Empire State of Meh (Empire State of Mind parody)

Empire State of Mind is one of the greatest songs ever written about New York City and arguably an anthem for our generation. Since New York is the greatest city in the world it's only fitting that the greatest artists of our time would pay homage to the Big Apple. Jay-Z and Alicia Keys are both at the top of their game and this song is an epic tribute that glorifies all the best aspects of NYC.

... but they didn't touch on the downsides. When you are as wealthy as Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, New York City is a great place to be. If you are a struggling artist, a small-time stock broker, or a hipster hanging out in Zuccotti Park for Occupy... the City can be a tough place to get by. There are rats and homeless people on every corner, Mayor Bloomberg wants to control your soda portions and your breast milk, and the rent is too damn high.

This was an ambitious project to take on. A good friend of mine told me, "Don't touch it... but if you're going to do it, do it right." After he saw the finished product he admitted that I did it right.

Each of the five boroughs are mentioned in this parody (Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island and the Bronx) as well as a few of our major sports teams (the Mets, Yankees and Giants). This parody talks about what life is like in New York City for the majority of us trying to make it... and no song about the Tri-State area would be complete without a Snooki reference.

I tried to make the music video as close as possible to the original. Jay-Z does a lot of strange hand movements and both he and Alicia switch outfits several times. Watch his first... then watch mine.

Take a look. Let me know what you think.
 

- John Powers (http://youtu.be/UOCLchwkrhk)