The term Various Artists is used in the record industry when numerous singers and musicians collaborate on a song or collection of songs. Most often on Last.fm, compilation album tracks appear under the name of Various Artists erroneously because the individual artist is not listed in the album's ID3 information.
Compilation albums, for example.
Sometimes, single releases may be credited to Various Artists when their profits are going to charity and, usually in high-profile cases, are sometimes known by a group name. Examples include Band Aid with their releases of Do They Know It's Christmas? and USA for Africa with We Are The World.
Various Artists is also an actual performance name for Torsten Pröfrock, who runs the German DIN label. Torsten performs also as Dynamo, Erosion, Resilent, Traktor besides some others. He's a good friend of Robert Henke and since the Fall of 2004, he is a member of Monolake.
Various Artists was also a short-lived Bristol punk band formed by brothers Jonjo and Robin Key (originally from Birmingham). Other members were also simultaneously in Art Objects who went on to become The Blue Aeroplanes, the latter the Key brothers also co-wrote some songs and were involved in. When Various Artists imploded, the Key brothers went on to form Either / Or.
Various Artists also appear on tracks from musical theater soundtracks, due to the nature of having many cast members on one song, as well as an ensemble in some cases.
State of Mind
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah, Imma up at Brooklyn,
now Im down in Tribeca,
right next to DeNiro,
But i'll be hood forever,
I'm the new Sinatra,
and since i made it here,
i can make it anywhere,
i used to cop in Harlem,
all of my dominicanos
right there up on broadway,
brought me back to that McDonalds,
took it to my stash spot,
Five Sixty Stage street,
catch me in the kitchen like a simmons whipping pastry,
cruising down 8th street,
off white lexus,
driving so slow but BK is from Texas,
me I'm up at Bedsty,
home of that boy Biggie,
now i live on billboard,
and i brought my boys with me,
say wat up to Ty Ty, still sipping Malta
sitting courtside Knicks and Nets give me high fives,
N-gga i be spiked out, i can trip a referee,
tell by my attitude that I most definitely from…
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can't do,
Now you're in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
I made you hot n-gga,
Catch me at the X with OG at a Yankee game,
sh-t i made the yankee hat more famous than a yankee can,
you should know I bleed Blue, but I aint a crip tho,
but i got a gang of n-ggas walking with my click though,
welcome to the melting pot,
corners where we selling rocks,
afrika bambaataa sh-t,
home of the hip hop,
yellow cap, gypsy cap, dollar cab, holla back,
for foreigners it aint fitted they forgot how to act,
8 million stories out there and their naked,
cities is a pity half of y'all won't make it,
me i gotta plug a special and i got it made,
If Jesus payin LeBron, I'm paying Dwayne Wade,
3 dice cee-lo
3 card marley,
labor day parade, rest in peace Bob Marley,
Statue of Liberty, long live the World trade,
long live the king yo,
I'm from the empire state thats…
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can't do,
Now you're in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
Welcome to the bright light.
Lights is blinding,
girls need blinders
so they can step out of bounds quick,
the side lines is blind with casualties,
who sipping life casually, then gradually become worse,
don't bite the apple Eve,
caught up in the in crowd,
now your in-style,
and in the winter gets cold en vogue with your skin out,
the city of sin is a pity on a whim,
good girls gone bad, the cities filled with them,
Mommy took a bus trip and now she got her bust out,
everybody ride her, just like a bus route,
Hail Mary to the city your a Virgin,
and Jesus can't save you life starts when the church ends,
came here for school, graduated to the high life,
ball players, rap stars, addicted to the limelight,
MDMA got you feeling like a champion,
the city never sleeps better slip you a Ambien
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can't do,
Now you're in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
One hand in the air for the big city,
Street lights, big dreams all looking pretty,
no place in the World that can compare,
Put your lighters in the air, everybody say yeaaahh
come on, come,
yeah,
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can't do,
Now you're in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
The song “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys has become an unofficial anthem for the city of New York, capturing the essence of the city in its lyrics. The song opens up with Jay-Z describing his journey from Brooklyn to Tribeca to a place near Robert De Niro's abode. He proclaims that he is "hood forever" but is also the "new Sinatra" and can make it anywhere since he has already made it in New York. He raps about his hood life, cruisin down 8th street in his off-white Lexus, whipping "pastry" in the kitchen, and making it big in the music industry. He recalls his fond memories in Harlem, mentioning his dominicanos on broadway and how he used to buy from them.
The chorus, sung by Alicia Keys, is the most iconic part of the song and highlights the beauty and inspiration of the city. She sings about the concrete jungle where dreams are made of and nothing you can’t do in New York. The city’s lights inspire and make one feel brand new. The city is a melting pot of cultures with African Bambaataa’s sh-t and hip hop being born here. The city has been hit hard by drugs and crime, but the city keeps going. In the final verse, Jay-Z raps about the struggle that the city faces, how it swallows people, turning them bad. The city is full of contradictions, where good girls turn bad, people get caught up in the in-crowd, and materialism takes over. But the city also offers hope, opportunities and the high life.
Interesting Facts:
Line by Line Meaning
Yeah,
Expressing agreement or excitement
Yeah, Imma up at Brooklyn,
I'm currently in Brooklyn
now Im down in Tribeca,
I'm now in Tribeca
right next to DeNiro,
I'm close to Robert DeNiro
But i'll be hood forever,
I'll always be true to my roots
I'm the new Sinatra,
I'm the modern day Sinatra
and since i made it here,
Since I became successful in New York
i can make it anywhere,
I can be successful anywhere
yeah they love me everywhere,
People love me everywhere I go
i used to cop in Harlem,
I used to buy drugs in Harlem
all of my dominicanos
All of my Dominican friends
right there up on broadway,
On Broadway, where Dominicans hang out
brought me back to that McDonalds,
Reminded me of a McDonald's in Harlem
took it to my stash spot,
Brought it to my hiding place for drugs
Five Sixty Stage street,
560 State Street, a famous building in Brooklyn
catch me in the kitchen like a simmons whipping pastry,
I'm cooking like a Simmons and making money
cruising down 8th street,
Driving slowly on 8th Street
off white lexus,
I'm driving an off-white Lexus
driving so slow but BK is from Texas,
I'm driving slow, but Brooklyn is in my blood even though I'm from Texas
me I'm up at Bedsty,
I'm in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn
home of that boy Biggie,
The birthplace of rapper Notorious B.I.G.
now i live on billboard,
I'm famous and successful enough to be on a billboard
and i brought my boys with me,
I brought my friends with me
say wat up to Ty Ty, still sipping Malta
Greetings to Ty Ty, who's still drinking Malta (a popular drink in the Caribbean)
sitting courtside Knicks and Nets give me high fives,
I'm watching Knicks and Nets games from the best seats and getting high fives from the players
N-gga i be spiked out, i can trip a referee,
I wear diamonds and can dazzle a referee
tell by my attitude that I most definitely from…
People can tell by my attitude that I'm from New York
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
New York City, a place where ambitions come true
Theres nothing you can't do,
You can achieve anything here
Now you're in New York,
Once you're here in New York
these streets will make you feel brand new,
The city will give you a new identity
the lights will inspire you,
The bright lights will motivate you
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
A cheer for the city of New York
I made you hot n-gga,
I made you popular, man
Catch me at the X with OG at a Yankee game,
Find me at the X Lounge with my friends watching a New York Yankees game
sh-t i made the yankee hat more famous than a yankee can,
I made the Yankee hat even more famous than the Yankees did
you should know I bleed Blue, but I aint a crip tho,
I'm a die-hard Yankees fan, but I'm not a Crip gang member
but i got a gang of n-ggas walking with my click though,
But I have a lot of friends loyal to me
welcome to the melting pot,
Welcome to the diverse city of New York
corners where we selling rocks,
Street corners where drugs are sold
afrika bambaataa sh-t,
Afrika Bambaataa, a famous hip-hop artist in New York
home of the hip hop,
The birthplace of hip-hop music
yellow cap, gypsy cap, dollar cab, holla back,
Different types of hats and a common way to hail taxis
for foreigners it aint fitted they forgot how to act,
People who aren't from New York might not understand the 'uniform'
8 million stories out there and their naked,
There are countless experiences and stories to be told here
cities is a pity half of y'all won't make it,
It's sad that only half of the people who come here will be successful
me i gotta plug a special and i got it made,
I have a special connection and I'm doing well
If Jesus payin LeBron, I'm paying Dwayne Wade,
If even Jesus is paying for LeBron James, then I'll pay for Dwayne Wade
3 dice cee-lo
A dice game called Cee-lo
3 card marley,
A card game named after Bob Marley
labor day parade, rest in peace Bob Marley,
A parade on Labor Day to honor Bob Marley, who has passed away
Statue of Liberty, long live the World trade,
The Statue of Liberty and a hope that the World Trade Center will be rebuilt
long live the king yo,
Long live the king, my friend
I'm from the empire state thats…
I'm from the state of New York, which is an empire in its own right
Lights is blinding,
The city lights are intense
girls need blinders
Girls need to ignore distractions
so they can step out of bounds quick,
So they can take risks
the side lines is blind with casualties,
People get hurt for standing on the sidelines
who sipping life casually, then gradually become worse,
People who enjoy life too much will eventually spiral out of control
don't bite the apple Eve,
Don't make a bad decision, like Eve who bit the apple
caught up in the in crowd,
Being popular and in-demand
now your in-style,
Now you're popular
and in the winter gets cold en vogue with your skin out,
In winter it's fashionable to wear less clothes
the city of sin is a pity on a whim,
The sinful city is dangerous if you don't take it seriously
good girls gone bad, the cities filled with them,
Good girls often turn bad in this city
Mommy took a bus trip and now she got her bust out,
My mother left and became a star
everybody ride her, just like a bus route,
Everyone takes advantage of her for their own gain
Hail Mary to the city your a Virgin,
A prayer to the city which is pure like the Virgin Mary
and Jesus can't save you life starts when the church ends,
Even Jesus can't save you, life begins outside the church
came here for school, graduated to the high life,
Came here for education, now living the good life
ball players, rap stars, addicted to the limelight,
Athletes and musicians who are obsessed with fame
MDMA got you feeling like a champion,
The drug MDMA makes you feel invincible
the city never sleeps better slip you a Ambien
The city is always active, you may need a sleeping pill
One hand in the air for the big city,
A show of support for the city
Street lights, big dreams all looking pretty,
The lights and dreams of the city are beautiful
no place in the World that can compare,
No other place on Earth is like this
Put your lighters in the air, everybody say yeaaahh
Raise your lighters and cheer
come on, come,
Welcome, come on
Contributed by Julia B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.