Jay-Z was one performer who came to St. Louis on March 19. (Djenan Kozic | Djenankozic.com)

In “My First Song,” hip-hop megastar Jay-Z starts off the track with two simple questions: “Y’all wanna know why he don’t stop? Y’all wanna know why he don’t flop?” I obviously related the lyrics to the artist himself: Jay-Z has yet to stop, and he has yet to flop. I’ve been an enormous H.O.V.A. fan ever since he first taught me about big pimpin’ in fifth grade. He is undoubtedly one of the greatest rappers of all time, already sitting upon a throne in the upper echelon of hip-hop royalty. But not until March 19, 2010—when the Blueprint 3 Tour arrived in St. Louis—did I truly appreciate the magic that is Jay-Z.

I’ve attended plenty of rap concerts, witnessing some emerging talents (from Kid Cudi to The Cool Kids) and some international superstars (from T.I. to Lil Wayne). But never has a hip-hop artist put on a show like I experienced at the Scottrade Center a few nights ago. Every single one of my senses transformed into a state of pure musical ecstasy. The relentless thumping of the bass streaking through the cement floors reached my feet all the way at the top of the arena. The sight of dazzling lights and video screens illuminated the entire crowd. And the sounds of lyrical brilliance over thunderous instrumentals consumed my ears. On March 19, Jay-Z brought music to another level, and thousands of adoring fans loved every second of it.

The concert kicked off with Trey Songz, a tremendous singer breaking into the upper ranks of R&B music. He set an incredible tone for the night, starting off with his first hit, “Can’t Help But Wait.” For the next 30 minutes, Songz performed so terrifically that I couldn’t believe he was only the first of three acts. He revved up the crowd with “Neighbors Know My Name,” “Successful” and “Invented Sex.” But it was his last track that crowned his performance. Trey called up a woman from the crowd, asked her to open her mouth and “say ahhhhh.” I think you know where this is going. He went on to pour champagne in her mouth, lick up the splash on her neck and perform his current smash hit, “Say Ahh.” The stage was set, literally and figuratively, for the thus-far incredible show to continue. But an interesting twist happened first.

After a short intermission, the crowd was impatiently waiting for the entrance of Young Jeezy, the second opener. As the clocks on the huge screens struck zero, tens of thousands of fans screamed in unison. But oddly, the next face we saw was not Jeezy’s. There, standing on the stage, was the one and only Jay-Z.

I was shocked at first. I had to assume that Young Jeezy was sick, too hoarse to perform or simply late for his set. But once the bass dropped for “Run This Town,” and Jay-Z raised the microphone to his chin, all worries went away. The beat for “On to the Next One” soon stormed through the speakers, and the crowd went insane. Never has any song at any concert brought me to dance so wildly. I was bumping so hard on the ground and against my friends next to me that I almost felt self-conscious for just a second. I then looked down at the crowd below me and saw that thousands of strangers were pulsating the same way. But after a couple songs, just when Jay-Z was really getting into the show, a surprise came out from backstage. Young Jeezy entered the room.

I was confused, wondering why Jeezy would come in the middle of Jay-Z’s set. While Young Jeezy put on a good show, he was clearly the worst of the three acts. Nevertheless, he successfully energized the crowd with his hits “Put On” and “Go Getta,” and he was definitely at his best for “My President.” Everyone in the arena belted out the chorus all together. After Jeezy’s set, Jay-Z came back to the fore. The rest was history.

Jay-Z has created so many hits that it seems unfair that he had to exclude some from his set. But what he performed was simply mind-blowing. H.O.V.A. electrified the crowd with all the recognizable radio sensations. The entire crowd tidied up all the dirty sleeves while jamming to “Dirt Off Your Shoulder.” We all shared our life issues to “99 Problems.” The backdrop transformed into downtown New York as Jay-Z whipped the crowd into a frenzy with “Empire State of Mind.” Just to mention a few others, “I Just Wanna Love U,” “Hard Knock Life,” “Big Pimpin’” and “Thank You” highlighted the set. Perhaps the feature of the show that I most appreciated as a true Jay-Z fan was his a cappella tangents. A few times after rapping a song with the instrumental, Jay-Z would finish the track with just his voice and the microphone. The only background music was the mass of fans’ screams. For those few instances, Jay-Z was not just a rapper; he was a poet. Very few, if anyone else, in the rap game can pull off such an intense and satisfying musical experience.

To finish the concert, Jay-Z had an intimate conversation with the crowd. He thanked everyone in attendance, calling out individuals far into the stadium. He even signed an album that a distant fan never stopped waving in the air. Jay-Z truly showed his appreciation for the audience, and we returned the love. His last song, “Encore,” was all too fitting, as he asked us all, “Do you want more?” Never have I heard an arena erupt into such deafening noise. We all begged for a second, third and fourth encore. Let’s all hope that Jay-Z continues to bring the same genius and passion to the rap game that hasn’t ceased since his debut 15 years ago. And to answer Jay-Z’s question, we will never stop wanting more.

(Lionel Hahn | MBR)

Michael Cera: Umm, yeah, I’m just really thankful, that umm, that girls are attracted to both my inability to enunciate and my feminine qualities.

Robert Pattinson: I just want to thank all of the vampire fans out there for making my paleness sexy instead of pasty.

Paris Hilton: I’m thankful for a roof over my head, a delicious turkey in my belly (with a side of mashed potatoes, of course) and last, but not least, my loving family.

Anything That Ever Starred Jane Lynch: Jane Lynch

Tracy Morgan: I’m thankful that, 4,000 years ago, when the Earth was flooded and the Pilgrims swam over from Scandinavia to the Rosetta Stone, the Native Americans taught them how to survive on spicy tuna rolls and popcorn.

Jon Hamm: Do you really need to ask?

(Lionel Hahn | HO)

Miley Cyrus: I was told by my publicist to thank Jay-Z, whatever that is.

Jay-Z: I’m thankful for NEW YOOOORRRKKK!

Kate Gosselin: This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful that I have one less mouth to feed.

Angelina Jolie: Africa.

Katherine Heigl: I’m thankful that I’ve been able to ascend from roles in
misogynistic films like “Knocked Up” to the pro-feminist “The Ugly Truth.”

Jay-Z attempts to continue his reign as one of the best in the rap genre with the release of his 11th solo album, “The Blueprint 3.” While his newest album is undoubtedly superior to that of most other rappers’, it is also one of his weakest. Let’s check into some of the more notable tracks, as some of them further cement Jay-Z’s greatness while others take him down a notch.

The album begins with “What We Talkin’ About,” a weak introduction that lowers the expectations for the entire record. Jay-Z tries to make the point that too many hip-hop artists rap about pointless, immaterial subjects. He asks aloud, “What we talkin’ bout, real s— or we talkin’ bout rhymes.” But later in the album, the listener realizes Jay-Z may contradict himself, sucking himself into a black hole where lyrics reveal no substance whatsoever.

“H.O.V.A.” redeems the album with a strong showing in the second track, “Thank You,” where he pays tribute to all the fans who love and adore him. A classically smooth Jay-Z beat complements the lyrics, as he acknowledges to his follower that “this is your song, not mine.”

The tracks “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)” and “Run This Town” were the first two official singles dropped off “The Blueprint 3,” becoming the album’s most popular radio songs. The beat steals the show in “D.O.A.,” as producer No I.D. makes one great instrumental. Jay-Z asks that hip-hop artists return to their roots, saying, “You rappers singing too much. Get back to rap, you T-Pain-ing too much.” In “Run This Town,” Jay-Z shows some of his worst lyrics on the entire album. Kanye West’s verse on the track displays much better flow, and his words trump Jay-Z’s. Rihanna’s addition on the hook adds some much-needed balance to the verses.

The fifth track, “Empire State of Mind,” showcases one of Jay-Z’s finest lyrical performances on the record. On this tribute to Jay-Z’s hometown, Alicia Keys belts out on the chorus that New York City is a “concrete jungle where dreams are made of. There’s nothing you can’t do…Let’s hear it for New York.” Jay-Z informs the listener of the dynamic nature of his home with the lines “The city of sin is a pity on a whim. Good girls gone bad, the cities filled with them.” The combination of Jay-Z’s passionate words and Keys’ beautiful voice makes this track the best on the album.

In “Real As It Gets,” Young Jeezy makes a solid performance, but the track is nothing special, and some of the lyrics are excessively superficial. The following song, “On to the Next One,” exhibits one of the catchier hooks and beats of the album, where Swizz Beats is always at his best. Jay-Z stays one step ahead of the rap game, as he “moved onward, the only direction, can’t be scared to fail, search and perfection, gotta keep it fresh even when we sexing, but don’t be mad at him when he’s on to the next one.” The next song, “Off That,” continues the theme of innovation, as Jay-Z proclaims that “whatever you about to discover, we off that.” Drake, the next big name in hip-hop, makes a solid contribution on the chorus, but his talent and voice beg for a verse to exhibit his solo talent.

The next few tracks are all very solid, but nothing spectacular is revealed. “A Star is Born” lays the foundation for the album’s title, as Jay-Z is “the blueprint, I’m like the map for ’em.” He gives a shoutout to all the other rappers coming in and out of the limelight and applauds their work but frequently acknowledges that as stars are born and others die, Jay-Z’s light remains in the sky. In “Venus vs. Mars,” Jay-Z explores the dichotomy between man and woman: “Shawty like Pepsi, me I’m the Coke man. Body like a Coke bottle, I crush it like a coke can.” Jay-Z also pulls off one of the more clever rhymes of the album: “We used to make out, kissing each other’s face off. Fell for the Ponzi scheme, damn shawty just Made-off.” Timbaland does what he does best and creates an A-plus instrumental on the track. In “Already Home,” Jay-Z has some strong verses and some great rhymes, as he is “in the hall already, on the wall already. I’m a work of art, I’m a Warhol. Already on another level, on another plane. Already H.O.V., I got my own lane.” Kid Cudi is solid on the chorus, but much like Drake in “Off That,” disappointingly lacks a strong verse to showcase his vocal prowess.

The song “Hate” has one of the best instrumentals on the album. Kanye West and Jay-Z trade off short verses, a nice change of pace from the standard alternating verse and chorus. In “Reminder,” Jay-Z lets no one forget that he is still the best even after 11 albums. Jay-Z puts his competition in its place, since “ain’t nothing changed for me except the year it is. I think I have to send you a reminder, here it is.”

In the following track, “So Ambitious,” Jay-Z sends a serious message, telling the listener to ignore the doubters and always live with ambition. Listening to his own advice, Jay-Z is “different. I can’t base what I’m gonna be off of what everybody isn’t. They don’t listen. Just whispering behind my back, no vision, lack of ambition.” With Pharrell on the chorus, this track is definitely one of the album’s best.

In “Young Forever,” Jay-Z shows a more spiritual and serious side to his skill. Well complemented by the excellent voice of Mr. Hudson on the hook, H.O.V.A. spits off the best lyrics of the entire album. He pleads with the listener to do something of true value in life, to “leave a mark that can’t erase neither space nor time, so when the director yells ‘Cut,’ I’ll be fine.” This song truly reveals Jay-Z’s eternal status as a rap legend: “Life is for living, not living uptight. See ya somewhere up in the sky. Fear not die, I’ll be alive for a million years. Bye bye, so not for legends. I’m forever young, my name shall survive.”

In “Jockin’,” Jay-Z definitely returns to rap’s roots as he samples off Run-DMC’s “Dumb Girl” to create an old-school beat that proves to be one of the better instrumentals on the album. The final song, a “D.O.A.” remix, completes the record. The new beat is definitely welcome since the original hit the scene months ago, but the same lyrics keep it from noteworthiness.

All in all, “The Blueprint 3” is a great album. But after looking at every track and taking them together as a whole, Jay-Z’s latest record pales in comparison to his superior albums. There is no track that energizes the listener for the rest of the album, and some of the lyrics are too simple and superficial. His 11th album cannot rival the original “Blueprint” or especially “The Black Album.” But Jay-Z still makes a strong showing, as “The Blueprint 3” further cements his place atop the rap industry.