Most Definitely Good

Mos Def burst into the rap game in 1998, creating two instant classic hip-hop albums (“Black on Both Sides,” “Blackstar”) right out of the gate. By 2002 he was hosting spoken word poetry slams on HBO’s “Def Poetry,” and in 2003 he experienced his first commercial box office success with the car-caper comedy “The Italian Job.”

Hip-hop purists will say Mos Def left the music game stranded after he attained commercial success as a movie star (he’s a leading man nowadays). And they are not exactly incorrect. His 2004 album “The New Danger” had its fair share of rock and blues laced with bright spots, but 2007’s “True Magic” was disappointedly ho-hum.

So can “The Ecstatic” do anything to change the rap game a decade-plus after “Blackstar”?

Nope, not at all. But after multiple listens, it’s actually very good – primarily because it doesn’t try to be anything except an  (exceptional) Mos Def record.

Everything that is great about Mos Def is on this record. His seemingly effortless, stream of consciousness flow, introspection and solid production by the likes of mega-producer Chad Hugo of The Neptunes round out the album.

Perhaps the best lyrical example of Mos Def’s prowess on the mic can be found on “Life in Marvelous Times:” The windows on the ave look like sad eyes / They fix their sharp gaze on you when you pass by / And if you dare to stand, you can see ’em cry / You can watch ’em scowl / Feel them prowl wall / And study every inch about you / Fast math measuring what you amount to.”

Another highlight at the end of the album is “History,” which features his “Blackstar” counterpart, Talib Kweli. The song seemingly pays homage to “Blackstar’s” rise in the rap game when Kweli raps “Ten years ago we made history so they missin’ us!” In a genre that is more or less 30 years old, the year 1998 seems like a couple epochs ago. It’s fun to hear “Blackstar” again in top form, and hopefully both artists have more collaborations for us to consume in the near future.

As far as mainstream hip-hop goes nowadays, “The Ecstatic” should not be missed.