[2] The title is slang for money because portraits of dead United States presidents appear on most Federal Reserve Notes.

"Dead Presidents" samples multiple artists including Lonnie Liston Smith's "A Garden of Peace"[4][5] for the track's melody and A Tribe Called Quest's "Oh My God (remix)" for its percussion; the chorus is a sample of Nas rapping "I'm out for dead presidents to represent me", from his 1994 song "The World Is Yours (Tip Mix)".

[6] When Nas and Jay-Z directly feuded, both rappers discussed the merit of the sampling in the song in individual "diss" records.

And you ain't get a coin nigga you was gettin' fucked then; I know who I paid God, Serchlite Publishing.The line was later used in Cassidy's 2005 hit "I'm a Hustla": Yeah I used dude's voice props to the boy Shawn, He made it a hot line, I made it a hot song.In 2005 at Jay-Z's I Declare War concert, he performed "Dead Presidents II" with Nas, officially ending their feud.

Notable artists to release versions of Dead Presidents include Charles Hamilton, Lil B, Lil' Wayne, Drake, Slug of Atmosphere, Chamillionaire, J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T, Akala, Lupe Fiasco, Kano, Logic, Slaughterhouse, AZ, Curren$y, and DJ Premier, who recorded a version with reworked instrumentals from Jay-Z's original lyrics and vocals from Nas' The World is Yours (Remix).