Trae, is an American rapper from Houston, Texas. He is a part of the underground rap collective Screwed Up Click. Trae and Z-RO, along with Dougie D, are the founding members of the group Guerilla Maab...
and Spider Loc
Spider Loc
Curtis Norvell Williams, more commonly known as Spider Loc is an American rapper signed to G-Unit Records.Loc is also the CEO of G-Unit West.-Biography:...
among others. With production coming from Focus...
Focus...
Bernard "Focus..." Edwards, Jr is a Atlanta-based Grammy Award–winning producer who first rose to fame when signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment. Since then he has produced tracks for Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé Knowles, Busta Rhymes, Bishop Lamont, Tony Yayo, Stat Quo,...
, Crada, Sounwave, DJ Khalil
DJ Khalil
Khalil Abdul-Rahman, better known by his stage name DJ Khalil, is a Los Angeles based American hip hop/soul record producer, and is the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Self Scientific, together with rapper Chace Infinite...
among others.
Critical reception
It was named the 83rd best mixtape of 2010 by XXLXXL (magazine)
XXL is a Hip-Hop magazine, published by Harris Publications.In 1997, XXL was founded by former Source staffers as well as other Harris Publication employees, who wanted to create their own magazine about the hip-hop music and culture using the model developed by the founders of The Source...
and described as a "banger". Ab-Soul's featurings were prasied by critics.
Tracklisting
Samples- "Still in the Hood" samples "Fully Loaded Clip" by 50 Cent50 CentCurtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
. - "Kush Freestyle" samples "Kush" by Dr. DreDr. DreAndre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
.