Jay Electronica

Released: April 25, 2008

Songwriter: Jay Electronica

Producer: J Dilla

[Intro]
Executioner: Do you have anything to say?
Alfred Borden: ...Abracadabra

[Verse 1]
Wake up to your grave it's the reminder on the clock
And those fleeting bits of satisfaction, turn to afterthoughts
But if you say the magic word
You could call back all the birds
And see that fire in the sky, burn everything back to life
You don't have to sleep to dream and live in paradise
Abracadabra, are you watchin' closely?
Can you feel the dawn approaching?

[Break]
Jailer: [Mockingly] Why can't you undo real locks, Professor?
Alfred Borden: Maybe I'm just biding my time. Maybe one day I'll open my hand, get your attention, and ask... 'Are you watching closely?' Maybe a magic word or two. And then I'll be... gone
Jailer: [Laughing] How'd you get so famous then, eh?
Alfred Borden: ...Magic
Jailer: Oy! Borden get back here!
Prisoners: [Laugh & applaud]
Alfred Borden: Thank you!
Jailer: Shut up! ...Where's the bloody key?!

[Verse 2]
I overheard niggas saying Jay was on the verge
He could make Rumsfeld resign with rhymes he never heard
Commune with the birds
And can manipulate matter with the usage of words
Throwin' dice on the curb
I'm the best and the freshest with the written text, fuck what you heard
It's the, metaphysical, dolby digital
Any Joe'll tell you, the flow's so pivotal
Every word's literal
Each diatribe is sort of like an interview
Come get an inner view
Right past the man and the myth to the mineral
I was born uptown a mile from the river view
Look, I'm a simple man, ya understand?
Masterin' my temple man, tryin' to expand
But when they think you simple, man
They'll try to play you out like you a simpleton
See what I'm sayin'
Niggas want pain not mercy
I'm writin' in my Moleskine on the train to Canarsie
Stand clear of the closin' doors
The people are in constant fear of a Trojan War
The vehicle that's supposed to free us is just an whore
I gotta call 'em like I see 'em
Even if it means they'll sanction my per diem
The angels will thank me in the streets if I see 'em
Sayin', there he go but I wouldn't wanna be him
Holdin' up a three and reppin' for New Orleans
Let us begin

Timothy Elpadaro Thedford (born September 19, 1976), better known by his stage name Jay Electronica, is an American rapper and record producer. He is from New Orleans, Louisiana and currently based in London, United Kingdom.

Electronica first gained significant attention after the release of the musical composition Act Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge), which was made available on a MySpace page in 2007 and has been called a “timeless classic” by Vice Magazine. It is fifteen continuous minutes of music, without drums, built from Jon Brion’s soundtrack to the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In late 2009 he released two singles, both produced by Just Blaze, “Exhibit A” and “Exhibit C”, the latter of which won a Sucker Free Summit Award for Instant Classic. In November 2010, it was announced Jay Electronica had signed to hip hop mogul Jay Z’s Roc Nation record label.

More than a decade after his last project, What the Fuck is a Jay Electronica, and almost exactly eight years to the DAY after he reportedly finished and turned in his album, Jay Electronica finally released his debut studio album A Written Testimony on March 13, 2020. The album features Jay-Z on eight of its ten tracks, leading some to label it a collab album between the two Jays. The-Dream also makes three appearances, and even Travis Scott makes a surprising appearance on “The Blinding.”

more tracks from the album

Attack of the Clones

From the albums

Attack of the Clones (2008)
What The F*ck Is A Jay Electronica (2009)

Jay Electronica popular songs

AbracadabraJay Electronica

Jay Electronica

Attack of the Clones