May 11, 2013

Jay-Z – $100 Bill

Artist: Jay-Z

Producer: Uncredited

Album: The Great Gatsby Soundtrack

Label: Roc Nation/Universal Music Group

A Little Party Never Hurt Nobody, the last single off the official soundtrack to The Great Gatsby, met an ambivalent reception in The DJBooth; the combination of 1920s jazz and contemporary club music was intriguing but, judging by the 2.2-star average rating from our readers, its disparate elements didn’t quite gel. Follow-up $100 Bill, on the other hand, is essentially a straight-up hip-hop record, with rap mogul Jay-Z (the soundtrack’s Executive Producer) at the helm. Over an unknown beatsmith’s shimmering synth arpeggios, stop-start percussion and Murder to Excellence-esque chants, Hova delivers braggadocious verses connected to Gatsby only via the general theme of moneyed decadence. Lest we forget, though, the cut is peppered with sampled dialogue from the film. Like what you’re hearing? You can look forward to more fresh tunes from a variety of heavyweight artists (including Hova’s better half) on the Great Gatsby soundtrack LP, scheduled to hit record stores and online retailers May 7.