Jay-Z feels at home in New York

Jay-Z grew up in one of the poorest parts of Brooklyn in New York City. Today he is worth more than $150 million. He is best known for being a hip-hop singer. But he is also a businessman and owns a nightclub, a clothing line and a basketball team. And he’s married to another one of the world’s most successful stars, Beyoncé Knowles. Jay-Z has sold 30 million albums in the US alone. He released his 11th studio album, The Blueprint 3, in September.

“Empire State of Mind”, from The Blueprint 3

I’m the new Sinatra…
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There’s nothing you can’t do…
These streets will make you feel brand new

This is a song about Jay-Z’s home city, New York. Jay-Z called the song after New York’s tallest building, the Empire State Building, and talks about the city as a state of mind. He says New York is crazy like a jungle and that anything is possible there. He compares himself to US singer Frank Sinatra who sang one of the most famous songs ever about the city, “New York, New York”, first released in 1979.