Sean's Spiel

By Sean Mendelson

"H to the izz-O, V to the izz-A. Fo' shizzle my nizzle used to dribble down in VA.

H to the izz-O, V to the izz-A. That's the anthem get'cha damn hands up!"

I have struggled to understand this chorus for "Izzo (H.O.V.A)," Jay-Z's hit single from his album, The Blueprint.

What does H.O.V.A mean in the context of this rap song? At first I heard it was Jay-Z's last name then I heard it was a reference to Jehova(God). After extensive research I found that H.O.V.A refers to "Jayhova," one of Jay-Z's many nicknames.

I wanted to know why Jay-Z wants us to proclaim this as an "anthem." According to Sonic Net, the song depicts, "The "mayor"[Jayhova] venting about the pitfalls of being a leader."

Jay-Z said of "Izzo," which samples the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back," "I'm gonna give it to you the way it came out the ghetto, the way I'm supposed to. And it's up to you to decipher it."

See, it's the deciphering part I have trouble with Mr. Z.

Some definitions: The "izzos" in the song come from a new form of rap called "Doggy Style." Jay Z's proclamation of Jayhova is an example of how hip-hop was built on the art of bragging and boasting (Vibe on-line).[You should have figured by this point that I'm not a hard core hip-hop fan but I've always been intrigued by the rap lingo.]

When asked by MTV.com what the point of the supplemental video was, Jay-Z said, "I just want to let them know I'm right here on top."

I decided I want to be "on top" like Jay-Z so figured I'd start by changing my name. First I analyzed the "poppa-diddy-pop" nature of the rap name game.

Jay-Z has alias' like Jigga, Jayhova, Shawn Carter(real name), and S. Carter(his name in the album notes). The last name comes from a Jay-Z track called "Dope Man ": "They call me dope man, dope man / I try to tell them I'm what hope floats man / A ghetto spokesman."

Then there is Sean "Puffy" Combs with all his names that I won't even get into.

It only makes sense to change my name since I have the same first name as these men. From now on you can call me by any of these names: Spieler(kinda like jigga), Son of Mendel(sounds holier-than-thou, like Jayhova), and S. Middy(my apparent P. Diddy homage).

Even my roommates have rap names now. There's A. Hiddy, C. Liddy and J. Ratty.

Until next time, this is Sean E. Baby signing off.