The three principal artists of Jay-Z’s newly-formed Roc Nation record label—Kanye West, Rihanna, and the Hov himself—announce to the world that they “run the town.” Jay explained the clear nature of the track in an interview with Tim Westwood, saying:

We basically run this town. It’s myself, Rihanna and Kanye. [That’s] pretty much it.

The song made its radio debut on July 24, 2009 at 9:11am to coincide with the album’s planned release date of September 11, 2009. Rihanna’s contribution was her first musical appearance following a domestic violence altercation with her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown earlier that year.

“Run This Town” was a highly successful single for Hov, peaking at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the charts in the United Kingdom. Officially it has been certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA, with Billboard estimating sales of 3,490,000. RTT won two Grammy Awards in 2010, for “Best Rap/Sung Collaboration” and “Best Rap Song.” The video game Battlefield 4 used the track as its theme song in 2013.