Breaking Down Reflection Eternal's "Just Begun"

The holidays is usually symbolized by love. So, since I love music so much, I feel the need to admit two things.

1) I have never listened to Jay Electronica. It’s not that I have anything against the guy, I’ve just never been pressed to listen to his music.

2) I hate radio rips. It’s like bragging about getting a hand job. I’d much rather wait for the CDQ to appear (usually hours later) and have my initial listening experience be the real thing. That’s just me though. (No disrespect to my homie Matt who ripped the track show though. I know I’m definitely not in the majority with my sentiment.)

I was thinking the other day about how it’s been awhile since I heard any new music from J. Cole. I know (and appreciate) he’s the type to practice quality control with his product, but it’s 2009, as fans we’re spoiled and we make no qualms about it. Then I saw the homies from around the way dropped the radio rip of a new Reflection Eternal song which featured Cole, Electronica and Mos Def. Next thing I know it’s being dubbed as one of the better tracks of the year. Color me “intrigued.” Like clockwork, the CDQ dropped today and I was allowed to formulate my own decision about “Just Begun.” Instead of merely posting the record, hit the jump for a in depth breakdown of the record.

First things first, this Hi-Tek composition is so dope that I could have laid vocals over this gotten a pass. That said, when you put four of Hip-Hop’s more respected lyric layers on it the outcome was bound to be blue magic.

Talib: Batting leadoff, Kweli doesn’t disappoint. The same flow which has garnered him an adoring legion of followers is on full display here. He kicks some knowledge but also drops some witty punchlines just in case that’s you’re fix.

Quotable: “Whether it’s God Almighty, or the almighty dollar/ We follow the prophets (profits) like Islamics or the Dalai Lama…”

Jay: Again, this was my first time listening to the guy who has built a nice following for himself. First impressions, I can now see where the hype is from. He doesn’t strike me as a commercial commodity, but I’ll be damned if he doesn’t rip this from start to finish.

Quotable: “I’m in New York now, like Akeem and Semi was/ Tryin to get the lobby door open from a semi-buzz…”

J. Cole: This guy is a problem in every sense of the word. The world finally opened their eyes with The Warm Up. Jay saw the potential and threw him on his album and brought him along on tour. He laid arguably the verse of the year on Wale‘s Attention Deficit. I say all that to say this. People are still sleeping on the “lil’ nigga from the ‘Ville.”

Quotable: “Niggas say they sick but when they rock they don’t sneeze/ Like that nigga on the block waving his Glock but won’t squeeze/ Please…”

Mos Def: Truth be told, Mos had quite the task in front of him following the first three. While he may fall behind the first three, the quotable below definitely is a “real” quote. Let it marinate.

Quotable: “Pure power don’t power trip…”

All that said, I’m not here to rank who had the hottest verse on the record. I’ll let everyone else decide that. I’m just appreciative of the fact I was able to hear such a quality track with four noteworthy MC’s. Christmas truly did come a few hours early.

DL: Reflection Eternal feat. Jay Electronica, J. Cole & Mos Def–Just Begun (Credit: Blacksmith)

If you’re a fan of this, be sure to check out the an exclusive mixtape with the two and Statik Selektah featuring new cuts, classics and unreleased records dropping New Years Eve. The album Revolutions Per Minute drops in February 2010.