Jay-Z and Kanye West are rap royalty. Their highly anticipated collaboration album, Watch the Throne, was released last week and is already at pole position on the charts in 19 countries.
Collectively known as The Throne, the pair have succeeded in dividing hip hop hips in more countries than that. Also a euphemism for the toilet, those who find a social media account to provide more brevity than Dutch Courage predicted an album by The Throne would be crap. But, clearly, it is no number two.
Boasting production by Pharrel Williams and the Wu Tang Clan’s RZA (yes, that’s why you’ve been hearing people say “me and the RZA connect” all willy-nilly), this album is a sho’t-left departure from what’s come to be expected from the notorious interrupter, Kanye and his big brother, the self-appointed Best Rapper Alive, Mr Knowles.
Speaking of which, Beyoncé lends her vocal talent to a rocket-launching power anthem, Lift Off. But it’s Frank Ocean, the second most famous person in Odd Future – the juvenile delinquents who have the world’s ear – who shines on Watch the Throne.
There have been plenty of opinions raised about this joint venture. There are well-respected hip hop magazines that have praised it and rap bloggers who would have preferred the powerful pair commit regicide than release anything beyond the screeching, soul-sampled Otis. Collaborative efforts are nothing new in hip hop.
There have been great ones like Madlib and MF Doom (as Madvillain) and their Madvillainy album, Methodman and Redman’s Blackout and Nas and Damian Marley’s Distant Relatives. But now, in the wake of Watch the Throne, we are being told to watch out for a Drake and Lil Wayne album.
So this got us thinking, if we could choose two South African rappers to create a collaboration CD similar to what Jaynye – as the Net is now calling the rappers – have done, who would we pick?
After much deliberation, it was decided an album that saw ProVerb and PRO go punchline for punchline may be something to hear. That would mean Selwyn is the only one of the Three Kings campaign that wouldn’t be a part of a Watch the Throne kind of collaboration.
Oh well. Soweto’s own PRO has transcended the vernac stereotype and is, quite frankly, one of the ambidexterous MCs of today. Couple that with ProVerb’s wit and wordplay and you’d have a winner.
So would, as expected, a Tumi and Zubz collaboration. We’ve heard the pair spar on each other’s albums. The bonus track that is Usain Bolt (on Tumi’s Whole Worlds) alone is proof that the pair would do damage if given 40 or more minutes on disc.
It might also be worth hearing Big FKN Gun’s Solomon go toe-to-toe with Dirty Paraffin’s Okmalumkoolkat. How about Reason and AKA? The sheer fierce flow factor and lyrical ability of EJ von Lyrik and QBA would be powerful.
A collaboration album featuring Kanyi and Phoenix would be an interesting meeting of minds as both ladies choose to rap in Xhosa, but offer different takes on life. Even before we heard of Watch the Throne, Cap City Rap City’s Malik and Flex Boogie were working on their When We Were Kings album.
A typical theme within hip hop, everyone wants to sit on the throne and the great thing about hip hop is it’s the people who get to crown you. Long live collaboration albums.
lWatch the Throne is now in stores.