There’s no whiting out Jay-Z’s indelible mark on mankind.
After all, he is the “only rapper to rewrite history without a pen,” as he rapped in “Death of Autotune.”
Jay-Z’s new album, The Blueprint III, was released on Sept. 8.
Jay-Z is the self-proclaimed Sinatra of our day, but now he has ascended to the low-oxygen levels of the stratosphere, surpassing every microphone fiend, dead or alive, that’s ever spit lyrical sonnets.
In my book, Jay-Z is more talented than Biggie or 2Pac, though I know my opinion might be disputed by hardcore rap followers.
Just how influential is Jay? In this day and age, where gun-wielding labels legally rob from musicians, would Sinatra have the power, prestige and money to broker his release from a record deal? He couldn’t even do it back then. In fact, Columbia Records dropped Sinatra in 1952.
On the other hand, Jay said, “I don’t get dropped. I drop the label,” alluding to his contract buyout with Def Jam Records.
Also consider Jay-Z’s unparalleled success. The genre-altering icon has sold at least 476,000 copies of The Blueprint III. Those numbers are nothing to scoff at, considering how the music industry has been victimized by a nation of eye-patched pirates milling around the computer to commandeer the next Jay song as soon as it’s leaked.
He’s also surpassed Elvis Presley for most No. 1 albums in Billboard 200 history, and he’s second only to The Beatles.
So, when Jay demonstratively bragged that he would, “crush Elvis in his blue suede shoes,” or that, for the umpteenth time, “this is Sinatra at the opera,” I figured that was just Gray-Z flexing his 40-year-old muscles, fending off the naysayers who often claim that hip-hop is “no country for old men.”
But then I started listening more closely. Maybe Jay doesn’t just live up to but actually outshines the aura and pop culture status of Sinatrian Legend.
Consider this —
First rule of Sinatrian Legend: You must be recognizable enough to be identified by one name.
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Jay has several pseudonyms by which he calls himself.
Prerequisite two: You must have mob ties, literally or figuratively.
On what is considered the “grand diss” track of all time, Jay systematically obliterated Mobb Deep rapper Prodigy when he performed “Takeover” at Summer Jam, showing photos of a young Prodigy dressed up like Michael Jackson.
Prerequisite three: You must be associated with an influential political figure, as Sinatra was with John F. Kennedy, and/or take political stands.
Jay’s done both. He recorded a tribute, “History” to President Barack Obama. He also took potshots at right-wing conservatives Bill O’Reilly and Rush Limbaugh in his futuristic composition, “Off That.”
Prerequisite four: Since no one dares take your musical throne, you attempt to crush incendiary challengers or would-be trendsetters. During the 50s, Sinatra vilified Elvis Presley’s thumping and pelvis-thrusting. As it relates to Presley, Sinatra said, “His kind of music is deplorable, a rancid smelling aphrodisiac.”
If nothing else, Jay shares Sinatra’s myopic viewpoint on music, evidenced by his rebuke of the hackneyed and commonly overused auto-tune.
Prerequisite five: Most importantly, you must rise to an echelon of timelessness.
No matter the generational gap, music lovers are enamored with Sinatra. That’s unlikely to change, locking Sinatra forever in the time vault. So, there might only be one Sinatra, but remember, Jay-Z’s not gold-plated. He’s certified platinum.
Jay-Z Concert
Nov. 19 7:30 p.m.
$125 – $229
Tingley Coliseum
300 San Pedro Dr. NE
