‘The Black Album’ is the culmination and completion of Jay Z's journey, which began with his classic debut release ‘Reasonable Doubt’. In the interim, Shawn Carter has become one of the most recognisable figures on the international scene as well as cementing his position as one of the world’s number one hip-hop artists. Jay-Z officially announced his retirement on September 24, 2003 at Madison Square Garden. The Garden is the site of the beginning of Jay- Z's victory lap. The concert, which sold out in four hours, was the first in a series of appearances in support of what will be his final album. A kind of rap patchwork, ‘The Black Album’ is made up of the results of collaborations with a selection of rap’s greatest producers. Naturally The Neptunes are on board for the ‘Encore’ track and there are production contributions from the likes of Eminem, Rick Rubin and DJ Quik.