Jay-Z's 'The Black Album' at 20: Reflecting on the Retirement That Wasn't

We know now that Jay-Z's decision to retire in 2003 came from a feeling of being burned out, which he admitted in a 2022 interview with Kevin Hart, but at the time there didn't appear to be much context behind the decision. All that was really known was that The Black Album was supposed to be his last. According to a September 2003 article ran by Entertainment Weekly, Jay-Z told the publication that he considered the album his "victory lap," and that the record was going to be accompanied by an all-black version of his S. Carter line of Reeboks, a farewell tour, and a memoir entitled The Black Book.

The Black Album was recorded between July and October 2003 in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, and Ferndale Michigan. For the project, Jigga worked with the likes of Timbaland, The Neptunes, Just Blaze, Kanye West and more, the behind the scenes of which can be seen in his 2004 documentary film Fade to Black (which is where we got that infamous video of his reaction to Timbaland playing the "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" instrumental). The Black Album was released on November 14th, 2003, roughly after wrapping production, and was lead by the singles "Change Clothes," "Dirt Off Your Shoulder," and "99 Problems."

Let's crunch the numbers here for a second—The Black Album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 463,000 copies sold in its first week. The Black Album is also Jay-Z's best-selling record of the 2000s, and went on to be certified 3x platinum by the RIAA. "Change Clothes," produced by The Neptunes reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Timbaland-produced "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" hit the No. 5 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, along with "99 Problems" reaching the top 30. The songs impact, however, extends far beyond its initial chart position as the saying "99 problems but (whatever/whoever) isn't one" still being said/used today.

A November 19th 2003 review by Rolling Stone best captures the initial music reviews from critics at the time of its release: "It’s rare for a rapper to make a goodbye album—generally the marketplace kicks you out of the game first. But Jay-Z is a rare rapper. The dominant figure of the post-Biggie and -Tupac era, he spit cool and witty with devastating flows, dropped classic albums, influenced MCs, changed pop culture and built a tall stack of dollars in the process.

Time will tell whether or not The Black Album is Jay-Z’s final release, but it certainly is a goodbye album. He’s settling scores and letting us deeper into his life than ever. He talks in depth about his parents, giving his mother, Gloria Carter, time to shine on the opening song, “December 4th.” On the Eminem-produced “Moment of Clarity,” he invokes the memory of his father, Adnes: “Pop died/Didn’t cry/Didn’t know him that well/Between him doin’ heroin and me doin’ crack sales.” But by the end of the verse, he has forgiven his late father and says to him, “Save a place in heaven till the next time we meet forever.”

The review continues: "The Black Album has a dream team of producers, including Kanye West (“Lucifer,” “Encore”), Just Blaze (“December 4th”), the Neptunes (“Change Clothes,” “Allure”) and Timbaland, whose obese club-banger “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” easily wins the prize for best beat, with Rick Rubin’s raucous, rock-drenched “99 Problems” a close second."

We'll leave it here with Jay-Z and Kid Rock's performance of "99 Problems" at the 2004 BET Awards.