Although, Elvis Mitchell of the Contra Costa Times noted, hardcore fans are already familiar with the rivalries of the rap business. It just tosses the viewer into this musical experience, which will seem vital to some and depressing and repetitious to others. In , Jay-Z was preparing to release his fourth album. It's a gift. A gift from God. He talked about how his life had changed in the few short years of his success.
Street people start thinking that maybe you've gone soft. But I'm the same dude. That's why I did the song, 'Come and Get Me. In , Jay-Z and Dash established Rocawear clothing company. In early December of , Jay-Z was charged with first-degree assault and second-degree assault after Untertainment Records executive Lance "Un" Rivera was stabbed once in the stomach and once in the shoulder. According to Newsweek , Jay-Z suspected that Rivera had released bootleg copies of his fourth album, an act that would lead to the loss of millions of dollars in rightful profits.
When the two came face to face at a record-release party for rapper Q-Tip held in a New York nightclub, eyewitnesses reported that there was an altercation between the two. In the commotion that followed, Rivera was stabbed. At his arraignment in early , Jay-Z pleaded not guilty. In the weeks between the stabbing incident in New York, and the release of his new album, Jon Caramanica talked about Jay-Z's difficult week in early December of In hiphop, where crime is often flipped as a marketing tool, having your artist splashed across the cover of the Daily News may well work financial wonders, but that option seems absurd for a man in Jay's position.
Still, the very existence of such a theory hints at an underlying belief that Jay, of all rappers, is too smart to go out like this. Business, never personal.
He told Vibe , "Everything happens for a reason. It's another learning experience for me. Despite the mixed reviews of Vol. The album was an instant platinum success, emphasizing that he still had the power to be a number-one seller in the genre he helped to define.
Hetold Vibe , "I could make records as long as I have the desire to really dig deep and challenge myself to do it. I can do it for as long as I want. Already in the public eye in with a chart-topping duet with R. Selling nearly a half million albums in less than a week, The Blueprint was universally praised by critics and loved by fans.
The first track on the album, "Takeover, " was a searing attack on New York rapper Nas Nas would reply with his own track, "Ether, " attacking Jay-Z in the following weeks , a five-minute narrative over a blistering, thumping sample of the Doors' "Five to One. There are 12 other songs on The Blueprint — and they're all stunning, to the point where the album almost seems flawless.
In the months that followed, the battle with Nas heated up. Among concerns that the battle could result in tragedy as was the case with the Notorious B. Performing the track "Takeover, " he referred to the act of the battle as "the truest essence of hip-hop, " but one whose place was solely in recorded material.
Jay-Z was the first hip-hop artist to record an MTV Unplugged session, and Jay-Z's material translated to the format surprisingly well. Dre, Lenny Kravitz, and Beyonce Knowles, followed within a year. The release was generally thought to be unfocused and too long; many reviewers agreed that if Jay-Z had edited the album down to a single disc, it would've been another classic. All Music Guide reviewer John Bush observed: "It's clear Jay-Z's in control even here, and though his raps can't compete with the concentrated burst on The Blueprint , there's at least as many great tracks on tap, if only listeners have enough time to find them.
Jay-Z began talking about retiring from the stage even before releasing The Blueprint 2. He told reporters that his next album, the follow-up to The Blueprint 2 , would be his final official release. The original concept for the release was to make a prequel to Reasonable Doubt , with no guest stars and a different producer for each track. What resulted was The Black Album. Though somewhat removed from the original concept, Jay-Z often and rightfully referred to the release as his most introspective album.
I love that. But it ain't hot. During his hiatus from rapping, Jay-Z turned his attention to the business side of music, becoming president of Def Jam Recordings. But his reign at the venerable hip-hop label wasn't all smooth sailing; Jay-Z resigned as Def Jam's president in , complaining about the company's resistance to change from ineffectual business models.
Jay-Z's other, ongoing business ventures include the popular urban clothing line Rocawear and Roc-A-Fella films. In , Jay-Z ended his retirement from making music, releasing the new album Kingdom Come.
He soon released two more albums: American Gangster in and Blueprint 3 in This trio of later albums marked a significant departure from Jay-Z's earlier sound, incorporating stronger rock and soul influences in their production and offering lyrics tackling such mature subjects as the response to Hurricane Katrina; Barack Obama's election; and the perils of fame and fortune. Jay-Z says he's trying to adapt his music to befit his own middle age. Jay-Z released his tenth album entitled American Gangster on November 6, After viewing the Ridley Scott film of the same name, Jay-Z was heavily inspired to create a new "concept" album that depicts his experiences as a street-hustler.
The album is not the film's official soundtrack, although it was distributed by Def Jam. At the start of the album's first single, "Blue Magic", Jay-Z offers a dealer's manifesto while making references to political figures of the late s with the lyric: "Blame Reagan for making me to into a monster, blame Oliver North and Iran-Contra, I ran contraband that they sponsored, before this rhymin' stuff we was in concert.
This super deal created a joint venture called Roc Nation, an entertainment company that handles nearly all aspects of its artists' careers. Cole among others. More recently, Jay-Z proved that he had both commercial and critical staying power. He teamed up with another famous member of rap royalty, Kanye West , for 's Watch the Throne.
Two years after the release of a collaboration album with West, both rappers dropped solo albums within weeks of the other's release date. West's album, Yeezus , was critically lauded for its innovation, while his mentor Jay-Z's album gained less than stellar reviews. The rappers 12th studio album, Magna Carta Holy Grail , was seen as decent but failed to live up to the hip-hop stars larger-than-life reputation and his unhumbly titled album. The couple even managed to keep the press away from their small wedding, which was held on April 4, , in New York City.
They welcomed their first child, a daughter named Blue Ivy Carter, on January 7, Shortly after the birth of his daughter, Jay-Z released a song in her honor on his website. In early June , posters were displayed in New York City and Los Angeles, as well as banner ads on the Internet promoting a Tidal-related project titled On June 18, the project was confirmed to be a new Jay-Z album, and a clip featuring a song titled "Adnis" was posted on Sprint's YouTube page.
The album is the first in a planned series of music exclusives from the Sprint—Tidal partnership. For a short time, on July 2, the album was made available for free digital download in Tidal's site. In June , Forbes named Jay-Z the first billionaire rap artist, citing his ownership stakes in Armand de Brignac champagne and Uber as contributing factors. Shortly afterward, he entered another burgeoning industry by becoming chief brand strategist of the California-based Caliva cannabis company.
We are now alongside some of the greatest writers in history. Later that month, on June 30, Jay-Z released his 13th solo album, , exclusively to Tidal and Sprint subscribers. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America less than a week after its release, solely based on download numbers.
In an interview which aired on iHeartMedia, Jay-Z called the title track, " ," " one of the best songs I've ever written. But how, when you have some type of success, to transform that into something bigger. When the list of the year's Grammy hopefuls was announced November, Jay-Z led the way with eight nominations for his work on He wound up getting shut out when the winners were announced the following January, though he did receive the Salute to Industry Icons Award.
The tour kicked off in Cardiff, Wales, on June 6, and 10 days later, the couple gave their fans another reason to get excited with the release of a joint album, Everything Is Love.
After staying out of the political arena for much of his career, Jay-Z emerged as a strong supporter of Obama during his first campaign for president in He appeared at rallies and had only high praise for the African American candidate.
Martin Luther King walked so that Obama could run. Obama's running so we all can fly. Jay-Z once again backed Obama for his re-election bid.
That same year, he stepped forward as a supporter of gay marriage. As he told CNN, denying same-sex couples the right to wed "is no different than discriminating against Blacks. It's discrimination plain and simple. Additionally, the two sides agreed to work together on social activism efforts through the NFL's Inspire Change initiative.
The announcement was criticized by supporters of Colin Kaepernick , the quarterback who hadn't played in the NFL since igniting a national anthem-kneeling controversy in , but the hip-hop mogul expressed a belief that he could affect the social change sought by Kaepernick by working with the powerful sports league.
We seek to identify things that we want to be a part of and things that we believe that we can add value to, and we step in and we come with these ideas. The couple even managed to keep the press away from their small wedding, which was held on April 4, , in New York City. Shortly after the birth of his daughter, Jay-Z released a song in her honor on his site.
We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishes. The Carters," she posted. Although the couple didn't immediately confirm the twins' birth or their names, People magazine reported that they had filed trademark documents at the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the names Sir and Rumi.
In an article published by T: The New York Times Style Magazine in November , Jay-Z opened up about his marital problems, acknowledged his infidelity and discussed how he and his wife were able to rediscover their bond through therapy.
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