"I Can" is a single by American rapper Nas from his sixth album, '' God's Son''. It was released internationally February 11, 2003. Unlike the rest of the album, this does not have the

Parental Advisory Advisory (abbreviated PAL) is a warning label introduced by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1985 and adopted by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in 2011. It is placed on audio recordings in recognition of profan ...

''(or Explicit and other labeling on digital stores)'' label on the song, as it is aimed at children. The song peaked at #12 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Composition

Boasting production from

Salaam Remi Salaam Remi Gibbs (born May 14, 1972) is a Grammy winning American record producer known for his association with Nas, Amy Winehouse, Robby, Fugees, Fergie, Estelle, Black Thought, and Miguel, and for his reggae-tinged (often referred to as ...

, the song samples

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's "

Für Elise Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor ( WoO59, Bia515) for solo piano, commonly known as "Für Elise" (, ), is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions. It was not published during his lifetime, only being discovered (by Ludwig Nohl) 40 ye ...

" and the drum break from the Honey Drippers' " Impeach the President".SamplesDB - Nas's Tracks
/ref> The lyrics are positive encouraging kids to stay drug-free and to pursue their dreams, pointing to examples of powerful icons in the African-American community like Oprah Winfrey. Conversely, Nas raps about a friend who was moving up in the music scene, only to fall victim to a debilitating drug addiction that took her career and her looks.

Music video

The music video, directed by Chris Robinson, was shot in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, and contains footage of Nas rapping while children stand around him. The video starts out with the music from the introduction of " Get Down," but it soon transitions into "I Can." As the video starts, a young girl plays Beethoven on a piano in a vacant lot. Later in the video, children are jumping on a mattress in the same lot. The video also contains footage of

break dancing Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in ...

and famous Egyptian structures.

Reception

The single received positive reviews. Christian Hoard of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine labels "I Can" as "a silly stay-in-school ad attached to a Beethoven sample."Hoard, Christian
Review: ''God's Son''
. ''

''. Retrieved on 2012-02-14. This comment may be attributed to the "singsongy"

call and response Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...

chorus featuring the voices of young children.Kim, Serena.
Review: ''God's Son''
. ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down producti ...

'': 135–136. February 2003. Other reviewers appreciated "I Can" more: Jon Robinson of IGN.com claims that on his second single, "Nas delivers some of his most inspiring lyrics to date." "I Can" charted in 2003 at #12 in ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #7 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

, #6 on the

Hot Rap Tracks Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stati ...

and #58 on the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 2003. This is Nas's highest charting single as a lead artist to date.

Media usage

In 2019, the song was used by French life insurance company AXA which dedicates to all people who want to be when they can pursue their dreams. Tennis player

Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American inactive professional tennis player. Considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for ...

is featured in this advert.

Track listing

# "I Can" (Clean Version) (4:13) # "I Can" (Instrumental) (4:14) # "I Can" (Acappella) (4:03)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I Can (Nas Song) 2003 singles Nas songs Music videos directed by Chris Robinson (director) Song recordings produced by Salaam Remi Songs written by Nas Songs about school Songs about drugs 2002 songs Columbia Records singles