The first single from the Streets is Watching Soundtrack was “It’s Alright” featuring Memphis Bleek. A video was shot for that song and the single was released in April 1998. But, something you may not know is that a second video from the soundtrack was released and is one of the rarer Jay-Z appearances. That song was “Love for Free” featuring Rell.
Do you remember this man from the picture above? This man, named Steven Johnson from Brooklyn was Jay-Z’s former barber and also appeared in the “Friend or Foe” video acting as a drug dealer. Four years after “The Streets Is Watching” was released, Johnson went on a crime-ridden escape in which he held fifteen people hostage in the East Village. Johnson shot at three people, dousing them with kerosene and was attempting to shoot police officers. Johnson was sentenced to 240 years in prison for the incident back in 2013.
Jay-Z loved playing Biggie music he recorded in order to get his expert feedback. Just before Biggie’s death, Jay-Z had been playing music that he was recording for his “In My Lifetime Volume 1” album. The very last song that Jay-Z ever played for Biggie was the track “Streets is Watching”. Biggie absolutely loved the track.
The Streets Is Watching movie was primarily shot in Brooklyn (although a few non-New York locations were used) and cost around $320,000. The entire movie was shot and finished in just one single week of filming.
This one is probably the most interesting one of any of this list. The track “Murdergram” from “The Streets Is Watching” soundtrack is one of only two official tracks ever released that contains only the original Murder Inc. group and no one else. There are one or two tracks featuring the three rappers with someone else or a few more guest appearances out there, but “Murdergram” is the first song that its only Jay-Z, DMX and Ja Rule rapping together.
Ok, so here we get to the very famous Jay-Z line from the song “Imaginary Player”. In the song, Jay-Z says the difference between a 4.0 and a 4.6 is “like 30 or 40 grand cocksucker, beat it”. Actually, the real difference in price from a 1998 (the film was released in 1998) Range Rover 4.0 and a 1998 Range Rover 4.6 HSE was actually around $8,000.
Here is an interesting one. In one of Jay-Z’s first full length solo music videos ever, titled “I Can’t Get With That” (which is featured in the movie) Jay-Z is seen wearing an Indiana Pacers Reggie Lewis away jersey. The video was shot in the summer of 1994, just months after Reggie Miller’s famous comeback game against his beloved New York Knicks. The Knicks did however, go on to win that series in seven games.
During the credits shown at the end of the film, there is an address for a “Jay-Z fanclub”. If you were interested in joining the fan club back in the spring of 1998, all you had to do was send a letter addressed to Jay-Z/Damon (was Jay-Z actually opening his mail back then?) at 29 John Street, Suite 126 in New York. Someone reading this should send them a letter at that address today and see what happens.
The movie had done so well with rap fans around the world, that in 2004 (six years from the original release) Rocafella re-released the movie in DVD format. The original VHS tape and original soundtrack in CD format are collectors’ items to this day.
Ever wonder where the video for “Friend or Foe” was shot? Well, here is your answer: The video for Jay-Z’s Friend or Foe (as shown above) was shot at The Chesapeake Inn located in Salisbury Maryland. That motel is still there today and has mostly horrible one-star reviews!
One of the very few (or maybe the only one) songs in which Jay-Z’s protege outshines his boss is on “Celebration” from The Streets Is Watching soundtrack. Not all fans do agree on this, but a lot of people out there will say that Memphis Bleek did out-rap Jay-Z on that track. Go back and have a listen to it for yourself, and let us know in the comment section if you think he did.