Jay-Z Decodes "Lost One" Verse, "Just When You're On The Verge Of Giving Up Hope..."

While his Decoded re-release is still weeks away from hitting bookshelves, rap mogul Jay-Z has leaked an excerpt from the book: the story behind his 2006 Kingdom Come track, "Lost One".

Decoding his verse, Jay explains the parrarel between life and death in relation to the unexpected passing of a family member.

"My nephew died in the car I bought/So I'm under the belief it's partly my fault / Close my eyes and squeeze, try to block that thought / Place any burden on me, but please, not that lord -- Your girlfriend's pregnant, the lord's gift / Almost lost my faith, that restored it" ("Lost One")
"My nephew Colleek died in a car accident while driving the car I bought him for his high school graduation...Just when you're on the verge of giving up hope and losing faith, the universe reveals unexpected consolations. My nephew's girlfriend was just a couple months pregnant when he died, which none of us knew, maybe not even him. But the son she gave birth to looked just like his father, like Colleek reborn. The last verse is the most powerful example of the paradox of the song's chorus, that even the greatest loss holds the possibility of redemption." (New York Mag)

Reports of Jay's intent to re-release his Decoded book emerged online earlier this month.

Just one year after Jay-Z's Decoded hit bookshelves, the New York Times bestselling book will be re-released on November 1. Featured in a new expanded paper back, the re-release will contain a new chapter, seven additional illustrations, three decoded songs: "I Know", "Young Gz", "Lost One" and a new afterword. (Rap Radar)

The new afterword from Jay's upcoming revitalized Decoded has also been unveiled.

"What still excites me about rap is that it's an open thread, a cipher that listeners find their own meanings in. The point of this book is not to settle arguments or transform rap songs into neat stories with a beginning, middle, and end. Rather, I'm trying to point readers to some ideas and information, get them to see deeper into the music than they saw before and learn more about worlds different from their own (or find new ways of looking at the worlds they already know)--to find their own meanings and connect them back to their own lives. I want readers to see the craft and learn the context--and I want them to still be able to feel the magic, and enjoy the show. --JAY-Z, from the new Afterword" (Decoded)

Jay's book broke into the New York Times Best Sellers list last November.

Jay-Z is no stranger to sitting high on the charts when it comes to his music career, which makes the Brooklyn rapper's No. 3 debut on 'The New York Times' Best Sellers list an expected achievement. The Roc Nation head honcho's memoir 'Decoded' landed on the Hardcover Nonfiction edition of the newspaper's Best Sellers list for the week of December 5. Coming in at the top of the list are George W. Bush's 'Decision Points' and Lauren Hillenbrand's 'Unbroken.' (The Boom Box)

The Decoded re-release drops Tuesday, November 1st.