Somehow these young Afro-New Yorkers have evolved a rap version of urban African pop at its most life-affirming: the boasts low-key, the propaganda beyond hostility, the samples evoking everything tolerant and humane in recent black-music memory, this is music designed to comfort and sustain [REF].
The album has been considered a classic of hip hop's golden age and one of the most influential albums in hip hop [REF].