Inside the new ‘Book of HOV’ exhibit at the Brooklyn Public Library

By Curtis Rowser III

“The Book of HOV” is open. Jay-Z is the subject of an ambitious, sprawling, 40,000-square-foot temporary exhibit at Brooklyn’s Central Library, unveiled Friday.

The announcement followed a week of teases during which lyrics to some of the rappers biggest hits were plastered all over the library’s Grand Army Plaza branch facade. On Thursday night, the man himself was in the house to attend a closed-to-the-public opening party that also featured a special appearance by his wife Beyoncé and their daughter Blue Ivy.

The Central Branch facade, covered in Jay-Z lyrics (Photo by Curtis Rowser III)

The exhibit, now available to the public, was put together by Jay-Z’s entertainment group Roc Nation and was not only a surprise to the public but also to Jay-Z himself who saw it for the first time at Thursday’s event. Christine Schonhart, the director of Central Library, described the exhibition as a “real labor of love from the Roc Nation team who knows Jay-Z the best.”

“I know he wouldn’t let us do this,” said Desiree Perez, the chief executive of Jay-Z’s entertainment empire Roc Nation, told The New York Times about keeping the elaborate scheme from their boss. “This could never happen if he was involved.”

Months in the making, and kept under tight wraps until Friday’s press preview, the exhibit is an immersive and thought-provoking showcase that delves into Jay-Z’s life, artistry, business endeavors and social justice efforts. With a blend of personal artifacts, archives, information, multimedia displays and interactive experiences, “The Book of HOV” offers visitors an opportunity to explore the evolution of one of the more influential figures in contemporary popular culture. On display are his Grammys, hard drives with his master recordings, never-before-seen photos, original show notes and much more.

Photo by Curtis Rowser III

“It’s really the breadth and depth of Jay-Z’s history in hip-hop,” says Schonhart. “Jay’s story in a very uniquely Brooklyn story. Brooklyn Public Library is very uniquely Brooklyn. The ability to have this in our space, free and open to everybody in Brooklyn, is really exciting.”

The exhibit is presented in eight chapters, though visitors can experience it in any order. Whether walking around aimlessly or following the numbers, as visitors make their way around the exhibit, they encounter a vivid tapestry of Jay-Z’s progression as an artist and businessman.

One of the more captivating chapters, Section III, depicts Baseline Studios — a famous Manhattan recording studio where Jay-Z recorded many of his classic albums like “The Blueprint” and “The Black Album.” The room is filled with real equipment and allows visitors to envision what it would have been like to sit in the room where the magic on the mic happened.

Photo by Curtis Rowser III

There is also a specially curated selection of books that influenced Jay-Z and more than 200 records that he either produced or sampled available to explore and check out.

The tour concluded on the second level of the library in a memorabilia-filled, dimly lit space intended to be an area for meditation. Visitors are encouraged to spend some time here reflecting on their own goals and setting their intentions on how they should go about achieving them.

To go along with the exhibit, Roc Nation and Brooklyn Public Library produced 13 limited-edition library cards — each representing one of Jay-Z’s solo albums. A few of the cards are currently available, exclusively at Central Library and Marcy Library, while the rest will be made available at other Brooklyn Public Libraries on August 7. The end goal is to encourage people to become new library members.

“We’re hoping that the limited-edition card will encourage youth and people who’ve never been to the library before to come get a library card and access everything else that we offer,” says Damaris Olivo, the director of communications at Brooklyn Public Library. “The overall story here is betting on yourself. Roc Nation and BPL are hoping that Brooklyn youth will be inspired by this story and also learn about everything the library has to offer and take advantage of our programming and services.”

There is no set end date for the exhibit, but the staff says it will be sometime in the fall. Getting out to check this exhibit should be on the top of everyone’s to-do list before it’s over.

And to all the library regulars, the library will still be open for business as usual while the exhibit lasts.