Jay-Z has been out there this year, celebrating the 30th anniversary of his debut album Reasonable Doubt, the 25th anniversary of The Blueprint, and his overall superstar legacy with high-profile gigs at the Roots Picnic and Yankee Stadium. His chart-topping "Empire State Of Mind" also got a lot of burn during the New York Knicks' run to the NBA championship. But one thing missing from the campaign has been new music.
That changes today with the release of Beyoncé's new remix pack for "Morning Dew (Donk)," the B'Day-era track she released on July 4. The remix finds Jay once again jumping on one of his spouse's tracks, delivering his first new verse in well over two years. He was last heard teaming with Jeymes Samuel and D'Angelo on "I Want You Forever" from The Book Of Clarence in early 2024. (Last fall, a pre-fame Jay and Big L's famed 1995 freestyle from The Stretch Armstrong And Bobbito Show appeared on the posthumous Big L album Harlem's Finest: Return Of The King under the title "7 Minute Freestyle.")
The original "Morning Dew" backing track, produced by Beyoncé, Pharrell, The-Dream, and DIXSON, has been radically adjusted on the remix. It now samples the Isley Brothers' oft-sampled “Between The Sheets" and interpolates Sheck Wes’ "Mo Bamba." Per Pitchfork, it also samples Soulja Boy's "Donk," which makes sense. Jay is in "Drunk In Love" mode here, dropping head-slapping sex bars such as "We know what that night did/ Let's see what that mornin' do/ Top of the top, sloppy as a mornin' dew." Better than "Your breasteses is my breakfast."
The remix pack also includes an acoustic version titled "Morning Dew (Donk) Acoustic 4:44," which apparently is called that because it's four minutes and 44 seconds long. The acoustic version does not feature Jay-Z even though he made an album called 4:44 about cheating on Beyoncé. Hear both of those below.
"Morning Dew (Donk)" will be on the teased-but-not-detailed 20th anniversary reissue of Beyoncé's B'Day. Jay-Z can next be heard alongside Eminem on "God Speak (Interlude)," a track from Kurupt, Rakim, and Masta Killa's forthcoming The Godbody LP, out 8/28.
