 Driven by the piano and saxophone sample of the Fatback Band's "Gotta Learn How To Dance", "Streets of New York" is a hardcore hip hop song about the social issues in New York City's ghettos, such as alcoholism, domestic violence, drug abuse, gambling addiction, gun violence, homelessness, police corruption, poverty and prostitution.In a 2014 interview, Kool G Rap recalled his inspiration for the song