News

CNN Reports On Why Jay-Z's 'The Blueprint' Succeeded Despite 9/11

12:01 p.m. · September 8, 2011 · by Andrew Martin

The decision to move up the release date of Jay-Z's classic sixth album, The Blueprint, was made as a means of combating bootleggers. But no one could have expected that the record would drop on the same day that Jay's own New York City would be tragically struck by terrorist attacks. Yet, despite the horrific events that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, The Blueprint still sold reasonably well and pushed more than 420,000 units.

In an attempt to figure out exactly why the record was still a success, author Craig Johnson wrote an interesting piece for CNN that dives into "why ... The Blueprint [did] so well amid the chaos of 9/11[.]" He primarily speaks with Tricia Rose, a professor at Brown University who also wrote the novel The Hip Hop Wars. She notes that a big part of his audience, aka the young people of U.S., was not personally impacted by the tragedy, which allowed them to stay far removed from the events and remain focused on their own lives and interests.

You can read an excerpt of Rose's other comments below. Head to CNN for the entire piece.

"While the much older fans of Mariah Carey or Bob Dylan would likely be too busy and worried about terrorist attacks to rush out and purchase a CD the week of 9/11, Jay-Z's teen and early 20s fans, already hyped up about this release long beforehand, remained focused on their idol," Rose said. "And many probably never left the comfort of their bedrooms to download the release."