“Shit, I made the Yankee hat more famous than a Yankee can.” — Jay-Z
Seriously, has anyone done more good for the New York Yankees in recent years than Jay-Z? I guess A Rod or Jeter or Mariano perhaps, but Jay has never been shy about it.
I’m glad Jay-Z has finally gotten on board and taken a stand to express his fondness for the always under-appreciated New York City. Someone had to.
This is especially true in his performance last night at the still sparkling new (albeit cracking) Yankee Stadium for Game 2 of the World Series between the Yanks and the Phillies. Decked out in full-on Yankees gear*, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys played “Empire State Of Mind” from his recent Blueprint 3 album.
Not sure why this song is getting so much hate; I actually (ACTUALLY?!) quite like it and Alicia Keys’s chorus hooks. It’s a decent single and comes off as pretty epic within this sports context and with New York as the backdrop.
*It’s funny to see the Yankees players like Mariano, Jeter and Joba grooving to the song, but even funnier to see that cut to the Phillies player nodding along too. Maybe that’s why they lost last night.
**UPDATE 11/8: According to MTV News, it looks like the duo couldn’t “contain their enthusiasm” of New York to just one song. Alicia Keys’ new album, The Element Of Freedom, will have a sequel of sorts to “Empire State Of Mind,” creatively titled “Empire State Of Mind Part 2,” and feature a whole new verse by Jay-Z.
Check out the official video, directed by Hype Williams, below:
UPDATE 12/16: Check out Alicia Keys performing her the song “Empire State Of Mind 2” on the Colbert Report, complete with Colbert’s brilliant shout out to the lesser-loved suburbs.
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Alicia Keys – Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down | ||||
|
||||