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I could predict the future like Cleo the psychic JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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This line was written prior to the 2002 Federal Trade Commission case against the promoters of Youree Dell “Miss Cleo” Harris

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And you got a couple of beans and you don't have a clue?
Your situation is bleek, I'ma keep it real 'cause
Fuckin' with me, you gotta drop a mil'
'Cause if you gonna cop somethin', you gotta cop for real JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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This section puns on the names of Jay-affiliated artists, most of whom were signed to Roc-A-Fella at the time – Beanie Sigel, DJ Clue, Memphis Bleek, Rell, Amil, and Pharrell Williams of the The Neptunes. The pun on Amil’s name is particularly notable, since Amil was dropped from the Roc-A-Fella label recently prior to the release of The Blueprint.

This section is a direct answer to Nas, who used this same device to insult Jay on a then-current freestyle. The relevant lines are

Rip the Freeway, shoot through Memphis with Moneybags
Go to Philly, order cheese steak, and eat Beans fast

The “Amil/a mill” pun works further as a response to Nas to show a million dollars before trying to mess with Jay.

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5 years

Didn’t Jay also bet Nas a million dollars to get in the ring and box for charity or something? Nas said that he didn’t have the bread to put up if I’m not mistaken.

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E3d3cbf8753e67ec9940d73459486b72

1,895

6 years

Your situation is bleak *

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0b9a5c7c722b6f72948e1e9bfdeca176

106,631

9 years

This was Jay’s clever way of letting the world know that Amil was officially out the fam.

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Truth
9 years

thats a populor rumour but its not correct, genius got it right.

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Tom
9 years

“Drop Amil”…. “Drop a mill” refers to former Roc-a-Fella recording artist that was released.

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Sue me? Fuck you, what's a couple dollars to me? JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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A great line – he insults the would-be litigants by saying that even if they won, it wouldn’t faze him at all.

Lance Un Rivera did sue Jay Z over the stabbing but later settled out of court to an undisclosed amount. Around that same time, there was a lady that sued jay Z for her vocals on Izzo(H.O.V.A).

This is most likely a direct shot at those two incidents since he’s known to address any grievances he has or incidents that are reported in the media through his music releases.

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Charges don't stick to dude, he's Teflon JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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Teflon, or polytetrafluoroethylene, is used as a non-stick coating for cookware. Thus, charges will not “stick” to Jay, just like food will not stick to Teflon. This appellation was originally put on Mafia head John “The Teflon Don” Gotti, because the majority of attempts to convict him resulted in either a hung jury or an acquittal.

Also note that teflon is an almost ‘perfect’ electrical insulator (like glass) and therefore his use of the word ‘charges’ is correct in this context as well

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F1271161c2d2566796d1e7ce07cbed9a

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3 years

This could also be a reference to the much-reported legal troubles that Teflon and their parent company (DuPont) were facing around the time of this song.

Teflon/DuPont were famously faced with multiple lawsuits for manufacturing products containing the harmful and cancer-causing compound named PFOA. Despite a court order being settled against Teflon’s favour in the year 2000, the company still avoided major punishment for the whole ordeal and survived with their reputation intact – just like Jay-Z did following his criminal charges for illegal gun possession and stabbing a man.

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7c78efdc084718b5e714e818faf91fe9

368

7 years

What does charges have to do with glass?

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Your reign on the top was shorter than leprechauns JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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This is an interpolation of a line from the Biggie Smalls song “Kick in the Door” (Biggie was addressing Nas too)

Your reign on the top was short like leprechauns

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Ead48a980ef030ed8d4a9662734ef3bc

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9 months

part 68 of jay-z stealing biggie lyrics

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I, Young 'Vito, voice of the young people
Mouthpiece for hustlers, I'm back, motherfuckers JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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Young Hov is one of Jay’s names, and in 2001, both on this album’s “Hola Hovito” and his verse on the Beanie Sigel song “Think It’s a Game”, he introduced “Hovito” (basically Spanish for Young Hov) as another. The name is likely a portmanteau of his nickname Hova (from Jay-Hova, the “God MC”) and Vito Corleone of the Godfather movies

Vito Coreleone was known as a “man of the people” in the Godfather movie. That’s how he made his way up and Jay is saying the same about himself, he’s the voice of the young people since he comes from the streets and is aware of how the teens live. After all, he was one of them.

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Here's a couple of jewels to help you get through your bid in prison
A ribbon in the sky, keep your head high JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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If you are a street hustler, it’s only two places you end up either dead or in jail. Jay has seen lots of people close to him being sent to prison; his music will serve as inspiration to them to get through their time in jail.

“Ribbon in the Sky” is a slightly cheesy Stevie Wonder ballad released in 1982.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zO2-kIqsGL4

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6 years

Ribbon is flying free in the sky and therefore can be interpreted as a sign of hope for prisoners , JAY-Z hopes the CD provides entertainement and inspiration for locked up prisoners.

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Gather 'round, hustlers, that's if you still livin'
And get on down to that ol' Jig rhythm JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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No matter how popular Jay may become, he still makes his music for the hustlers in the streets.

The first two lines of this song are a shoutout to Slick Rick’s “The Ruler’s Back”, to which this song is an extended tribute:

Gather ‘round party goers as if your still livin
And get on down to the old Slick rhythm

In addition, Jay’s version of these two lines were sampled by Jay’s “little brother” Kanye West on his song “Good Morning”

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Mike
4 years

Gather ‘round party goers as if your still livin
And get on down to the old Slick rhythm

Your? YOU’RE

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I wanna thank everybody out there for they purchase
We surely appreciate it (Woo) JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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Jay has a habit of talking to the listener who has just purchased the CD on the first track of his albums. See “Hova Song” on Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter

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6 years

It’s funny listening to this after trying to download this album for free for over a year, and just purchasing it yesterday. You’re welcome Hov

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Ladies and gentlemen, H to the izz-O (H to the izz-O) JAY-Z – The Ruler's Back
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“Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” was the first single off of this record, released the summer before the album. “Izzo” is the E-40-popularized way of saying the letter O. Thus, Jay is beginning to spell out his nickname Hova here, and referencing the chorus of the single, which starts with this phrase.

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