Working with Puff, who has made a career out of mythologizing slick uptown gangsterism, was a perfect pairing. “Puff’s father (a low-level Harlem gangster who was murdered in 1972) was one of those dudes, so Puffy got it honestly,” Jay-Z told me. “Puff had been inviting me to the studio. I would be like, ‘If you got some Biggie-type tracks, let me know.’ A few days after American Gangster was put into place, I went to hear some music; he and his team the Hitmen had used all these soul food samples that were perfect for the period. Puff put the foundation of this album together.”

https://massappeal.com/jay-z-reflects-american-gangster-tenth-anniversary