Mary Boone

Born in 1952 to working-class Egyptian immigrants, Mary Boone established herself as a powerful force in the New York art market during the 1980s. The owner and director of the Mary Boone Gallery, she had an eye for talent as sharp as a diamond cutter. Combine that with a business sense that could charm a shark out of its teeth, and you've got a recipe for launching artistic careers. Big names like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Julian Schnabel owed a big chunk of their early success to Boone's hustle. But the art world is a fickle beast, and the good times of the '80s eventually hit a rough patch in the '90s. Then, in 2018, things went from bumpy to full-on car crash. Boone landed herself in hot water, pleading guilty to federal tax fraud charges. Prison time and a hefty dent in the bank account followed, a cautionary tale for any aspiring art mogul with a fondness for creative accounting. This song is named after the art dealer and collector.

Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig uses Boone as a jumping-off point for a story about a wide-eyed newcomer trying to break into the New York City jungle. This newbie, full of starry-eyed ambition, is desperate for a job at Boone's prestigious gallery. But the song takes a deeper turn, exploring themes of lost love and the ever-changing face of the city.

According to Koenig, the song is about "wave after wave of ambitious people" chasing their dreams in the Big Apple. Boone, with her rags-to-riches-and-back-again story, becomes a symbol of that relentless pursuit. The lyrics even hint at Boone's tax troubles, with lines like "Oh, my love, was it all in vain? We always wanted money, now the money's not the same."