As I reviewed for Lurk99Cents.com:

The debut LP from Drizzy Drake is one of the most anticipated of the year across any genre and probably the most anticipated hip-hop release since Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 in November 2009. Needless to say, I have been anxious to hear it since I heard So Far Gone(the original) in early 2009. While the album isn’t everything I hoped it would be, it is far from a disappointment and if it were released by anybody with less expectations than Drake has resting on his shoulders it would probably be receiving universal critical acclaim right now. So let’s get into the particulars.

One of Drake’s greatest strengths is his ability to choose production to his advantage. Boi-1da is one of the hottest young producers in the game and has been with Drizzy since his early mixtape days. They have great chemistry and they usually connect for high quality music. The same can be said for 40. Surprisingly, I think Drake’s album loses some steam by the superstar production featured. Swizz Beats, Timbaland, and Kanye West all have what I would consider underwhelming contributions. It seemed like Drizzy was just a bit out of his comfort zone trying to fit into their sound. Having said that I don’t think there are any bad songs although the album certainly could have done without Fancy.

Another advantage of Drake has always been his collaborations. From the mixtape days of collabos with the likes of Trey Songz and Lil Wayne to what I would consider the posse cut of 2009 in Forever, Drake does seem to get the best out of his guests. Alicia Keys sounds great on Fireworks and Lil Wayne actually sounds like he tried on his verse for Miss Me. Jay-Z gave what I would consider to be his best guest verse since Go Hard(Remix).

As a whole this album is very good. But it has two potential drawbacks. The first and probably more important in the hip-hop community is all the singing Drake does. Most fans don’t mind the occasional hook but Drizzy goes all out on several tracks and sings everything as if he were an pop/r&b star. It’s not that Drake sounds bad per sé, but rather hip-hop would prefers to see Drake display his lyrical ability as often as possible and these verses take away from their opportunity to hear him.

The second and less costly drawback is the lack of a certifiable hit. Plenty of tracks sound good but I don’t think any of them are memorable beyond present day. If you are like me and like to listen to complete albums this does not obstruct your listening. But from a historical perspective it does hurt. For me it is also the difference between this being more than a 4 star album. But it is just that.

Overall this was an excellent first effort for Drake. He is a victim of his prior success and thus had high expectations that were difficult to match. While I think that his album is better than fellow newcomer Kid Cudi’s was, this album probably does less in the way of growing Drake’s fan base as oppose to Cudi’s album which added to his following and hype for his next release because of lower expectations. Moving forward Drake must continue to craft his formula and perfect his sound. But his future is more than bright.

Best Guest Spot: Jay-Z(Light Up)
Best Production: Boi-1da, Al-Khaaliq(Over)
Best Songs: Miss Me, Light Up, Unforgettable

This is a pretty cool video. I don’t know about that Michael Jordan thing though…more on failure later(after finals)!

Because it’s cool! If you want more Youtube has plenty.

This is who I have gotten to hear speak or will get to hear speak in the near future.

March 1 – Dr. Muhammad Yunus: 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Winner
March 4 – Paul Magelli: Was a millionaire entrepreneur by age 26…in the 1950s
March 11 – John W. Simons: Senior Personal Finance Editor, Black Enterprise
April 8 – Jerry Colangelo: Former owner of the Phoenix Suns/Phoenix Mercury/Arizona Diamondbacks, Director of USA Basketball
April 14 – Shellito Richards: CIO & VP of Technology, State Farm Insurance
April 21 – Gary M. Reiner: Senior Vice President & CIO, General Electric Company

It is times like these when I remember why I went to college. Not that getting an education isn’t important. But at our freshman convocation the Chancellor said your experience outside of the classroom is as important, if not more important that your experience in it. I took his words to heart and believe he is absolutely right. One of the best things about being in school is the number of opportunities that it presents. The ability to hear all of these brilliant and accomplished people speak in a two month span free of charge is awesome. I applaud my University for making an effort to interest, excite, and motivate its students.

The larger idea here is how can putting a different look in front of today’s youth impact their future? By different look I mean something that isn’t glorified in the media and pop culture. This country’s at-risk youth see athletes and entertainers, and not much else. They figure those are their options. These are generalizations but they are relevant to the overall concept that kids don’t know what is out there for them. Many of them have seen little to nothing in the way of successful people who never picked up a mic or dribbled a ball.

These kids are not dumb. They are far from it. When they see a successful person and have an opportunity to hear them speak they are all ears. They are often fascinated and amazed by the stories they are told. They may not retain everything they hear but each little thing they catch molds how they think and behave. Take a kid out of his or her environment and expose them to things they have never experienced and it will stick with them. They will be forced to think and question.

That is what this is about. Give these youths an opportunity to expand their thought. To learn that their is more than they know and give them the thirst to discover it. Something to reach for, an example of somebody who has what they want, AND the guidance to get there. These are pages in a playbook for success. Breaking a cycle of poverty goes beyond what I have talked about but I feel that these are realistic measures that schools and communities can aspire to implementing in order to play their part in the solution.

A while back I wrote an article for a new website called Untemplater that focuses on entrepreneurship, lifestyle design, personal finance, and more. Yesterday the article was published. In case you missed it and would like to check it out you can read it here. I encourage everybody to take a look around Untemplater. It features some of the most talented young professionals from around the internet and speaks on the very topics that interest the entrepreneur or anybody who aspires to living beyond the 9-5 lifestyle.

Anybody who has ever eaten with me is aware of the frequency with which I have french fries with meals. With that comes ketchup and I consume lots of it. Probably twice the average of any one person, maybe more. So I keep a close watch on the ketchup industry in my free time, for the sake of fellow ketchup lovers. Check out this new ketchup packet from Heinz. It allows you to dip or squeeze. Interesting. I’ll be sampling soon.