"Shiny Suit Theory" (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: نظرية البدلة اللامعة) is a song by American rapper

Jay Electronica Elpadaro F. Electronica Allah (born Timothy Elpadaro Thedford; September 19, 1976), known professionally as Jay Electronica (stylized as ), is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in New Orleans, he first saw recognition wit ...

. The song features guest appearances from American rapper

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

and American singer

The-Dream Terius Adamu Ya Gesteelde-Diamant ('' né'' Youngdell Nash; born September 20, 1977), known professionally as The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for having written or co-produced songs for artists in ...

. The song was produced by Jay Electronica, who raps about advice given to him by

Sean Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Mount Ve ...

. The song is Jay Electronica's first collaboration with Jay-Z, who sent in his verse by email as an effort to sign Jay Electronica to a record deal. The song first appeared online in November 2010 and was later rereleased on

Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

in September 2018. The song is the second of two parts, with the first

movement Movement may refer to: Generic uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Movement (sign language), a hand movement when signing * Motion, commonly referred to as movement * Movement (music), a division of a larger co ...

being titled "Dinner at Tiffanys" with a guest feature from English-French actress

Charlotte Gainsbourg Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg (; born 21 July 1971) is a British and French actress and singer. She is the daughter of English actress and singer Jane Birkin and French singer Serge Gainsbourg. After making her musical debut with her father on the ...

. "Shiny Suit Theory" was meant to be included on Jay Electronica's album '' Act II: Patents of Nobility (The Turn)'', but was later included on his debut album '' A Written Testimony'', which was released nearly ten years later in March 2020. The two movements were included on the October 2020 official release of ''Act II'' after the album leaked online.

Background and recording

At the beginning of his career, Jay Electronica would send demo tapes to American rapper

' record label

Bad Boy Records Bad Boy Entertainment, doing business as Bad Boy Records, is an American independent record label. The label was founded in 1993 by rapper and record producer Sean Combs. During the mid-1990s, the label signed hip-hop and contemporary R&B, R&B a ...

as an effort to get signed. In July 2007, Jay Electronica released his debut mixtape '' Act I: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge)''. The mixtape has been described as his breakout project. After the release of the mixtape, Combs contacted Jay Electronica through video chat and then invited him to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

the next day. Jay Electronica continued to garner an underground following with the release of his single "

Exhibit C "Exhibit C" is a song by American hip hop recording artist and record producer Jay Electronica. The song, produced by Just Blaze, was released to iTunes on December 22, 2009, as an EP with explicit, clean and instrumental versions. Background T ...

". Jay Electronica met American rapper

by chance at a birthday celebration for

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

COO Julie Greenwald at

The Spotted Pig The Spotted Pig was a gastropub at 314 West 11th Street (at Greenwich Street) in the West Village in Manhattan in New York City. It was owned by Ken Friedman. Mario Batali was a primary investor. The chef was April Bloomfield, a British expatria ...

. The meeting was followed by "weeks of intense daily communication and creative courtship" related to Jay-Z wanting to sign Jay Electronica to his record label

Roc Nation Roc Nation is an American entertainment company founded by Jay-Z in 2008. Headquartered in New York City, the company is a successor to his previous Roc-A-Fella Records label, with additional offices in Los Angeles and London. It serves as a re ...

. According to American journalist

Miss Info Minya Oh, professionally known as Miss Info, is an American radio personality, podcaster and journalist. Early life and education A native of the North Side of Chicago, Oh is the daughter of Korean immigrants. Oh graduated from Columbia Univ ...

, Jay Electronica knew Jay-Z was serious when he attached a recorded verse to his second reply email. Jay-Z's verse lead to their first collaboration, "Shiny Suit Theory". On November 12, 2010, Jay Electronica officially announced that he had signed to Roc Nation. At the time, Combs was trying to sign Jay Electronica to his own label. Combs stated on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

that he felt betrayed but had no hostility towards Jay Electronica or Jay-Z. On November 15, 2010, Jay Electronica uploaded "Shiny Suit Theory" featuring Jay-Z and American singer

, along with the track "The Announcement", onto his

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

. "Shiny Suit Theory" is the second

of a two-part song, with the first movement being titled "Dinner at Tiffanys". "Dinner at Tiffanys" was composed by British singer-songwriter

The Bullitts Jeymes Samuel (born 27 July 1979), also known by his stage name The Bullitts, is a British filmmaker, singer-songwriter, music producer and composer. He won the 2021 BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer fo ...

, who worked on the movement's strings. English-French actress

had a guest appearance on the movement, though Jay Electronica initially wanted English actress

Julie Andrews Dame Julie Andrews (born Julia Elizabeth Wells; 1 October 1935) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has garnered numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over eight decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Fi ...

. In July 2012, a track list for '' Act II: Patents of Nobility (The Turn)'' was revealed that included the song under the title "Dinner at Tiffanys (The Shiny Suit Theory)" featuring Jay-Z, The-Dream, and Gainsbourg. "Dinner at Tiffanys" was included on the October 2020 released of ''Act II'' after it leaked online.

Composition and lyrics

"Shiny Suit Theory" is built on a sample of "Aint Got the Love (Of One Girl on My Mind)" performed by The Ambassadors. The production features no

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s. The song is scattered with

horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

s and

bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...

s, with "the notes fall ngjust behind the beat." In a December 2010 interview, Jay Electronica explained that in the song, he and Jay-Z are talking to each of their own shrinks. Jay Electronica's verse is based on advice given to him by Combs, who was actively pursuing Jay Electronica at the time to sign a record deal.

Release and promotion

On November 15, 2010, Jay Electronica uploaded "Shiny Suit Theory" onto his SoundCloud along with the track "The Announcement". In August 2017, Jay Electronica uploaded his remastered discography onto YouTube, including "Shiny Suit Theory". In September 2018, the original version of the song was rereleased exclusively to

. On March 12, 2020,

Apple Music Apple Music is an audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users can select music to stream to their device on-demand, or listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the sister internet radio stations Apple Musi ...

revealed the track listing for ''A Written Testimony'' through

. The track listing, written in the

Arabic language Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, contained "Shiny Suit Theory" with only The-Dream listed as a featured artist. Eric Diep of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described the inclusion of the decade-old song on the album as humorous. In July 2014, Jay Electronica performed "Shiny Suit Theory" live with Jay-Z at

The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival (BHF) is an annual celebration of Hip-Hop music and culture. It is produced The Bodega Agency a wholly owned subsidiary of Brooklyn Bodega, Inc. Overview According to the official BHF website, "Our aim is to highli ...

Critical reception

In a November 2010 review, Tom Breihan of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' wrote that on "Shiny Suit Theory", Jay Electronica "finds a track just as ''off'' as he is." Breihan praised Jay-Z's verse, writing that "he can still rap his ass off when the mood strikes him." In March 2020, Andre Gee of

Okayplayer Okayplayer is an online hip-hop and alternative music website and community, described by ''Rolling Stone'' as a "tastemaker" and "an antidote to dull promotional Web sites used by most artists". The community was founded by The Roots' drummer ...

wrote that though " me people rolled their eyes" when the decade-old song was included on the track list for ''A Written Testimony'', it still deserved its place on the album. Gee expressed his opinion that the song still felt fresh.

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel from ''A Written Testimony'' adapted from

. *

– lead vocals, producer, composition, lyrics *

– featured vocals, composition, lyrics *

– featured or uncredited vocals, composition, lyrics *

Tony Dawsey Tony Dawsey is an American mastering engineer at Masterdisk in New York City. He has been active since 1980.Young Guru Gimel Androus Keaton (born February 27, 1974), professionally better known by his pseudonym Young Guru, is an American audio engineer, record producer, disc jockey, and record executive from Wilmington, Delaware. In 2019, Young Guru won a Grammy ...

– recording

Notes

References

{{The-Dream 2010 singles 2010 songs Jay-Z songs The-Dream songs Roc Nation singles Songs written by Jay-Z Songs written by The-Dream