Photo courtesy of NBC News
In an interview with Complex Magazine, former President Barack Obama said that Jay-Z’s rap song “My 1st Song” was his inspiration to overcome his insecurities during his first White House run.
Obama was asked to recite a rap verse from memory and although he did not rap the song, he did quote his favorite line which happened to be the hook.
“Treat my first like my last, and my last like my first/And my thirst is the same as when I came.”
The question was posed in an effort to promote his new podcast “Renegades: Born in the USA” with singer/songwriter Bruce Springsteen, according to The Grio.
On the topic of why he chose the song, the first nation’s former leader said, “It talks about the struggle of just trying to make it.”
“Sometimes you have to result to false bravado and hustle and tamping down your insecurities. When I was running for president, obviously, at that point I didn’t know if I was going to make it. So, somehow that inspired me.”
“My 1st Song” was on Jay-Z’s 2003, Grammy-nominated The Black Album. The song emphasizes that having the same focus one has at their lowest points in life should be the same focus they have during their most successful times.
The song begins with a snippet of an MTV interview where the late rapper Notorious B.I .G. shared advice he received from Sean “Diddy” Combs.
In the interview, the now-deceased rapper said, “The key to staying on top of things is to treat everything like it’s your first project.”
“That’s how you treat things, like, just stay hungry,” he concluded.
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Obama is known for using music to relate and connect with people. He has “Presidential Playlists,” created where he shares hip-hop songs that influence him on his official website.