Powered by a finely cut sample of Late Nights and Heartbreak by Hannah Williams and The Affirmations, the title track is Jay-Z at his most personal.
"Go play the quarters where the butlers be", he states over the understated funk production of The Story of OJ. "Imma play the corners where the hustlers be."
In the gospel tinged Family Feud he makes the case for black-owned businesses: "What's better than one billionaire? Two/ Especially if they're from the same hue as you/ Y'all stop me when I stop tellin' the truth."
The Jay Z of old hasn't totally left the building, however. That vintage braggadocios spirit is in full display in the swaggering album highlight Bam, featuring Damian Marley.
Such maturity is perhaps the reason for 4:44 being Jay Z's best album since 2003's The Black Album. The even handedness here allows all his insights to penetrate and ultimately shows Jay-Z is growing old gracefully.
