Drake’s
long-awaited collaboration with Jay-Z, “Light Up,” has finally
arrived, leaked onto the Web late Wednesday (May 26) by mixtape DJ the Evil
Empire.

In
the song, from Drake’s forthcoming Thank Me Later LP (due June 15), the
young MC rhymes about his fast ascent to fame while Jay-Z, the elder statesman,
gives the So Far Gone star a lesson in living life on the throne.

“But
I just wanna tell the truth/ Before one of these haters loads a couple shells
and shoots,” Drake spits. “The sh– feels like when Fredro Starr/ Was
in ‘Sunset Park’ stunting hard in his yellow goose, yeah/ And I’m a
motherf—ing list target/ But a target nonetheless, and I just started/ Was
that directed at moi? Can’t be/ They must be talking to themselves —
Hov, hands free.”

Later,
the Brooklyn MC talks directly to the Toronto upstart, referencing conspirators
in “The Godfather” and detailing how his rise will bring detractors,
and exactly how they’ll attempt to bring him down.

“Drake,
here’s how they gonna come at you/ With silly rap feuds trying to distract you/
In disguise, in the form of a favor/ The Barzini meet, watch for the traitors/
Uh, I done see it all, done it all/ That’s why none of these dum-dums could dun
him off.”

Earlier
this year, Drake described the track as being similar to the conversations he
has with the legendary rapper.

“It’s
just me and Jay both rapping on it for an extended period of time,” Drake
told MTV News in March. “It’s real rap. I do sing on it, but it’s just on
the hook. It’s great. The perspective, the dynamic on the track — it’s me and
Jay’s relationship on the song, basically. When you hear it, people will be
like, ‘Oh man.’ That’s how we are — just the two. He definitely has guided me a
lot, as far as his words and his advice. We have a real funny rapport. I always
enjoy my conversations with Jay.”

Last
last year, Drake revealed how “Light Up” came together, explaining
how the drum-laden production made him want to recruit Jay-Z for the number.
The two collaborated previously on Hov’s The Blueprint 3’s “Off
That,” but Drake was only featured on the hook.

“When
I heard that beat, the drums that they had come up with, it was like, ‘Man,
this is a moment, this sounds like where I’m at in my life,’ ” Drake said.
“So, we took it and [producer Noah “40” Shebib what he does to
pieces of music that I see potential in — he took it to the next spot.”

“Light
Up” is the most recent track from Thanks Me Later to leak this
week, joining “Fireworks,” his Alicia Keys collaboration that popped
up online on Wednesday. (Via MTV News)