BEYOND GREATER: MUST-READ STORY WE DIDN’T WRITE—FACT-CHECKING JAY-Z
By Greater Long Beach
The bulk of Jay-Z’s new book, “Decoded,” consists of a lyrical exegesis of 36 of Jay’s own works. What better source could there possibly be? Vulture.com turned to RapGenius.com, the world’s premier rap-lyric-explanation website, to provide its Top 10 Decodings of “Decoded.”
1. On leasing a car:
“We don’t lease / we buy the whole car, as you should.” (“Can I Live”)
Jay-Z says: “Advising to buy a car rather than lease speaks to my naïveté at the time. Cars lose value the minute they leave the lot.”
RapGenius says: Jay is jumping from one extreme to another, when in reality the “buy vs. lease” decision is quite complex: Your budget and preferences, as well as depreciation tables and resale values for the model you’re considering, ought to be taken into consideration. Jay’s new preference for leases speaks to his increased risk-aversion with age. Jay, you’re turning into our uncle!
