Jay-Z and Pharrell join forces once again to bring their fans new music with a message.
On Friday (Aug. 20), P and Jigga released their first single in years titled "Entrepreneur." The Neptunes-produced track finds the two artists preaching about Black ownership.
"You gotta let go (Let go)/If you want to fly take the leap/You gotta risk it all (Risk it all)/Or they'll be lots of things you'll never see," Skateboard P rhymes on the chorus. "You gotta let, let go/'Cause you never know what's in store/Mister entrepreneur."
King Hov carries on the same sentiment. "Uh, lies told to you, through YouTubes and Hulus/Shows with no hues that look like you do," the Roc Nation founder spits. "Black Twitter, what's that? When Jack gets paid, do you?/For every one Gucci, support two FUBUs/Sipping crip-a-Cola consumer and an owner, uh/Till we all vertically integrated from the floor up/D'Usse pour up, sip Ace till I throw up/Like gang signs 'cept I bang mines for both yas."
A video has also been released for the new track. The Calmatic-directed visual is sans Pharrell and Hov, and instead highlights dozens of Black business owners. The track's arrival was originally teased by Time magazine in a piece focusing on the Neptunes producer hours before it hit streaming services. According to the legendary beatmaker, the song is meant to inspire young business people of color.
"The intention for a song was all about how tough it is to be an entrepreneur in our country, to begin with," Pharrell tells the publication. "Especially as someone of color, there's a lot of systemic disadvantages and purposeful blockages. How can you get a fire started, or even the hope of an ember to start a fire, when you're starting at disadvantages with regards to health care, education, and representation?"
This is one of several collaborations the two east coast natives have worked on since they initially partnered up in the early 2000s on tracks like "Excuse Me Miss" and "Change Clothes."
Listen to Jay-Z and Pharrell's new song "Entrepreneur" below.
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