Semester Presentation

Semester Presentation

ByAddam BellMusic 1010

The Man

Jay-Z was born on December 4th 1969 as Shawn Corey Carter in Brooklyn, New York. I don’t need to cover

the struggles that Jay-Z has endured as his music is an autobiography all by themselves detailing portions of his life on the street dealing crack and struggling to

make it as a rapper.

Although Jay-Z early on made many cameo appearances in songs he was not picked up by a record label, with no label even looking at picking him up Jay-Z, Damon Dash, and Kareem Biggs created Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995 with Jay-Z as the only artist. Jay-Z released his debut album in 1996 called Reasonable Doubt; the album hit the number 23 slot on the Billboard 200.

In 1997 Roc-A-Fella signed with Def Jam to as a there distributor which helped reach a larger audience. With Def Jam now distributing the records there became an opportunity to work with other producers that help put Jay-Z on the list of top rappers. Although many fans started to feel that Jay-Z had sold out, he still earned platinum status with his records multiple times.

As Jay-Z started to rise to the top he knew that it would not last forever, even though he has been in and out of retirement, Jay-Z started a club in New York called the 40/40 Club which is a classy sports bar, named after baseballs most prestigious achievements.

In 2010 Jay-Z released a memoir called Decoded and in 2011 a book about his business and investment strategies titled Empire State of Mind: How Jay-z went from Street Corner to Corner Office, Although the book is an unauthorized Biography of Jay-Z.

The Music

The first time I heard any of Jay-Z music was on the project Collision Course with Linkin Park. The Project contained six tracks with a song from each artist mixed together. I found the mix very fluent and felt was if the songs were written side by side. The energy from the songs is unbelievable and frankly addicting to listen too. The mix of rock, techno, and rap is a mix I would not have thought of as a good one.

After experiencing Collision Course I picked up the Blueprint 2 album. I love this album for the different styles of music added in. For example the song ’03 Bonnie and Clyde has string guitar mixed in with the beats of the drums that give it a smooth rhythm and flow that is not interrupted at all.

Off the Blueprint 3 album there is a song called Empire State of mind that featured Alicia Keys that has the common beat with piano that create a very interesting mix that I have a hard time explaining, it is a popular song so I am sure many have heard it. One thing about the song that kills me is that it sounds at some points that he needs to take a breath and let the music flow not force it. Off this same album there is another song called Young Forever, This is my favorite song by Jay-Z as it is what sounds like a remix of the song Forever Young with a twist that is amazing to listen to and I feel that everyone can relate to it in one form or another.

When Jay-Z is called the modern day Frank Sinatra I have a hard time agreeing as you can’t disregard blue eyes, but he does come close as an artist that continues to impress. Jay-Z is in my eyes one to remember.

Biography

• Birchmeier, Jason. "Jay-Z Biography." Allmusic (n.d.).

• Greenburg, Zack O'Malley. "Empire State of Mind: How Jay-Z Went from Street Corner to Corner Office." (2011).

• Jay-Z. Decoded. 2010.