Brooklyn, New York

Everything Brooklyn is known for

217 songs mention this city 107 artists from here

Brooklyn, New York, a vibrant and diverse borough, has a rich musical identity. It is known for its artsy feeling, its diversity, and its community. Many influential artists call Brooklyn home, including hip-hop legends like Jay-Z and The Notorious B.I.G., as well as indie artist Mitski and pop icon Cyndi Lauper. The borough is also mentioned in numerous songs, such as "Microphone Murderer" by The Notorious B.I.G. and "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" by Lincoln Swayze.

Music in Brooklyn

Songs About Brooklyn

Microphone Murderer
The Notorious B.I.G.
98%
"The crew stay deep on Bedford and Quincy"
Coney Isle
Roscoe Holcomb
98%
"I'm on my way, I'm going back to Coney Isle"
Numb / Encore
Jay-Z
96%
"From Marcy to Madison Square"
Unorthodox
Joey Allcorn
95%
"I’m a Brooklyn nigga, basically I grind with the grimiest"
Christ Conscious
Joey Allcorn
85%
"Beast coast, nigga Pro Era in your area"
Dodgers Were In Brooklyn
The Great Divide
83%
Brooklyn NYC
Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank
83%
No Sleep Till Brooklyn
Lincoln Swayze
83%
"No Sleep Till Brooklyn (song title)"
Brooklyn (for Leah)
Sleeping Jesus
83%
Brooklyn Folk Song (feat. Ben Eunson; Jay Sawyer; Josh Allen & Tuomo Uusitalo)
Nicholas Brust
80%
Brooklyn
Austin Meade
78%
Brooklyn Go Hard
Jay-Z
77%
Brooklyn James Bond
loyalties & Omigie
77%
Breakin Bad (Okay)
Sleepy Hallow
70%
"They love me in my city, swear they treat me like the president"
Unaccommodating
Eminem
60%
"And you're from the school of Notorious, Puba, Cube and The Poor Righteous Teachers tutored my students"
big poppa
the notorious B.I.G.
60%
mo money mo problems
the notorious B.I.G.
60%
Empire State of Mind
Jay-Z
55%
"Yeah, I'm out that Brooklyn, now I'm down in Tribeca"
Trife Life
Mobb Deep
55%
"Plus, this trick live in Brooklyn, home of the coffin"
Tell the Vision
Pop Smoke
55%
"Pop was talkin' about Brooklyn and the place Brooklyn was at"

Showing top 20 of 217 songs

Artists From Brooklyn

J
Jay-Z
hip-hop Pop: 84
H
HUNTR/X
electronic Pop: 81
M
Mitski
indie Pop: 81
T
The Notorious B.I.G.
hip-hop Pop: 78
P
Pop Smoke
hip-hop Pop: 76
B
Big Daddy Kane
hip-hop Pop: 72
B
Busta Rhymes
hip-hop Pop: 72
C
Cyndi Lauper
pop Pop: 71
S
Sleepy Hallow
hip-hop Pop: 70
N
Neil Diamond
rock Pop: 70
B
Big Thief
indie Pop: 69
J
Joey Bada$$
hip-hop Pop: 69
M
M.O.P.
hip-hop Pop: 69
M
MC Lyte
hip-hop Pop: 68
G
Geese
rock Pop: 67
F
Fabolous
hip-hop Pop: 66
G
GZA
hip-hop Pop: 66
L
Lil' Kim
hip-hop Pop: 66
M
Mos Def
hip-hop Pop: 66
R
Ro$ama
hip-hop Pop: 66

Showing top 20 of 107 artists

Rivers & Roads in Song near Brooklyn

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Brooklyn.

Interstate 95 13 songs New Jersey Turnpike 4 songs Hudson River 8 songs

Musical Heritage

CBGB — Birthplace of American Punk RoadyGoat

1973

The narrow storefront at 315 Bowery was CBGB, the grimy club where American punk and new wave were essentially born. Hilly Kristal opened it in December 1973, and the name is one of music's great ironies: CBGB & OMFUG stood for 'Country, BlueGrass, Blues, and Other Music For Uplifting Gourmandizers' (Kristal meant a 'voracious eater' — of music). Almost no country or bluegrass ever played there. Instead the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, Patti Smith and Television cut their teeth on its tiny stage through the 1970s. CBGB closed on October 15, 2006 over a lease dispute, and Kristal died of lung cancer the following year. The space later became a John Varvatos clothing boutique (opened April 2008), which kept some of the club's graffiti and posters; 'CBGB 73' is still etched in the cement at the entrance.

5.6 mi away

Holsten's — The Sopranos' Cut-to-Black Diner RoadyGoat

1939

Holsten's Brookdale Confectionery sits at 1063 Broad Street in Bloomfield, an old-fashioned ice cream parlor and candy shop that has been making its own chocolate and ice cream since 1939 (and is still open). It earned a permanent place in TV history on June 10, 2007, when 'Made in America,' the series finale of HBO's 'The Sopranos,' filmed its last scene in one of Holsten's vinyl booths. Tony Soprano, played by James Gandolfini, ordered onion rings and punched up Journey's 'Don't Stop Believin'' on the jukebox before the screen abruptly cut to black for roughly ten seconds — an ending so sudden many viewers thought their cable had failed. The original booth became a fan shrine, but it was actually sold at auction in March 2024 for about 82,600 dollars; the shop welcomes fans to sit in its place today.

16.0 mi away

History of Brooklyn

Junior's Restaurant RoadyGoat

Harry Rosen opened Junior's on the corner of Flatbush and DeKalb in Brooklyn in 1950. The cheesecake — dense, creamy, on a sponge-cake base — became so famous that Junior's ships thousands nationwide every holiday season. The neon sign and vinyl booths are Brooklyn institutions. When downtown Brooklyn gentrified around it, Junior's held firm.

3.2 mi away

Peter Luger Steak House RoadyGoat

Peter Luger has been serving porterhouse steaks in Williamsburg, Brooklyn since 1887. The German-style beer hall turned steakhouse earned a Michelin star and held Zagat's top steakhouse rating for 30 consecutive years. The ordering ritual is simple — you get the porterhouse for two, three, or four. The steak sauce, sold in bottles, has its own cult following. When the New York Times gave it zero stars in 2019, New Yorkers revolted. The place hasn't changed, and that's the point.

4.2 mi away

Nathan's Famous RoadyGoat

In 1916, Nathan Handwerker quit his job at a competing hot dog stand and opened his own on the Coney Island boardwalk, undercutting the competition at five cents a dog. Doctors from nearby Coney Island Hospital ate there in their white coats to make the place look respectable. Every Fourth of July, the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest draws millions of viewers. The original stand still anchors the corner of Surf and Stillwell.

5.4 mi away

Brooklyn Bridge

1869

The Brooklyn Bridge, completed in 1883, was the first steel-wire suspension bridge and the longest suspension bridge in the world for twenty years.

4.6 mi away

World Trade Center / Ground Zero

2001

Site of the September 11, 2001 attacks that destroyed the Twin Towers and killed 2,977 people.

5.4 mi away

Ellis Island Immigration Station

1892

From 1892 to 1954, over twelve million immigrants entered the United States through Ellis Island in New York Harbor.

5.8 mi away

CBGB

1973

CBGB at 315 Bowery was the birthplace of American punk rock, launching the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, and Television.

5.7 mi away

Ellis Island (New Jersey Side)

1892

In 1998, the Supreme Court ruled that most of Ellis Island's landmass belongs to New Jersey, not New York.

5.8 mi away

Tin Pan Alley

1885

The stretch of West 28th Street between Broadway and Sixth Avenue where the American popular music publishing industry was born.

7.0 mi away

Things to Do in Brooklyn

historical 5.7 mi away
Statue of Liberty

Give me your tired your poor. 305 feet of copper freedom since 1886.
food 1.8 mi away
Di Fara Pizza

One man hand-cutting basil and drizzling olive oil on every pizza since 1965 in Brooklyn.
food 4.2 mi away
Peter Luger Steak House

Brooklyn's legendary porterhouse palace since 1887. Cash only. The steak sauce is iconic. Zagat's top steakhouse for 30 straight years.
food 5.4 mi away
Katz's Delicatessen

I'll have what she's having. NYC's legendary pastrami since 1888.
food 5.4 mi away
Nathan's Famous (Original)

The Coney Island hot dog stand that started it all in 1916. Home of the July 4th eating contest. Mustard not ketchup.
food 5.5 mi away
Lombardi's Pizza

America's first pizzeria opened in 1905 on Spring Street in Manhattan. Coal-fired oven. The original New York slice started here.
food 5.8 mi away
McSorley's Old Ale House

NYC's oldest bar since 1854. Lincoln drank here. You get light or dark — that's it. Sawdust floors and wishbones on the gas lamp.
historical 11.0 mi away
Apollo Theater

Amateur Night launched Ella James Brown and a young Michael Jackson. Harlem's crown jewel.

Everything Near Brooklyn

360 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

Explore Brooklyn on the Map
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