The Weekly Coos

I want to say “it felt like yesterday when…,” but that wouldn’t be true; time does fly fast, and if it weren’t for X.com, I would have forgotten the first time I heard “Otis,” by Jay-Z and Kanye West. I was driving my dad’s car and taking my grandma to collect a payment. While I waited, Funk Flex kept blasting bombs and restarting the track over and over, creating this entrenching event that made you feel like this was a moment you had to be there for. Radio still reigned supreme then, and premieres like this carried far more cultural weight than they do today. Before streaming and surprise drops became the norm, these moments felt like events. As the internet grew, so have release strategies, like pre-midnight livestreams. However, I still reminisce about the days when we had premieres on the radio, and the emphasis and hype behind the DJ’s words made you want to blare the stereo with the windows down, especially in the summer. There were plenty of moments that captured that feeling, but few compare to hearing Watch the Throne for the first time.

The premiere of “Otis” was something you had to be there for, especially because of these iconic words by Flex: “NEW YORK CITY YOU LISTEN TO ME, IF YOU’RE NEAR A CONVENIENCE STORE RIGHT NOW, ANY TYPE OF 24 HOUR STORE, GO INTO THE STORE RIGHT NOW, AND PUT YOUR HAND IN THE CASH REGISTER FOR NO REASON.” Those words have echoed time and time again, and even more so recently when the New York Knicks won the NBA Finals, and the madness from the celebrations mirrored the idea of claiming ownership of something that isn’t yours. Seeing people reminisce on Instagram and X about that broadcast—especially Flex’s relentless bombs—brought me right back to that afternoon. The premiere stretched over 22 minutes, with Flex dropping bombs and restarting the song roughly every 53 seconds. It was electric, especially compared to Jay-Z and Kanye West’s first single from the album, “H.A.M.” “H.A.M.” arrived with some anticipation, but nothing close to the spectacle Flex created on Hot 97. That’s a big reason why “Otis” remains one of the defining tracks from the album.

What made “Otis” such an impactful premiere—and ultimately one of the album’s defining songs—was its foundation. Incorporating Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness,” James Brown’s “Don’t Tell a Lie About Me (and I Won’t Tell the Truth About You),” and elements of Audio Two’s “Top Billin’,” the production felt out of this world and heavily immersive. It made me want to wild out. Spike Jonze’s music video further established that feeling. He captured Jay-Z and Kanye West ripping through an industrial lot in a stripped-down Maybach with reckless spirit. It flawlessly reinforced that earned braggadocio feeling. 

However, Watch The Throne is more than just “Otis,” and listening to the album will show that. The album produced cultural landmarks like “Ni**as in Paris” and “Murder to Excellence,” especially the former, which incorporates a sample from the film Blades of Glory, making the scene and track more iconic. But it isn’t just these tracks that became mainstays. Fans still praise cuts like “Lift Off,” “Gotta Have It,” “Made In America,” and “That’s My Bitch. What ties these songs together is the unapologetic confidence running through the album. Jay-Z and Kanye had reached a level where that swagger felt earned rather than forced. That confidence gives the album its identity, making every victory lap feel deserved rather than excessive. It’s that consistency that keeps Watch the Throne in conversations about the greatest collaboration rap albums of its era. Though it’s imperfect, the highs radiate louder. It leaves a resounding impact that makes you return more frequently, especially as later solo albums would create debates about quality and direction.

From its production to its songwriting, there is great consistency in heaters that delivered a final product that felt worthwhile. It isn’t perfect, but it’s a cultural classic that redefined the trajectory for these two artists. Coming off the divisive reception to The Blueprint 3 and 808s & Heartbreak, Watch the Throne reaffirmed Jay-Z and Kanye’s superiority. Though Kanye wasn’t the sole producer–88-Keys, Hit-Boy, Q-Tip, Swizz Beatz, The Neptunes, and others shaped its unpredictable sound. For example, “Who Gon Stop Me” has this kinetic experimentation following the percussion-heavy “Welcome to the Jungle.” While those risks don’t always pay off, they keep the album from becoming predictable. It has the intangibles that make it great but also a bit of a tiring listening experience, though that depends on the aisle you stand in when it comes to storytelling and lyricism. For me, Watch the Throne remains a snapshot of two artists at the peak of their powers, fully aware of their status and determined to remind everyone else.

As Watch the Throne turns 15, few moments stand out, but not with the impact of “Otis” and its unforgettable premiere, or the anticipation it created for the album. It created memories. It is representative of a time when music felt like a genuine event on the radio, and you were witnessing something before everyone else. That’s the greatest testament to what Watch the Throne accomplished.