Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101 (Island Def Jam, 2005) by Young Jeezy

This is a solid debut album.  It depicted street life with catchy hooks, aggressive lyrics, solid beats, and commanding flows.  And even though Jeezy isn't necessarily a top tier lyricist, the emotion that he he puts into his delivery makes up for it.  The production is great (especially Mannie Fresh's "And Then What") and the collaborations with Jay-Z and Akon helped cross the album over and get it on the radar of the mainstream.

The People Vs. (Universal Motown, 2005) by Trick Trick

Trick Trick's debut album is descent.  "Welcome 2 Detroit," a collaboration with Eminem, is by far the album's standout.  Other highlights include the Proof and Eminem assisted "No More to Say" and the Jazze Pha produced "Attitude Adjustment."  However, some of the albums low points, most notably "My Name is Trick Trick," do weigh the album down a bit.  Overall, this is an average album that shows potential.  Fortunately he lived up to it, and Trick Trick showed noticeable improvement on his 2008 follow up, The Villian.

Street Wars: Roc-A-Fella is an Army (N/A, 2005) by DJ P. Cutta

DJ P. Cutta put together a solid collection of Roc-A-Fella battle records.  It starts strong with Jay-Z rhyming his "Dear Summer" rap over Black Rob's "Can I Live" instrumental and his classic "Takeover" record.  Not long after, the "Drop It Like It's Hot (Remix)" comes in and Jay gets the last word on R. Kelly.  Other Roc-A-Fella artists make notable contributions (especially Beanie Sigel).  However, as far as straight rhymes, no one tops Hov.  The last strong point on the tape is the infamous "Superugly."  It's good, but not great- especially when compared to Nas' "Ether."  Overall, this is a good compilation of diss songs courtesy of the house that Dame, Biggs, and Jay built.

12 Songs (American, 2005) by Neil Diamond

I know very little about Neil Diamond, but when I heard he had released a critically acclaimed album produced by Rick Rubin (one of my personal favorite producers ever)- I knew I had to check it out.  I really like Diamond's songwriting ability, and Rubin's stripped down, minimalist production can be found here as well.  I was presently surprised to see how tightly arranged things are and the melodies that are used make the music very affective.

Be (Geffen, 2005) by Common

Kanye West has referred to No I.D. as his mentor and West's production on Be is an example of the affect that No I.D. has had on him.  The jazzy beats, a few of which are also put together by J. Dilla, give Common a perfect opportunity to show his lyrical abilities.  One of my favorite rhymes ever is featured on this album.  In "Go" he says, "Freaky like the daughter of a Pastor, said I was bait for her to master/Little red corvette, now she was faster."

Chain Letter (Virgin, 2005) by Brooke Valentine

As of right now, Brooke Valentine is pretty much considered a one-hit wonder.  However, that is somewhat surprising considering the attention that this, her debut album, was given.  She is a gorgeous woman, but that sexiness brought about interesting content that not all other performers who are easy on the eyes talked about (if I'm not mistaken, she makes reference to poking holes in condoms at one point).  The track with Big Boi, "Girlfight" not surprisingly is solid.  But for all intents and purposes, at this moment, Chain Letter was the beginning and the end of Brooke Valentine's singing career (she now goes by B. Valentine).

Unpredictable (J, 2005) by Jamie Foxx

I was actually a little disappointed with Unpredictable.  Considering Jamie Foxx won an Oscar for playing Ray Charles, I expected more sophistication.  The actual singing is good and the production is solid.  But the content is every cliche that Hip-Hop and contemporary R&B had fed into for the past fifteen years.  In a nut shell, Ludacris' guest verse on "Unpredictable" is the album's best moment.

Duets: The Final Chapter (Bad Boy, 2005) by The Notorious B.I.G.

On paper, this isn't a terrible idea.  However, in reality, it is.  Remixing a lot Biggie of verses from his two classics over "current" beats with "current" rappers contributing new verses just doesn't work.  It sounds fake and forced.  The only saving graces to the album are the songs with unreleased material.  "Whatchu Want" with Jay-Z and "Living in Pain" (produced by Just Blaze) with 2Pac, Mary J. Blige, and Nas are both descent records.  But they still come nowhere near making up for the rest of the project.

Trill (Rap-A-Lot, 2005) by Bun B

For an album seemingly created out of necessity, this sounds a lot better than something that comes to fruition under those circumstances.  Put simply, at a time when Texas hip hop (i.e. Mike Jones, Slim Thug, Paul Wall) was getting national attention, Bun B proves why he's one of the best rappers from Texas ever.  Even with a large number of guest appearances for a solo album, Bun outshines them all.  The Ludacris assisted "Trill Recognize Trill" finds Bun and Mr. Bridges over one of the best instrumentals that I've ever heard from Lil Jon.  And  "Get Throwed" is an all-star cut with Pimp C, Jay-Z, Z-Ro and Young Jeezy.  However, the album's best moment is "The Story" wherein Bun gives a personal account of UGK's storied history- from their beginning to their mainstream break with Jay-Z to Pimp C's incarceration.  It's as personal as hip hop songs get and who better to record it than one of the game's most respected emcees.

The Emancipation of Mimi (Def Jam, 2005) by Mariah Carey

This is arguably the greatest comeback in modern pop music.  After a few years of less than stellar material and a public meltdown, Mariah came back and reclaimed her spot as the greatest voice in pop music since Whitney Houston.  The great thing about this album too is that it balances her hip hop and pop sensibilities to make for a very well-rounded release.  Nothing against the project's singles, but the album's highlight, in my opinion, is "Stay the Night."  It has a Motown-esque feel production-wise (it was produced by Kanye West) and Mariah's vocal abilities steal the show-like they often do.

Curtain Call: The Hits (Aftermath, 2005) by Eminem

Three of the four new tracks here are nothing spectacular at all.  "When I'm Gone" plays like an inferior sequel to "Mockingbird."  "Shake That", even with strong contributions from Nate Dogg, comes off as too silly and playful.  And "Fack" is just weird.  The one highlight of new material is the previously unreleased live version of "Stan" that Eminem performed with Elton John at The Grammys in 2001.  It was a legendary performance, moment in Eminem's career and event in hip hop history.  I'm glad it was finally released on record.  The only thing a recorded version of the performance doesn't capture is Mr. Mathers throwing his middle fingers in the air at the end.

The B. Coming (Dame Dash Music Group, 2005) by Beanie Sigel

"I sit alone in my 4 cornered room staring at hammers/Ready to go bananas/2 vests on me, 2 techs, extra clips on me/I know my mind ain't playing tricks on me/I ain't skitz homie, ain't no body drop a nick on me/It's like they tryna plot a set on me/ I hear this voice in the back of my mind like Mack tighten up your circle/Before they hurt you/Read they body language/85% communication non-verbal, 85% swear they know you/10% you know they story, man the other 5... time'll show you, just know you/Then pull they strings, you the puppet master/Fuck them other bastards/Man watch who you puffing after/Play your cards, go against all odds/Shoot for the moon, if you miss, you still amongst those stars"

-Beanie Sigel, "Feel It in the Air"

Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella, 2005) by Kanye West

"Yep, I got it from here 'ye damn!/The chain remains, the game is in tact/The name is mine, I'll take blame for that/The pressure's on, but guess who ain't gon' crack? [laughs]/Pardon me, I had to laugh at that/How could you falter when you're the rock of Gibraltar/I had to get of the boat so I could walk on water/This ain't no tall order, this is nothin' to me/Difficult takes a day, impossible takes a week/I do this in my sleep, I sold Kilos of coke, so I'm guessin' I can sell CD's/I'm not a businessman, I'm a business, man/Let me handle my buisness, damn!/Kanyeez you got me, Freeway and Foxy/YG, Teairra Mari, Petey watch me/Bleek could be one hit away his whole career/As long as I'm alive, he's a millionaire/And even if I die, he's in my will somewhere/So he can just kick back and chill somewhere, oh yeah/He don't even have to write rhymes/The Dynasty like my money last three lifetimes/Shirley Bassey was in the rear sayin' exactly/What I was sayin' practically me whole career/The diamond is forever, I been minin' this forever/Now the Louis Vuitton Don's timin' couldn't be better/People lined up to see the Titanic sinkin', instead we rose from the ashes like a phoenix/If you waitin' for the end of the dynasty sign, it'll seem like forever is a mighty long time/I'm young bitches [laughs]/Goodnight!" 

-Jay-Z, "Diamonds from Sierra Leone [Remix]"

The Documentary (Aftermath, 2005) by Game

The Documentary is one of the best albums of the 00s.  The production is top-notch, and Game single-handedly brought the West Coast back into the hip-hop spotlight after nearly a decade away from it.  Despite the feud with 50, one of the album's best tracks is  Game's collaboration with him on "Hate It or Love It."  Game is guilty of name dropping a a bit excessively throughout the album, however, particularly on the title track, he is very clever with it.  "Runnin'" has a surprisingly strong guest verse from Tony Yayo and Game correctly admits to Eminem killing him on his own shit  with "We Ain't."  Other highlights include "Dreams" and the confessional "Don't Need Your Love."  This album is one of the reasons why I still want G-Unit to get back together.

The Massacre (Shady/Aftermath, 2005) by 50 Cent

50's sophomore album seems like a natural extension of his debut.  And because of that, the album falls a bit flat.  The tough talk is all the same and so the artistry didn't seem to show much growth from before.  However, that doesn't mean it isn't entertaining.  My favorite lyric is in "Piggy Bank" wherein 50 dissects Fat Joe's success with Terror Squad's "Lean Back," "That fat n***a thought 'Lean Back' was 'In Da Club'/ My shit sold 11 Mill, his was a dud."  That line is crazy because "Lean Back" was a huge hit.  And yet, it didn't translate to record sales the way 50's smash single, "In Da Club" did.  Then there's "Ryder Music" where Fif claims to have slept with a lot of famous actresses, "Last year I woke up with good luck, damn it feels good/On the low, I done fucked like half of Hollywood."  I really like to beat for "Ski Mask Way" (R.I.P. Disco D) too and Dre's heavy drums on "Outta Control" still bang today.  This album isn't nearly as impressive as his earlier work, just evidence of who was unquestionably one of hip hop's biggest stars at the time.  Hate it or love it.

Searching for Jerry Garcia (Iron Fist, 2005) by Proof

"I put my soul through the ink/Bless a path with thoughts at my thoughts, before I grow extinct/My back-bone disowned by zone,Why roam? called home/But now on I'm all alone/Just Proof, no shine, no friends, just fans/No wonder my hands, tight where the Internet ends/I take back, most of the flack/The stress smokes, press me close to the crack/Like my pops, the ghost of my past/Thyme and Mudd, Jay Dee and Stuckey/Lately I'm lucky, I don't hate me to touch me/Maybe I'm ugly inside, but smiling to make it/I love y'all dawg, and that's how ever you take it/The fame is an illusion, I'm still losing/In this game, with the rules and../I feel clueless, the streets with the hills blue less/Cops knocking at the door, got me looking real foolish/But I still do this, like I love it, even though I thug it/Keep flossing lights in public, the subject y'all don't know/Stars won't grow, who would dream that scars would show?/Minus the MTV videos with slim/"Up in Smoke" D-12, and many shows with Em/It's still me dawg, no change for change/It's strange, when it pours it rains/I take it back.."

-Proof, "Kurt Kobain"

Never Scared (DreamWorks, 2005) by Chris Rock

Roll With the New is his most iconic set.  Bigger and Blacker is his most famous.  However, Never Scared is my favorite.  I saw him Rock perform this set live near Traverse City, MI years ago and I loved it.  It was the first time that I was old enough to be in touch enough with current events to be able to have educated opinions about the topical subject matter.  My favorite routines from this set are the ones about hip-hop, affirmative action, and wealth.  Rock is a funny comedian who writes very smart and insightful material.  In my opinion, Chris Rock is one of the best stand up comedians of all-time.