BY BANDINI / MARCH 12, 2018

Throughout the ages, many DJs have created mixtapes that artfully honor JAY-Z’s vast catalog. In November, MICK and Chi Duly imagined a world in audio where Jay and DJ Premier expanded upon their stellar 1990s collaborative chemistry. The resulting 7:18 is a one-hour crowd-pleaser, placing new and old Hov’ verses against Preemo beats that belong to other MCs. Almost a decade prior, MICK (as “Mick Boogie”) made a surgical Shawn Carter and Coldplay mash-up, Viva La Hova, at a point when the two superstar acts were already working together. DJ Green Lantern, one of Jay’s past tour DJs, released his Creative Control back in 2010, showcasing the veteran mixtape master’s production and re-imagining of song guests.

DJ Rondevu is next up to bat. Das EFX’s DJ for more than 15 years, he makes something special in 5:55: Testament Of Hova. Like MICK and Chi, Rondevu plays into the theme of last year’s 4:44, without limiting the verses to that album. Instead, the fellow Brooklyn, New York native goes far and wide through the S-Dot catalog to find razor-sharp rhymes. He pairs excerpts from the likes of “Hola’ Hovito,” “Where I’m From,” and “Jigga That Ni**a” against a series of beats from the likes of Ras Kass, Kurious Jorge, Rakim, Masta Ace Incorporated, and plenty more.

However, 5:55 is not a two-turntable mash-up or simple “what-if” blending. Rather, DJ Rondevu reconstructs entire songs. Jay verses are carefully selected and picked a la carte as single 16-bar samplings. In some cases, such as “My World,” the mix adds Jay onto somebody else’s record altogether. Here, Marcy’s native son drops some “Neva Change” wisdom in for onetime Payday Records label-mate O.C. and his 1997 single. Cleverly during this mix, Rondevu goes to the effort of taking one of Jay’s many “R-O-C” shout-outs, and cutting off the “R.” The effect makes it appear like an authentic nod to a real-life friend and past collaborator. That desire to go the extra mile shows up regularly on this one-hour mix.