When rap superstar Jay-Z rode the Subway into Brooklyn for his concert at the Barclay's Center six months ago, an older woman who didn't recognize the star's face asked him if he was famous in a touching video clip from his "Life + Times" documentary that soon went viral.
Now 67-year old Ellen Grossman has given a review of his new album "Magna Carta Holy Grail" to MTV News, and what she had to say may surprise you.
Grossman knew the name "Jay-Z," but while riding the R train last fall, she didn't recognize him right away until he told her his name. Now the visual artist based in Manhattan has achieved her own small slice of fame for being "that older woman" on the Subway who had the lucky opportunity to sit next to and converse with the star.
Since their interaction was caught on film, Grossman has attended Jay-Z's New Years Eve concert at the Barclays Center and has become more familiar with his music. MTV News invited her to listen to the rapper's latest album and share her thoughts.
"It sounds like he's really going deep into his heart and into fatherhood and even the meaning of fame," Grossman said during her first listen. "[He's saying] that the money's nice, but there's life beyond that, that he's exploring. I picked that up from the papers but I felt it in the man too, when I met him. That he had a depth to him."
After an initial spin, Grossman admitted she "didn't get all the words," but did get a lot of them and enjoyed it overall. "I like jazz and what's called 'new music' and I can relate to all the soundscapes, it's really innovative stuff," she said.
MTV News asked Grossman to select a few tracks and give her thoughts on them. After listening to the album's opening track, "Holy Grail" featuring Justin Timberlake, Grossman said: "Even though it started out as a complaint about lovers and relationships, it was pretty mellow and you could go with it...but when Jay-Z came in and he was talking about Kurt Cobain...[he was saying] 'OK, fame has its price.' And even someone very famous and rich is capable of suicide. It really hit you hard and the soundscape was just exquisite, so it was pretty amazing."
As for "BBC," the album's huge collaboration track featuring Nas, Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Swizz Beatz ,Timbaland and Pharrell, Grossman said she "had trouble understanding [some of] the words," but she "got the beat and [got] the energy" of it.
"It was a real turn from the seriousness of the last one," she said. "And because I wasn't hearing the words exactly, I think that he was talking about possessions and objects and it was wonderful. I kinda wanted to [dance] but I'm not a good dancer even sitting down so I kinda held myself back."
Grossman also reviewed "Part II (On The Run)" featuring Beyoncé, calling the song "very sexy" and acknowledging the "real connection and real willingness" of the stars to show their vulnerability.
"I suspect they would want [their relationship to] remain private. What they're putting out in their art is really opening themselves up. It was pretty awesome," she said.
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