Cataloging The Best of Kanye And Jay-Z's Jordan References

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Complex Original

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There's no denying that the history behind Michael Jordan, especially his eponymous line of sneakers, and rap is closely related. Whether it's a reference to the kicks or his Airness himself, Nice Kicks has mined the lyrical prowess of Kanye West and Jay-Z to come up with a list of their best Jordan references.

Take, for example, a bar from Rhymefest's song "Brand New," Kanye spits, "The survey says by the street's according/ Kanye's just important as Michael Jordan/Was to the NBA when he was scorin'/Ralph Lauren was borin' before I wore him." We're not sure if we agree with the Ralph Lauren being boring part (dude is a legend), but 'Ye is pretty much dominating rap right now and has been for some time. And since "New God Flow" dropped, there's been some heated debate over whether or not the Air Yeezy actually "jumped over the Jumpman."

Jay also went hard on what was arguably 2011's most played club banger of the year, "N***a's in Paris," with the line, "I’m liable to go Michael/Take your pick/Jackson, Tyson, Jordan, Game 6." Like the other Mikes who dominated their respective industries, Jay and Kanye are on top of the rap food chain and an almost unstoppable force when together.

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