#TBT: '00s Jay-Z

Earlier this year, we dedicated a TBT article to exploring Jay Z's rise to prominence in the '90s. With his next album out tomorrow, it's time to revisit Jay Z in the '00s, a decade in which he no longer felt the need to stab anybody, briefly retired at the age of 33, and began his transformation to rap star to business mogul.

This list includes three songs apiece from The Blueprint and The Black Album and one song apiece from The Blueprint 2, Kingdom Come, American Gangster, and The Blueprint 3. Click through the gallery to read on.

"Heart of the City" | The Blueprint

During one of his ramblings on "Last Call," Kanye West revealed that he initially wanted to give “Heart of The City” to DMX:

I unpacked all my shit. You know, we went to Ikea, I bought a bed, I put the bed together myself. I loaded up all my equipment, and the first beat I made was, uh, "Heart of the City." And Beans was still working on his album at that time, so I came up there to Baseline, it was Beans' birthday, matter of fact, and I played like seven beats. And, you know I guess he was in the zone, he already had the beats that he wanted, I had did "Nothing Like It" already at that time but then Jay walked in. I remember he had a Gucci bucket hat on. I remember it like, like it was yesterday. And Hiphop said, "Yo play that one beat for him." And I played "Heart of the City." And really I made "Heart of the City," I really wanted to give that beat to DMX.

"U Don't Know" | The Blueprint

Just Blaze told Complex that he didn't think the "U Don't Know" beat went hard enough:

We did the Blueprint in such a short period of time that we knew we had to get it out right away. Not that I rushed through 'U Don't Know.' We knew it was hot, but I wanted to do more with it.

I always wanted to make it bigger and better, and make the drums hit harder, and the bass more in your face. I always say to myself, 'I wish I got the opportunity to do that over.'

I sell ice in the winter, I sell fire in hell / I am a hustler baby, I sell water to a well.

"Izzo" | The Blueprint

Jay Z on Kanye West's flip of Jackson 5's "I Want You Back," as told by NPR:

My mom and pop had an extensive record collection. So Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder, and all those sounds and souls - and Motown etc., etc. - filled the house. So I was very familiar with the song when Kanye bought me the sample. It was just such an interesting and fresh take on it that I immediately was drawn to it.

"Excuse Me Miss" feat. Pharrell | The Blueprint 2

Jay Z and Beyonce had yet to make their relationship public, but it's pretty clear who he's talking about on "Excuse Me Miss." His lyrics tell the tale of a lothario switching gears to delicately court a woman for whom he'd give it all up.

Excuse me miss, what's your name? Can you come, hang with me? Possibly, can I take you out, tonight...

"December 4th" | The Black Album

The sultry and nostalgic stylings of the Chi-Lites made them one of the most celebrated R&B quartets of the '70s. Just Blaze introduced them to a new generation by flipping "That’s How Long" to create the backdrop for Hov's origin story and one of his best songs ever, "December 4th."

"99 Problems" | The Black Album

The legal implications of "99 Problems" were famously broken down in extreme depth by a law professor with regard to the fourth amendment (unreasonable search and seizure). Well, do you mind if I look around the car a little bit?

"Dirt Off Your Shoulder" | The Black Album

"Dirt Off Your Shoulder" peaked at #5, the best chart performance of any of Hov's featureless singles. But of course, he was accompanied on the track by Timbaland. Jay Z's blazed, astonished reaction to hearing the "Dirt off Your Shoulder" beat was immortalized in the documentary "Fade to Black." Watch below...

"Show Me What You Got" | Kingdom Come

"Show Me What You Got" is the best song on an otherwise lackluster Kingdom Come. It's basically a souped-up version Wreckx-n-Effect's 1992 hit "Rump Shaker." (Shoutout Just Blaze) Hov would later flesh out the song's celebration of extravagance on Watch the Throne.

"Hello Brooklyn" feat. Lil Wayne | American Gangster

American Gangster is widely considered the best album of Jay's post-Black Album "retirement." I've taken the liberty and highlighted a song that doesn't even appear on the album, but rather on Brooklyn Soul, Shuko and the Gunna's American Gangster-Marvin Gaye mashup project that represents the crowning achievement of the late-aughts mashup craze.

"DOA (Death of Autotune)" | The Blueprint 3

TB3 produced two massive singles in "Empire State of Mind" and "Run This Town." "DOA," the album's first single, drew criticism from Lil Wayne; ("Keep your auto-tune popping. Auto-tune ain't dead") T-Pain crashed Hov's performance of the song at Summer Jam.

As we all know, "DOA" was anything but a death knell for autotune. VIVA LA AUTOTUNE.