NEW YORK (PIX11) – You probably see “I Love New York” merchandise all over the Empire State, but many New Yorkers may not realize the slogan is also the title of the state’s official song.
The song “I Love New York” was written by “The King of Jingles,” Steve Karmen, in 1977, the same year the state began using the “I ❤️ NY” logo. However, the song was not officially made the state song until 1980, according to the New York State Library.
Karmen, who was born in the Bronx, is credited with creating the “Call Nationwide, 'Cause Nationwide Is On Your Side" campaign and “Trust the Midas touch.” In a conversation with NPR back in 2016, Karmen talked about how he was tasked to write the jingle.
“What happened was [New York] Gov. Hugh Carey knew somebody at an agency called Wells, Rich and Greene. And he said, ‘Will you develop a campaign?’ And they called me and asked me to write a song. And they had I love New York. That was their line. And I wrote the rest of the lyrics. Two years later, it became the state song of New York,” Karmen said.
One of New York’s neighboring states, New Jersey, has never had an official state song. In 2014, a bill was proposed to name five different state songs, but it did not make it out of the Legislature. In early 2024, Assemblyman Joe Danielsen introduced a bill to name “New Jersey State Song,” composed by Dr. Violet Barrett Paterson, as the official state song.
You can listen to New York’s state song here.
Jonathan Rizk is a digital journalist who has covered local news in the New York City and Washington D.C. areas. He has been with PIX11 since August 2022. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter.
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