An Open Letter to Jay-Z & Nas…
Dear Jay-Z & Nas.
You don’t know me, but I know you both very well.
Nas. We met once. You came to Toronto for an in-store at Tower Records, promoting It Was Written. We shook hands after you signed my Source magazine. You were on the cover.
Jay. We never met. But I’ve watched you perform at the Air Canada Center many times. I carelessly put my hands in the air and made motherfuckin’ noise at your demand. PAUSE!
Regardless, we’re not friends. This letter won’t go beyond a handful of people, hence my courage to be open. Even if you did read this, I wouldn’t be jeopardizing a possible record deal. You’d never sign me. But this isn’t about me.
I’m on the subway, riding to work with the rest of the zombies. The train ride is that final moment before the real world kicks in. When I can think about what I want to think about. Today I found myself restless. Bored. Thumbing through my iPod, not interested in listening to any of the names in my collection. My frustration reminded me of a conversation I had with a few friends the other day. A conversation 90 percent of your fans have had at one time in their lives. I mean real fans. ‘From the beginning’ fans. Not the ‘Change Clothes is my favorite Jay song’ fans. Not the ‘I can’t get enough of that Nas and Ginuwine collab” fans.
Fuck them!
I’m talking the ‘Remember when Cashmere Thoughts was Hip Hop Quotable?’ fans. The ‘Nas verse on Verbal Intercourse is one of the greatest verses of all time’ fans. Also a Hip Hop Quotable (if my memory serves me correctly). The fans that worshipped you without a Hard Knock Life. The fans that can spit NY State of Mind, word for word. The fans that were able to look past Change Clothes. The fans that don’t remember the name of your collab with Ginuwine. The fans that argued all day about who’s the best MC, and gave Big the bronze.
You get the picture.
Oh yeah. The conversation.
The conversation was long, but the premise was simple. Why doesn’t Jay-Z and Nas take a quick break from their lavish life styles. Contact DJ Premier. Lock up in a studio for two weeks and make an album together. It sounds simple, because it really is. Put egos away. Stay off the yachts (Beyonce’s promoting her new album anyways, Jay. You have a lot of alone time). Make a fucking classic. Yeah, I know. Blah blah Watch The Throne. Jay. Nobody wants Watch The Throne. Sure, people will listen to it. People will buy it. But nobody WANTS it! It’s a dope cash grab, I’ll give you that. But in the long run, it will mean nothing. It’ll do numbers for a few weeks. You’ll do a stadium tour and up the bank. But you really don’t need to anymore. You don’t need the money. Nas. You’re dropping half a mil’ a month on child support, so you’re getting cake from somewhere. Maybe that Ginuwine collab got more play than I was aware of.
This album is not a cash grab. This album will be life changing. It will change the culture. Your influence will put the Hip Hop I grew up on back on the radio. You dictate, Jay. You said it yourself. The world doesn’t need another club banger. The world needs what only you are capable of creating. Same goes for you, Nas. With Premo behind it, it will be the most talked about project in Hip Hop. You two can make it a cash cow!
Jay. Remember when you first announced The Black Album? I do. I remember it clearly. 10 songs, 10 producers. You paid money for ads. The producer names on a blank cassette cover. I got goosebumps. It was going to change the game. You didn’t deliver what you promised. Now, I don’t know the behind the scenes politics, and there were classics on that album, but you can’t promise what you promised then deliver Change Clothes. Sure, 99 Problems was incredible, but Justify My Thug?
I apologize if I’m sounding like a bitter backpacker. Not what I was going for. I just want you to know that you have the power to change the game with very little effort. 2 weeks. 10 songs. DJ Premier. No Ginuwine. Give us another classic. The celebrity lifestyle will be waiting for you 2 with open arms. They’ll even embrace this project. They would have no choice. It can’t be less than incredible.
I don’t know your personal situation with Premo. If there’s something personal that would stop this from happening, I apologize. I’m speaking as a fan. If there’s beef, anything can be squashed. You two know that first hand.
I’m a fan. A fan who spent a 40 minute train ride writing this on my BlackBerry. I’ll probably get clowned for this, but I don’t give a fuck. I wouldn’t write this if I didn’t care.
Here’s my stop. Time to go to work.
Derek
@dsisive
