JAY-Z

Released: June 30, 2017

Songwriter: Nina Simone Gene Redd Jimmy Crosby No I.D. JAY-Z

Producer: No I.D.

[Intro: Nina Simone]
Skin is, skin, is
Skin black, my skin is black
My, black, my skin is yellow

[Chorus]
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga
I like that second one
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga

[Interlude]
O.J. like, "I'm not black, I'm O.J." …okay

[Verse 1]
House nigga, don't fuck with me
I'm a field nigga, with shined cutlery
Gold-plated quarters, where the butlers be
I'ma play the corners where the hustlers be
I told him, "Please don't die over the neighborhood
That your mama rentin'
Take your drug money and buy the neighborhood
That's how you rinse it"
I bought every V12 engine
Wish I could take it back to the beginnin'
I coulda bought a place in DUMBO before it was DUMBO
For like 2 million
That same building today is worth 25 million
Guess how I'm feelin'? Dumbo

[Chorus]
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga

[Interlude]
You wanna know what's more important than throwin' away money at a strip club? Credit
You ever wonder why Jewish people own all the property in America? This how they did it

[Verse 2]
Financial freedom my only hope
Fuck livin' rich and dyin' broke
I bought some artwork for one million
Two years later, that shit worth two million
Few years later, that shit worth eight million
I can't wait to give this shit to my children
Y'all think it's bougie, I'm like, it's fine
But I'm tryin' to give you a million dollars worth of game for $9.99
I turned that 2 to a 4, 4 to an 8
I turned my life into a nice first week release date
Y'all out here still takin' advances, huh?
Me and my niggas takin' real chances, uh
Y'all on the 'Gram holdin' money to your ear
There's a disconnect, we don't call that money over here, yeah

[Chorus]
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga
Light nigga, dark nigga, faux nigga, real nigga
Rich nigga, poor nigga, house nigga, field nigga
Still nigga, still nigga

Having sold over 100 million records worldwide, and holding the solo artist record of 14 Billboard 200 #1 albums, Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter is possibly the most talented, accomplished and respected rapper of all-time. He has released 13 studio albums and five collaborative albums over his 30-year career.

Three of his albums, Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint, and The Black Album, are considered landmarks in the genre, with all of them featured in Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Hov has won 21 Grammy Awards from sixty-four nominations, making him the 10th most awarded artist of all-time.

Legendary for never writing down his lyrics, JAY-Z’s flow is considered one of the greatest to grace the genre, his wordplay and metaphorical ability is unmatched, and his live shows push the envelope of what it means to be a hip hop artist. His MTV Unplugged appearance introduced the idea of having a full band (The Roots) backing up a hip hop artist at major concerts, and during his 2004 documentary Fade to Black he doubled down, selling out Madison Square Garden (in mere minutes) while featuring an enormous live band performance.

more tracks from the album

4:44

From the albums

4:44 (2017)
2018 GRAMMY® Nominees (2018)

JAY-Z popular songs

The Story of O.J.JAY-Z

JAY-Z

4:44