By Nick Neofitidis
I would be complaining about waking up early this morning, but then again, I was going out to Brooklyn to hang with the king of the borough: Mr. Carter himself, Jay-Z. We were in the penthouse at the Clock Tower Condos with a view to die for. No surprise on the Brooklyn love in the scenery or personnel-wise, since there was another surprise Brooklynite in the building: director and lifetime Knicks fan Spike Lee.
As tempted as I was to talk about how poorly management has handled our boys Nate Robinson and David Lee, truth is, Spike was all business. He was directing Jay in the new Rocawear commercial and, more specifically, a spot celebrating the 10th anniversary of the clothing label. As a young guy in the game of entertainment, it was pretty amazing being allowed in the same room with Spike Lee, let alone to be able to see the man work. The heart and soul behind classics like "Malcolm X," "Do the Right Thing" and "Jungle Fever," to name just a few, was right in front of me yelling, "Action!" Plus, having the mind and mouth behind some of hip-hop's greatest albums ever wasn't too bad either. Now that's a day anyone would wake up early for!
The commercial had an amazing look. The penthouse set overlooked the entire city and both the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges. Spike even moved shop outside and got a fantastic shot of Jay with the Manhattan Bridge rolling behind him. The concept for the commercial is a little deep and gets into the notion of a man striving to reach the goal of high-level success, much like Jay-Z has. Believe me, it's going to be great. Overall, a fantastic day for Brooklyn, and an even better day for hip-hop.