Jay-Z has a lot of history to look back on, whether it’s his still-contentious alleged beefs or the wealth of great bars that he’s given the culture. Still, not every Hov bar is easy to research or break down, and one particular line off of his smash 2003 hit “Public Service Announcement” has always left fans scratching their heads. “My homie Strick told me, ‘Dude, finish your breakfast!’” he raps at one point, and it turns out that no one figured this bar out because it was such a specific anecdote. Moreover, former NBA player Smush Parker recently explained the context behind this line during a conversation with the legendary Rucker Park’s Streetball collective.
Apparently, this Jay-Z line refers to a failed dunk attempt from Parker to Strick during a game at the Rucker, to which Strick told his opponent: “Yo, young fella, you gotta finish your breakfast” with a side-eye. The Brooklyn MC witnessed this moment and chose to christen it on one of his biggest songs, which is quite the flex. Frequent Jay collaborator Just Blaze made this “PSA” beat off of The Black Album, and he previously spoke on how they already finished the project by the time he cooked this song up.
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Smush Parker Reveals The Story Behind One Of Jay-Z’s “PSA” Bars
“The Black Album was done, it was handed in,” Just Blaze told REVOLT of the Jay-Z collab all the way back in 2013. “My two contributions were ‘December 4th’ and the intro [‘Interlude’], which I was fine with. And we’re at Battery [Studios] mixing something. One of my best friends by the name Big Jack comes in the studio, ‘I got something you gotta hear.’ I put the headphones on and he puts this record on and all you heard was ‘doom-doom-doom-doom-doom’ and I’m just sitting there like ‘What is about to happen?’
“So, I made the ‘PSA’ beat in the headphones while the engineer was mixing one of the records we was working on,” Just Blaze continued concerning Jay-Z. “I made the beat in like 10 minutes and I ran over to the studio… So, the next day Jay’s doing listening sessions for the press for The Black Album… I’m like ‘Nah, you gotta come in here.’ And I play it and at first his reaction was just like… and I’m like ‘Do you not hear what we’re all hearing?’ As he’s doing the press, he’s thinking about this beat in the back of his mind. Coming up with the song… So, he comes in the next day. Spits the whole thing over in one take…Two or three weeks later we’re at the Garden and the entire arena knows the words.”
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