While Jay-Z failed to debut new music at the Basquiat x Warhol benefit concert in Paris last week, the father-of-three wow’d the crowd with plenty of songs from his library and also unveiled an alternate version of his Alicia Keys assisted New York anthem Empire State Of Mind.
Though Jay-Z’s lyrics were unchanged, the new version replaces the original chorus, beat and piano loop with Gill Scott-Heron’s ‘New York Is Killing Me.’
‘Don’t you know, don’t you know, New York was killing me/Yeah I was standing there and dying, and New York was killing me,’ sings Gill Scott. ‘Soon I can leave and start over and go back home to Jackson Tennessee.’
After clips of the performance hit the Internet, fans requested for the version to be released and Jay has obliged. The rapper and Roc Nation on Sunday night made the song available on streaming services under the name ‘New York (Concept De Paris).’ You can listen to it below.
The OG “Empire State Of Mind” can be found on Jay-Z’s 11th album The Blueprint 3. The track featuring vocals from Alicia Keys peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks, becoming Jay’s first number one single on the chart as a lead artist.
The song, which includes a sample of The Moments’ Love On A Two-Way Street also won Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 2010 Grammys.
During his concert in France, which was attended by Rihanna, Beyoncé, A$AP Rocky, Blue Ivy, Pharrell and others, Jay-Z also performed “Encore,” “Can’t Knock The Hustle,” “Roc Boys,” Thank You, “FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt,” “N-ggas In Paris,” No Church in the Wild” and many other hits.
