Common

Back in 1992, when he released his debut, Can I Borrow a Dollar?, under the name Common Sense, Rashid Lynn was already sage beyond his age. Since then, his work has grown only more confident. Finding Forever continues this trend so subtly that some listeners may see it as a holding action.

Pal Kanye West's production is displayed on eight songs, and if "U, Black Maybe" feels a bit too retro-moralistic, "The People," a wonderfully intricate track, and the Lily Allen featurette "Drivin' Me Wild" couldn't be tastier.

Common's latest is thoroughly adult hip-hop, and if that description sounds contradictory, it's only because so few of the genre's artists have been able to make this transition successfully. The music is of the moment, but it feels like forever.