Decoded is a hybrid autobiography, memoir, social analysis, and poetry annotation written by Jay-Z. In Decoded, Jay-Z details his life growing up in Brooklyn, falling in love with music, falling into selling drugs for a living, and eventually rising to the precipice of the music industry. The book reads like a good-ole-days conversation over wine at a five-star restaurant in Tribeca, full of quips, rabbitholes, or his opinion on whatever rock band. However, at the end of every section, the reader is greeted with the lyrics of a few of his songs, which he discusses and annotates in order to breakdown them down and open up space for more conversation about the bars.