Brooklyn’s Rebirth: Barclays Center Ushers In A New Era!

As New York City approaches a new tourist record, Brooklyn has found a way to reinvent itself. As of today, the Grand Opening of the new Barclays Center will keep New York as the world’s #1 tourist destination.

Today marks a new beginning for Brooklyn. After years of planning, construction is final finished and there’s a NEW resident in town. The Barclays Center will play host to 220 events in its first year of opening.

The first eight nights are reserved for Nets co-owner/Hip-Hop mogul Jay-Z. It’s fitting. Being a Brooklyn native himself, Jay is the illustration of the “American Dream”, well sort of. Despite his days of hustling (something that should not be glamorized), Jay was able to turn his back on the drug game and make his way into the rap game. Going down as one of the best rappers in the game, Jay managed to turn himself into a respectable businessman.

“Usually I don’t do this but, uh go on and break em off with the preview of the remix.” Jay-Z

No one’s more excited to usher in a new era more than Jay. Yesterday he shared his joy on social media. The Brooklyn Nets is his pride and joy. Formerly a court side resident at Madison Square Garden, Jay can now afford the luxuries of choosing one of the 101 luxury suites provided by the arena. As if that’s not enough, the Barclays Center houses 3 clubs (one of which is his very own 40/40 club franchise).

According to owner Bruce Ratner, “there’s not a bad seat in the house.” The arena holds 18.103 seats for basketball fans, 14,500 seats for hockey fans, and 19,000 seats for concertgoers. There’s also a variety of foods including kosher and non kosher selections. The Barclays Center is the first arena in New York City to adopt the soda ban policy enacted by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. If you’re looking for a sugar fix, load up before the event because beverages will not exceed 16 ounces.

If the new arena and food isn’t enough to cheer about, then perhaps some cheerleaders will do the trick. Weeks ago, the Brooklyn Nets cheerleaders debuted their new threads to a mix response. Normally cheerleaders wear the same uniforms, so I’m unsure at this point if variety is the new initiative or this is what fans will see during the course of a season.

As the Brooklyn Nets adopt new fans, fashion will be play a major role and retailers will cash in. Everything from New Era fitted’s to custom gear, the Brooklyn Nets brand is estimated to reach over a million in sales by year’s end. According to ESPN.com, merchandise sales doubled on the official Nets website the day the logo was introduced.

It’s a New Era for Brooklyn, and we’re not talking fitted’s! Tonight marks the rebirth of a historic city. The Barclays Center will give birth to a new culture. It’s an introduction to a new generation, and thankfully, we are all witnesses.

HELLO BROOKLYN!!!

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