Song: “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys
Link: https://youtu.be/GPeOkzadr5g
Released in 2009, this hip-hop song became a phenomenon for the Big Apple. Featuring Alicia Keys, it is a track on Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3 album. The reason I chose this song is because anytime I think of New York City, the chorus of the song in Alicia Keys’ voice comes to my head. It’s message is clear: if you want to make something of yourself, New York City is the place to do it. Jay-Z being the main artist on the song, takes the audience on a trip through New York and guides us through the streets telling us the significance that each area has or what each person he mentions, has done. He talks about monuments like the World Trade Center and how it will always live with us, as well as the Knicks, and people like Frank Sinatra. This map to greatness is something that I’ve rarely experienced in any other song. Looking at some of the lyrics we can see the certain landmarks that Jay-Z is trying to represent.
In the first verse itself, he moves from Brooklyn to Tribeca and name drops DeNiro and Sinatra, to emphasize that if he can make it in New York, he can make it anywhere.
Yeah, I’m up at Brooklyn, now I’m down in Tribeca
Right next to DeNiro, but I’ll be hood forever
I’m the new Sinatra and since I made it here
I can make it anywhere, yeah, they love me everywhere
The chorus is what people mainly remember about the song actually. It’s lyrics are inspiring and really connect with the world of NYC and what it has to offer.
In New York
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There’s nothing you can’t do
Now you’re in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you
Let’s hear it for New York, New York, New York
I think the reason this song became such an iconic sound is because of these well-known lyrics. Although Jay-Z does a great job of specifically describing exactly what the city entails, it is Alicia’s part that captures the essence of what the city is really about. NYC helps give people a fresh start and it inspires people to chase after their dreams. NYC is the one city where your dreams will not be limited. Alicia made sure to capture that in the chorus of the song. It did so well, she even made a Part 2!
Although I have heard this song many times before, I had not really known all the lyrics until watching the lyric video for “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys posted by Rehmat. After reading all the lyrics, I agree that this song takes the audience on a Jay-Z guided tour of New York City and returns to Alicia Keys for an optimistic chorus about the unlimited potential of the city. As it turns out, both Jay-Z and Alicia are from New York. In fact, Jay-Z’s stage name was picked because of the J and Z subway lines of his hometown in Brooklyn. This was a great song choice and I did not know that they made a part 2!
I thought you did a great job explaining the meaning behind the lyrics of “The Empire State of Mind.” This song is actually my favorite song about New York because it is so inspiring. However, though I have heard the song numerous times before, I had not actually gone through all of the lyrics and interpreted them. It turns out that the song has a lot more meaning that I had originally thought. I actually really love the part when Jay-Z alludes to the different parts within New York City. I thought I found that extremely relatable because I’ve grown up in the city walking through all of the streets and monuments Jay-Z mentions. I especially love Alicia Key’s part because it just wraps up the feeling of being in New York into a chorus line. The “big lights” definitely do inspire me.
I believe Rehmat’s interpretation of the 2009 hit single Empire State of Mind was very comprehensive. In her analysis, she talks of how the song, by Jay Z and Alicia Keys, highlights the awe-inspiring atmosphere of New York City. Lyric by lyric, she dissects the meaning of the song to convey the idea that anything is possible in the city that never sleeps. In one line, Jay Z raps: “I’m the new Sinatra, and since I made it here, I can make it anywhere.” Rehmat suggests this line is said to emphasize the enormous opportunity which exists in New York City. However, I wish to further expand the analysis of this line by suggesting that Jay Z’s comparison between himself and Sinatra ties into this course’s theme “New York City Characters and Lifestyles.” Frank Sinatra was a White, Roman Catholic that released his hit “New York, New York” in the 1980s, which praised the city for its aura of possibility. Jay Z, though, is an African American man who, despite the racial barriers he has had to conquer, still believes in the New York dream. It is noteworthy that two men, who faced difference challenges and came from different backgrounds, still believe in one vision.