Common, aka Common Sense, has long been a staple in the Hip Hop community for his ability to seemingly surprise with every effort…for better or worse.

Known through out his illustrious career as a “conscious rapper” Common started in the early 90’s as an underground staple in Chicago’s music scene. With the release of the critically acclaimed “Resurrection” in 1994 single “I Used to Love H.E.R”, now widely considered to be a Hip Hop classic, it seemed as if Common was poised to be a major success.

Then, after nearly a decade of dropping critically acclaimed albums to low sales his success finally came with the release of his sixth album. “Be”, which has since been touted as his comeback album, shocked everyone with a newly revived Common backed by fellow Chi-town rapper and producer Kanye West.

Since then Common has become a household name appearing in commercials, magazines, and more recently movies all to the delight of his fans old and new. So, when Kanye announced that after almost two years he had he and Com had finally begun production on “Finding Forever” ,Common’s much awaited seventh studio album, many people asked the question “what’s next?”.

Well, true to Common’s form “Finding Forever” is a big surprise.

Not because its bad, but because Common and Kanye did what a lot of people said they couldn’t. “Finding Forever” may just be the best Hip Hop album of the year thus far. “Finding Forever”, which Common says is to find a place in music where you can exist forever, follows much of the blueprint mapped out by it’s predecessors in that Common is really the only MC you hear on the album.

The only time you don’t hear him is on song hooks which have been expertly given to the likes of rapper/producer extraordinaire Kanye West, Black Eyed Peas front man Will.I.Am, British songstress Lilly Allen, R&B crooner’s D’Angelo and Bilal, and newcomer Dwele.

His Father Lonnie “Pops” Lynn, who has been on all seven of his son’s album, appears as well reading a poem on the last track.

Other than these people Common is the only voice you hear, and that’s a good thing seeing as how he never disappoints when it comes down lyrical content.

While listening to this album I began to realize that flow is very important element in it’s success. It’s not just Common’s flow which has, if you can believe it, maintained the unique lyrical candor that made him one of the best in the game.

It’s also the flow of the album itself. Every song transcends almost seamlessly into one another. From start to finish, “Intro” to “Forever Begins” each song compliments each other perfectly.

Not once did I find myself wanting to skip a song because the mood was never broken. “Intro”, a melodic instrumental laced with piano’s and harps, leads straight into “Start the Show”, a complete revamp of the Intro with a hard beat behind it, with ease. The whole album plays out this way. Each song somehow blends into one another without sounding the same. It is this structure that gives the album its replay value.

In retrospect the only thing I can say that was bad , and its not even really bad, about this album was that Kanye tried to switch up his style to tribute J Dilla, Common’s long time producer and friend, who died of Lupus in early 2006.

It was kind of a let down because as a fan of both Common and Kanye West I was excited to have the over the top theatrics of Kanye’s production skills matched with rhyme skills of Common.

Instead you get Kanye as J Dilla, and as most Hip Hop heads know there was only one J Dilla and you can tell when Dilla makes his posthumous appearance on the track “So Far To Go”.

But, with that said I have to admit that Mr. West has done a good job like he always does. Production is on point just as you’d expect from him. In fact, ten out of the twelve songs on “Finding Forever” are produced by Kanye. The other two are produced by J Dilla and Will.I.Am respectively.

In the end Common has done ultimately has surprised many by doing what they thought he couldn’t, and that was put out a CD that rivals the acclaim and success of “Be”.

True to the pattern of his career he has once again made people think twice when they think of him. If “Be” was his “comeback” then “Finding Forever” is his “never left”. In the words of the man himself “Back in ’94 they called me Chi town’s Nas/Now them people know I’m one of Chi Town gods”. It’s hard to argue with him with two classics back to back…then again if you’re Common it should be no surprise.