Jay-Z Celebrates the Joys of Childhood in "Young Forever" Video

"Empire State of Mind" is still topping the charts, but Jay-Z isn't waiting around to unleash his next Blueprint 3 single. Jigga unveiled his new video for "Young Forever," featuring Mr Hudson and a hook courtesy of Alphaville's 1984 hit "Forever Young." The video is essentially a longer version of that Levi's commercial that employs Walt Whitman's "Pioneers! O Pioneers!" poem, with black-and-white footage of Jay-Z and Mr Hudson cut between scenes of ebullient youth — skateboarding, pizza eating and pee-wee football.

In the fitting denouement of the clip, we see Jay-Z and Mr Hudson onstage performing "Young Forever" in front of an ocean of young folks in the audience, who chant the chorus toward the final seconds. Given the success "Forever Young" had 25 years ago for Alphaville, it seems it's only a matter of time before "Young Forever" gains in popularity on Hova's blockbuster New York anthem.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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