Jay-Z (feat. Pharrell) - I Know

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: This blog and its writer cannot be held responsible for any terrible 99 Problems puns within the blogs contents or in any future Track Genius post.

Jay-Z has a ton of hits. From 99 Problems, to Big Pimpin', to Hard Knock Life, to Empire State of Mind to... I could go on for a really long time, but you get the idea. He has 3 indisputably classic albums as well, in the forms of Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint, & The Black Album. Really what I'm getting at here is that any artist of the magnitude that Jay-Z is at will have songs and albums that don't get as much love or acclaim as their work that is either widely loved, or indie fodder for blogs nobody cares about (like this one). In Jay-Z's case, the album that would fit into this category would definitely be American Gangster, arguably next on the list of his best albums after the aforementioned classics. Not that American Gangster didn't have its share of hits and well respected songs. "Roc Boys (And The Winner Is...)" might be the word "party" concentrated, packaged, and put into a song, and there are other cuts as well like "Sweet" which has this whole "Parliament Funkadelic/Jimmy Hendrix jamming in his dressing room" thing going on while Jay waxes poetic about how his life was a struggle but shit is all good now nah'mean?

Only Jay-Z could own less than 1% of an NBA team and be more associated with it than any member, owner, or player in the organization.

Yet, there can only be one. One track by the Jigga man that is so underrated, and so awesome, that it befuddles me to the point that I use the word "befuddle". The best track off of American Gangster, in my incredibly fucking important opinion, is definitely "I Know".

I know what you're thinking. "'I Know'? I know that was a good single off the album though! I know you're joking me about 'I Know'" Now, I know "I Know" got a little shine when it came out.... OK lemme stop that.... but since then it has fallen out of the good graces of the masses. If we think of the Jay-Z canon, it's nowhere mentioned as often as it should be. Jay-Z, if anything, has always been seen as one of the GOAT's because of his wide appeal and his ability to be malleable in an industry that changes more in a month than some do in decades. The perfect meeting point of gangster and classy millionaire, of intelligence and ignorance, and of underground respect and pop appeal. He's one of the few timeless artists we have left. Hell even Bob Dylan & Michael Jackson fell off eventually. But that's more succinctly postulated by Ezra Koenig.

In an alternate universe, the modern global economy and social caste system is based on how many pictures with Terry Richardson an individual has. This is... "TERRYLAND".

"I Know" is the best example of all these qualities mentioned. The perfect concoction of the pop pervasiveness that gets the girls sweaty in the club, the street intelligence that tingles the loins of males (mostly white teenagers), and the brilliant wordplay respected by both the self-proclaimed "hip-hop head" and the low level Huffington Post journalist who writes op-eds on insider corruption in Jockeying and thinks there's nothing wrong with being white and completely serious whilst calling his yuppie friend Maxwell "my nigga".

The beat is by industry heavyweight Pharrell (pictured above with photography space lord Terry Richardson), 1/2 of the hitmaking duo "The Neptunes" along with Chad Hugo, and 1/3 of the eclectic hip-pop band "N.E.R.D" with Hugo and Teddy Riley. He's BFF's with your favorite artists and most of your favorite songs are by him in one incarnation or another, and it's either very apparent or you'd never even know. Regardless, the instrumental can't be described by any other word than infectious. It just seeps into your soul and your brainwaves with its catchy drums and snap pattern, not to mention the amazing synth keys carrying both melody and harmony. Shit is mad dope. And then Jay-Z starts spitting...

How could you leave me?
I thought that you needed me
When the world got too much and you pleaded with me
Who helped you immediately?
How speedy of me
How could you deny me so vehemently?
Now your body is shaking, trying to free it of me
And your soul is in control, trying to lead it from me
And your heart no longer, pledge allegiance to me
Damn I'm missing the days, when you needed the D

The entire song is a poetic conceit for a simultaneous addicition and love for a man, drugs, and music. It's so brilliant I won't even try to explain it, it's really something that dawns upon you in a beautiful epiphany over time. The more you listen to it, the more you understand and have those "OHHHH" moments when you hear a new layer to a line you thought you understood so well.

Me when I listen to the verses and hear the beat.

So, an amazing beat and brilliant mastery of the art of rap combine for one of HOV's best, and most underrated tracks. What more could you really ask for? Well! This guy uploaded a drum freestyle to the song on his Youtube channel, and he's feelin' himself a little too much, but it is pretty awesome. Really, that's about it. Maybe I'm overrating the song a bit much, but it truly is a hidden gem of Jay-Z's catalog, and I hope you like it as much as I do.

As always, enjoy and spread the love. Peace.