Alicia Keys Recalls Being “Embarrassed” When JAY-Z Asked Her To Re-Record “Empire State Of Mind”

genius.com:

Alicia Keys‘ hook on JAY-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” helped the Brooklyn rapper earn his first No. 1 hit as a lead artist on the Billboard Hot 100, but the collaboration had some roadblocks along the way.

In an interview with Beats 1’s Ebro Darden, the New York singer opened up about how she almost missed out on the opportunity and added that she also had to re-record her vocals on the track.

While discussing her new book, More Myself: A Journey, Keys remembered Jay having trouble with getting ahold of her. “It’s just crazy when you look back at how things come into the world,” she said. “Initially, for a minute, it wasn’t even going to come together ‘cause he couldn’t find me.