PTI is a program on ESPN where two former sports columnists for the Washington Post; Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon, debate current popular topics in the world of sports. It’s one of my favorite programs and I watch it every day. Yesterday, one of the topics was about a quote LeBron James made in reference to his team’s (Miami Heat) first round playoff series with the Philadelphia 76ers. At the time James and the Heat were up 3-1 in the series, but they lost the game 4 and were looking to wrap up the series last night. Lebron and the Heat had three days to prepare for game 5. When he was asked if the extra days of preparation would make any difference in his team’s play, James responded saying that game 5 was: “Just about finishing our breakfast”.

On PTI, Wilbon and Kornheiser debated what James meant by that statement, well, they more or less speculated on James’s quote because clearly neither one of them knew for sure what James was talking about. I was amused as I watched and listened to their debate because I knew exactly what James meant by his statement. LeBron used a lyric from what I think is one of Jay-Z’s best songs to reveal to the media his team’s mindset going into game 5.

Here’s the actual song lyric from Jay-Z’s Public Service Announcement (Interlude):

I check cheddar like a food inspector
My homey Strick told me, “Dude, finish your breakfast”
So that’s what I’ma do, take you back to the dude with the Lexus
Fast-forward the jewels and the necklace.
Let me tell you dudes what I do to protect this
Shoot at you actors like movie directors

Being a Jay-Z fan, of course I was familiar with the lyric “finish your breakfast”, but I didn’t know the origin of the quote-I never knew who Strick was and the context in which he made the statement. After I heard that Lebron James used the quote in reference to game 5 vs. the 76ers, I did a little search on Google and found this post on SBNation by Andrew Sharp and learned that Strick was a street b-ball player who once played on Jay-Z’s S. Carter streetball team back in ’03.

Check out this video where Strick (who is now deceased) tells where the phrase, “Finish your breakfast” comes from:

Strick told his teammate Smush that he should have “finished his breakfast” after catching his no-look pass right at the basket instead of missing the dunk.

Jay-Z’s song lyrics refers to a statement Strick made to a teammate in a street basketball game…and Lebron James used the quote in reference to his team’s mentality going into game 5 vs. the 76ers.

Public Service Announcement (Interlude) is one of the songs that Jay-Z shares the meaning behind the lyrics in his memoir, Decoded. Here’s what he said about the statement, “Finish your breakfast”:

“My friend Strick uses the phrase “finish your breakfast” as a way of saying that you need to finish your job up strong.”

Remember, the song lyric “finish your breakfast” is from Public Service Announcement (Interlude), which is on Jay-Z’s Black Album. That album was to be his last. So, on the song PSA, Jay-Z made the statement that he was going to finish his rap music career strong with the Black Album (the album was a strong effort, but, as it turns out, it would not be his last).

LeBron James told the media that it was important for his and his team to “finish their breakfast”, to finish up strong the job of closing out the first round series against the 76ers in order to get ready for their heavyweight second round matchup vs. the Celtics.

LeBron used the “finish your breakfast” quote in the same context of its origin when Big Strick said it (the sport of basketball). However, I like the way Jay-Z used a statement made during a street basketball game in reference to a missed opportunity to score, to make an insightful point about focus on Public Service Announcement (Interlude).

In life you have to “finish your breakfast”. You can’t look ahead and get distracted by the unpredictable future. You have to stay focused on whatever task you have at hand and finish strong. Lebron told the media that it was important for him and his teammates not to look ahead to the second round, instead, they had to stay focus on closing out the series against the 76ers.

In sports, we often see teams look ahead to the next game or the next round, lose their focus and lose the game or series that they should have won. This happens in other areas of life as well. Don’t look back but don’t look ahead until you finish what you start.

The phrase, “finish your breakfast” has made a personal impact on me. I think back to various periods in my life when I missed out on opportunities or didn’t see all-the-way-through goals I set out to accomplish. No matter how much adversity I face or even how easy it may seem to accomplish certain goals, I can’t get complacent. I have to continue to give 100% to the very end.

The breakfast phrase is all about combining skill with focus, determination and effort. You can have the talent but do you have the drive? Setting out to “finish your breakfast” is the mentality that drove Jay-Z to make the Black Album a near classic. It’s the mentality that LeBron and his teammates adopted to close out the series against the 76ers last night. If you’re hungry to successfully accomplish any goal that you set in life, you must stay focus and finish strong.

Oh yeah, LeBron James and the rest of the Miami Heat did finish their breakfast last night by closing out their first round series vs. the 76ers. Now we’ll just have to wait and see if the Heat can “finish their lunch” in the second round against the Celtics…

I received a great email last night from a Jay-Z fan who is from Ghana and raised in the U.K. The person asked me a few questions and I was more than happy to answer them, but there was one question asked that I get all of the time: (paraphrasing) “Why does Jay-Z get so much hate?” There are many reasons why people hate on Jay-Z, but the truth is he does get a lot of love as well. I also get a strong sense that most of his haters (I’m talking about his competitors) truly respect him despite their public posture. Some fans, foes and critics may not like Jay-Z, for whatever reason, but his impact on the game can’t be denied. Although I’m a long-time fan, the issue of “Jay-Z hate” is one that I like to debate because some of the “haters” make decent arguments that can be persuasive, however, I’m always going to come with the heat…

“There’s never been a nigga, this good, for this long
This hood, or this pop, this hot, or this strong…”

The above line pretty much sums up why the haters hate on Jay-Z. Jay delivered this line on What More Can I Say (featured in the Black Album) over 7 years ago in 2003. That line has turned out to be somewhat of a prophecy at this point because though people certainly hated on Jay-Z back then, the hate has only grown since the release of what was supposed to be his “retirement album” as his brand has expanded in music and business on a global level.

Jay-Z is in a unique position. As he stated in 2003, there’s never been a MC who has been in the position that he’s in, both from a musical and business perspective combined. His level of celebrity and long-term fame hasn’t been reached. Those he has access to and who have access to him goes beyond what we’ve seen in Hip-Hop. The thing is, through it all; he has kept that swagger that long-time fans have identified with since Reasonable Doubt. His evolution, maturation and growth as both an artist AND hustler is unmatched in the rap game.

This is cause for celebration because Jay reps Hip-Hop, but as the title of one of his songs state, Some People Hate.

Now, allow me to break down the root causes of the hate Jay-Z receives from both the old school and the new school perspective, respectively.

Old School

When Jay-Z came in the game he wasn’t the anointed one. He wasn’t “the” man or even “the man standing next to the man”. The “King of New York” was Biggie, Tupac held down the west coast and really had the whole world on notice and MCs such as Nas on the east and Snoop on the west had huge and loyal followers. Jay was just another MC from Brooklyn- a good MC but not great, right? Well, we know the answer to that now, don’t we? Some of us knew the answer back then but most fans, friends, foes and critics of Jay-Z didn’t see coming his reign over the rap game. It took a lot of people by surprise.

The east coast vs. west coast drama in the mid 90’s was responsible for 3 major things:

• It played a major factor in Hip-Hop’s emergence on the world stage. For better or worse, the music and culture was at the peak of its popularity during this time. Hip-Hop became the new rock-n-roll. Today, MCs owe their opportunities and fans owe much of their identity to this period of time in Hip-Hop history.
• It created an environment that essentially divided the Hip-Hop community. Fans had to choose sides. It’s as if you couldn’t be both a Tupac AND Biggie fan (as I was), which is totally ridiculous when we reflect back on it now. To this day, when it comes to a MC, fans feel as if they have to love him or hate him.
• Hip-Hop lost two of its greatest MCs, Tupac and Biggie, who were both murdered within less than 6 months of each other. Their deaths caused both heartbreak and hostility throughout Hip-Hop, and left fans and the media searching for the next “great hype” to fill the void they left.

These 3 effects caused by the east coast/west coast drama, turned out to be a gift and a curse for Jay-Z’s career. Jay-Z’s career benefited from the emergence of Hip-Hop, but he has faced attacks throughout his career based on the negative energy exasperated during the east coast/west coast drama, that still exist today.

But the most provocative factor for the love/hate dynamic when it comes to Jay’s career is the deaths of Tupac and Biggie. I think Jay’s rise to prominence in the years following Pac and Big’s deaths created a great deal of resentment among the two legendary MCs’ most passionate fans. They “hated” (probably too strong of a word) each other’s immortal MC, yet shared in their disdain for whomever would take Big and Pac’s place.

I also believe that fans of other artists such as Nas, Snoop or Wu-Tang also felt some resentment by Jay’s rise in the game.

Basically every fan had his or her own “horse in the race” who they felt were more deserving of the “triple crown” than Jay-Z, who was strongly supported by his Roc-a-fella crew.

Don’t get me wrong: many from the old school love Jay-Z and even those who prefer others MCs, respect him. We, the “new” old school, represent his core fan base. Many fans who love Pac, Biggie, Nas, Wu-Tang, Snoop, etc., also have love for Jay and vice versa. I’m simply saying that the hate he does receive from a significant percentage of the old school can be attributed to the aftermath of the east coast/west coast drama and fans’ resentment that their favorite artists tragically passed on, never took the reign, or has since seen their careers decline or disappear while Jay-Z’s influence and impact on the game has only grown and become stronger.

New School

When it comes to the new school (the core being between the ages of 18-24), the Jay-Z hate isn’t as emotional or in-depth. Basically, some from the new school hate on Jay-Z because it’s their “moment 4 life” and they’re ready to take their place in the game. Artists, fans and critics in the new school respect Jay-Z and the old school but the way they see it, it’s their time to shine.

The Jay-Z hate from the new school simply shows the generational divide in Hip-Hop. They’re not “hating” on Jay-Z necessarily ; they’re just “loving” the artists from their generation a lot more.

The new school is driven by supreme confidence, high ambition and a lack of perspective. As far as many of them are concerned “the greatest anything” is whatever they hear or see 5 minutes ago. A major reason for my embrace of Jay-Z’s music is because he came out during my era-the mid 90’s. I certainly have memories of great MCs before him (I’ve been listening to Hip-Hop since Run-DMC’s hey day) and I acknowledge the great potential of some MCs from this era, but most of my favorite MCs were in their heyday when I was in mine.

Embracing the MCs who represent your era makes perfect sense.

With all that said, I’m actually a little surprised by how much love Jay-Z gets from the new school. I get the sense that they’re more into his public profile as an entertainment mogul and icon than his extensive music catalog. Still, his most recent albums, such as Blueprint 3, have been well received by the new school of fans and critics. And while some new school MCs have dissed him, more have great respect for him and are clearly influenced by his art and hustle.

If you can’t respect that, your whole perspective is wack.
Maybe you’ll love me when I fade to black.

The “that” Jay-Z is referring to in What More Can I Say are the traits and qualities that enables a MC to have longevity AND make as much of an impact (if not more) on the rap game in the latter stages of his career as he did when he was at its peak.

Soon, I’m going to publish my own little unscientific but well thought-out “study”:

“Does your favorite MC have the Jay-Z gene?”

“Jay-Z gene”: Performing at a high level for a long time.

In the piece, I take fans’ favorite MCs from both the old school and the new school and quickly evaluate whether each has the “Jay-Z gene”.

Prepare to be enlightened…and maybe even infuriated. Nevertheless, hopefully it’ll help put Jay-Z’s love/hate relationship with fans, peers and critics-and his illustrious career overall-in greater perspective.

#WhyhatershateJayZ