Jay-Z
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter, known by his stage name Jay Z, is an American rapper, entrepreneur and investor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists in America. In 2014, Forbes estimated Jay Z's net worth at nearly $520 million. He is one of the world's best-selling artists of all time, having sold more than 100 million records, while receiving 21 Grammy Awards for his musical work, and numerous additional nominations. Consistently ranked as one of the greatest...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionRapper
Date of Birth4 December 1969
CityBrooklyn, NY
CountryUnited States of America
I love that because that's what I'm supposed to be doing - whether it's accepted b everybody or not. I'm supposed to be pushing that envelope and trying new things. And people are supposed to say, Hov, you might have went too far.
No matter where you go you are what you are player and you can try to change but that's just the top layer man you was who you was before you got here
I'm trying to tell the story in the most clear, concise, and truthful way, taking those everyday words and phrases and capturing them in a way that they become something else.
They say a midget standing on a giant's shoulders can see much further than the giant. So I got the whole rap world on my shoulders, they trying to see further than I am.
I was forced to be an artist and a CEO from the beginning, so I was forced to be like a businessman because when I was trying to get a record deal, it was so hard to get a record deal on my own that it was either give up or create my own company.
Nine to five is how ya survive, I ain't trying to survive I'm trying to live it to the limit and love it alive
I think relationships are broken up because of the media.
Rap for me is like making movies, telling stories, and getting the emotions of the songs through in just as deep a way. And I grew up in rap and movies the same way.
You make your first album, you make some money, and you feel like you still have to show face, like 'I still go to the projects.' I'm like, why? Your job is to inspire people from your neighborhood to get out. You grew up there. What makes you think it's so cool?
When the TV version of Annie came on, I was drawn to it. It was the struggle of this poor kid in this environment and how her life changed. It immediately resonated.
So many people that I've seen can't get clean water. It's a crime.
The day Obama got elected, the gangsta became less relevant.
I wrote this [Most Kings] before MJ died, and his death only proves my point: When he was alive, the King of Pop, people were tireless in taking him down, accepting as truth every accusation people made against him, assuming the worst until they drove him away. When he died, suddenly he was beloved again - people realized that the charges against him might really have been bogus, and that the skin lightening was really caused by a disease, and that his weirdness was part of his artistry. But when he was alive and on top, they couldn't wait to bring him down.
We create music to express ourselves and when the world relates, that’s a beautiful thing. We’re all trading off each other’s culture, so no matter what lines you put-country indie rock, rap, we’re all somehow gonna find a way to come together.