![]() ![]() ![]() He knew what he had on his hands that night at the Mercer - a suitable comeback, something that could stand proudly in his body of work with some distance from the twin failings of 2006’s disastrous Kingdom Come and 2009’s shruggable The Blueprint 3. It was his last indisputably relevant musical moment, simultaneously a cocksure flaunt, a savvy brand extension, and a reclamation. Jay Z was 41 years old when he released Watch the Throne, his collaborative album with Kanye West. "Proof, I guess I got my swagger back, truth." Throughout the session, he’d adjust his Yankees snapback, then loose that little donkey chuckle at one of his own lines. Strangers stood and hooted and clutched each other during "Otis." Jay felt safe, listening to himself, drinking in the thirst trap he’d set. We huddled in a semicircle, a captive audience nibbling on bait. In Soho’s Mercer Hotel on a sweat-through-your-seersucker July evening, he had gathered 10 or so journalists to hear a new album. This was 2011 and no one had heard "Otis" before. Rocking back and forth in an Eames lounge chair, as he paused and unpaused "Otis," running back Otis Redding’s trill again and again: "It makes it easier, eeeeeasier to bear." Pause, rewind, play. The last time I saw Jay Z he was smiling. To commemorate, we’re celebrating with Jay Z Day. June 25 marks the 20th anniversary of Reasonable Doubt, Jay Z’s first album. ![]()
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