The song was written for the 2013 The Great Gatsby motion picture soundtrack. Jay-Z also executive produced the film and its soundtrack. In a way, the song updates Fitzgerald’s critique of the Roaring ‘20s for the modern moment. It references tons of twentieth-century American cultural icons: Einstein, Malcolm X, Marilyn Monroe, the Kennedys, and others.

Check out the other tracks on the Gatsby soundtrack on Rap Genius.

Read the entirety of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby on site as well.