Jay-Z, the ever-expanding Hip-Hop Mogul always looking for new ways to develop his brand and empire, has entered a global arena that he is likely to dominate, as mostly everything else he touches. In his latest venture, Jay-Z takes his keen eye, ear and his music to the video gaming industry as an Executive Producer for mega popular NBA 2K13. With the game’s recent release on October 2, Jay-Z’s attachment to this highly anticipated project has the hype and sales numbers racking up by the minute to what is already staggering heights, and it’s only a week out. With both the basketball and holiday season ahead, the project is sure to produce record-breaking numbers for the franchise.
The special surprise on this soundtrack for the cult following of what is probably the most well known Desi name to crossover into the Hip-Hop scene is his choice to feature his collaboration with Rajé Shwari, “The Bounce” from his classic Blueprint 2 album on the project’s soundtrack. The song was even his personal choice to be used as the background music for the NBA 2K13’s official trailer.
2K Sports reveals that Jay-Z handpicked each song on the game’s soundtrack. Hov [Jay-Z] comments, “This has been a unique opportunity to collaborate with 2K Sports and be a part of one of the best sports video games in history. NBA 2K13 will be the next evolution in sports and basketball culture, and I’m ready to usher in the new era of the franchise.”
Timbaland, the producer behind “The Bounce”, and as Rajé herself credits, the mentor to break her into the music scene, shares the sentiment “I never think of the longevity of any of my songs, but I am extremely pleased with the lasting effect of this one.” What he’s referring to is the Hip-Hop and Hindi fusion that Rajé Shwari brought to the records they worked on together starting nearly a decade ago (Indian Flute, The Flyest, The Bounce) still sounding fresh and ready for a growing global market today.
Raje’s response to being included on such a major project is, “I’m beside myself with excitement. As an artist, it’s been a long time for me to have such a personal victory to celebrate, and for that I’m so grateful to Jay and Tim. But honestly I’m so much more excited for our collective scene, this just validates my mission to keep our fusion and sound relevant. All I’ve been saying to anyone in the industry who’ll listen is, we are here to stay. So big ups to Jay for pulling me off the bench and putting me back in the game,” she laughs.
Rajé Shwari seems to have set her sights on accomplishing what Moguls before her have set as the standard like Jay Z, being the CEO of her own newly launched label, BollyHood Records, established in 2011. This past June with the release of her single “Ready for Me.”, and music video release coming in October to be followed by a rumored mixtape called “I’m Famous in BollyHood.”
Check out the trailer for the new NBA 2K13: