Jay-Z loves to take hip-hop where it has never gone before — well, how about the World Series? Hov and Alicia Keys will be performing the Big Apple anthem “Empire State of Mind” on Wednesday at the new Yankee Stadium before game one’s first pitch is thrown, Jay confirmed to MTV News on Monday (October 26).
“First of all, the new [Yankee] Stadium — it’s the Yankees and it’s game one of the World Series,” Jay said while promoting his “DJ Hero: Renegade Edition” video game, which sees him teamed up with Eminem. The Yanks happen to be Hov’s favorite baseball team.
“I’m beyond excited about it, and on top of that, it’s a New York record. It’s a record that pays homage to New York [and which was also performed at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards]. The timing of that couldn’t be better,” Hov enthused.
Jay said his spot at game one has been in place for several days, all he needed was for the Yankees to wrap things up against the Los Angeles Angels.
“The whole time we knew had the performance,” Jay laughed. “We knew we had the performance last week. I think it was 3-1 [in favor of the Yankees] at the time. [The Yankees] lost that game to make it 3-2. I was like, ‘Man!’ I had to come in [the Stadium] with the stage and all that. I was like, ‘Man, these guys gotta come on.’ It was almost selfish.”
Well, the Yankees sent the Angels home last night with a 5-2 American League pennant-winning 2 victory at the stadium.
All through the playoffs, the Yankees have been showing love to Jay and his Blueprint 3. Derek Jeter has “Empire State of Mind” play during his at-bats while Alex Rodriguez’s theme songs have been “Already Home” and “Reminder.” Meanwhile, Robin Cano at-bat are themed by “Run This Town.”
Video: Jay-Z Speaks About “Empire State Of Mind” Performance At World Series This Wednesday
