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Weekly Music Video

Today's video is for American rapper Jay-Z's Wishing on a Star featuring Gwen Dickey. I expect most people know Jay-Z, he is one of the most successful rappers, is also a record producer and entrepreneur and has a career spanning 18 years. And of course he's married to the equally successful Beyonce. :)

Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter)  co-founded the record label Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995, with Damon Dash and Kareem Burke. He released his debut single In My Lifetime in 1995, his debut album Reasonable Doubt in 1996 and his second album In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 a year later. Since then Jay-Z has released 15 studio albums, 5 compilations and 1 soundtrack album. Some of his most well known singles are Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem), Big Pimpin and Girls, Girls, Girls. His latest album is Magna Carta... Holy Grail (2013).

Wishing on a Star came out in 1998 and is on In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (UK version) and Greatest Hits (2006). It samples the original Wishing on a Star which was sung by Gwen Dickey from soul group Rose Royce, who were most popular in the 70s. The Rose Royce version came out in 1978. I used to have the cassette single of this and it had another version on where Gwen sang more. I think it was the D Influence Full Vocal Edit. I couldn't find that version on YouTube or iTunes but I just saw on Amazon that it's only 90p! So might as well get the single on CD, lol. The video for the song has an actor playing a young Jay-Z.



                                        



Beyonce has a version of this song which I really like as well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRV-pfti6Ps


Update 16/7/23: Here is the extended version with more of Gwen's vocals: https://youtu.be/KDEphxUQZWI

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