Jay-z
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LL COOL J is back in album mode and hitting the press circuit as he preps for the release of his 14th full-length project, The FORCE. In a new interview with media personality Charlamagne Tha God, LL COOL J discusses his legacy along with his brief beef with JAY-Z and more in their chat.
LL COOL J, 56, was the first guest for Charlamagne Tha God’s new series, Out Of Context, and the pair launched into an easygoing conversation that centers on LL’s status as a GOAT of the culture with the celebrated rapper showing massive amounts of humility throughout.
At the start of the interview, LL challenges the idea of what legacy means in Hip-Hop culture, reminding viewers that at the very least, this is an art form open for interpretation and you can’t worry about the perception from the fans. LL is also aware that releasing music in the age of the Internet is different from his beginnings in 1985 when he was still a teenager.
Around the 50-minute mark, Charlamagne Tha God raised the point of how battling in Hip-Hop has taken a new turn with LL making mention of the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef while adding that in these types of contests, you can’t take it personally.
However, Charlamagne inquired about a long-running rumor that LL and JAY-Z battled in a parking lot in the 1990s with Sauce Money, then affiliated with Roc-A-Fella Records, attempting to challenge the Queens rapper as well. LL explains that JAY-Z also began rapping but shared that he ran out of rhymes but it didn’t appear that he was deeply affected by the moment.
Check out the full interview below with Charlamagne Tha God and LL COOL J.
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Jay-Z is turning his love of timepieces into a business play. He has invested into Wristcheck, a watch marketplace.
As spotted on Hypebeast, the media mogul is taking his business acumen to the world of horology. This week Bloomberg News reported that Jay-Z has taken on a stake into Wristcheck. According to the feature, the company recently conducted a round of funding, which the “Brooklyn’s Finest” rapper participated in. It is estimated that he invested about $5 million dollars, which would give him minority equity into the Hong Kong based brand.
On Tuesday, July 2, Wristcheck confirmed the partnership via their Instagram account. “The news is out. We’re thrilled to welcome legendary 24-time Grammy Award-winning artist, business mogul, and fellow watch aficionado Jay-Z on board as an investor of Wristcheck,” the statement read. “The godfather of celebrity watch collectors, Jay-Z is a visionary who shaped modern watch culture as we know it today. His investment speaks volumes about the trust and credibility we’ve built since founding Wristcheck in late 2020 – and it’s all thanks to you, our incredible community. We couldn’t have done it without your trust and support.”
Jay-Z has been a long time collector of luxury timepieces. Business Insider estimates the value of his watch collection to be around the $25 million mark. Jiggaman has yet to comment on the matter.
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There is a thin line between competition and conflict and in the ever-evolving landscape of Rap and Hip-Hop, all it takes is a few words or actions to tilt the scale towards beef.
At their best, the beefs gave us quotables and songs that have become a part of our cultural catalogue from KRS-One’s iconic lines on “The Bridge is Over” or Jay-Z’s jab at Nas’ iconic song “The World is Mine” on “Takeover.” At their worst, the beefs led to violent interactions that served as warnings for the future (rest in powerful peace Tupac Shakur, Christopher Wallace and too many more).
Whether you rooted for the underdog or cheered for the villain, here is a list of nine Hip-Hop beefs that altered the way we listened to the culture’s music to this day.
9. Kool Moe Dee and LL Cool J
Considered by many as one of the first instances of rap beef, the two’s feud not only produced some of the biggest rap moments (Kool Moe Dee’s rap Grammy performance and LL’s Jack the Ripper series), but also set a precedent of using rap disses to enlarge both stars’ brand. For LL, he’d become one of rap’s earliest commercial successes, leading the line of success and respect into the 90s and beyond. His rise also foreshadowed a theme with the pioneer’s anger with younger MC’s who felt slighted by the next generation’s hubris.
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8. Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown
Kim’s ascent into rap in 1996 alongside the Notorious B.I.G. and Junior Mafia brought a new aesthetic for female rappers as she embraced a more sexual and aggressive energy. Unfortunately, competition between her and fellow Brooklyn rapper Foxy Brown became inevitable as the two traded words over the years on various songs including Kim’s verse on Lil Cease’s 1999 song, “Play Around,” “The Notorious Kim”, and Mobb Deep’s “Quiet Storm Remix”. Foxy’s venomous verse on “Bang Bang” proved prophetic, and the violence and residual tension that followed over the years make it one of rap’s most memorable beefs.
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7. Gucci Mane and Young Jeezy
For these two southern MC’s who have since gone on to rectify their differences, their dispute over Gucci’s first commercial record, “So Icy,” ushered in a flurry of diss records back and forth that escalated to alleged violence off the records. Unfortunately, their antics and the energy behind it ushered in a new dimension of dissing enemies, encapsulated by Gucci’s gesture of smoking on the remains of an enemy, a move he’s since condemned.
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6. LL Cool J and Canibus
For Canibus, the rising phenom in rap at the time, being featured on a song with someone as accomplished as LL Cool J was an honor. His initial verse on the posse cut, “4,3,2,1,” however innocent, prompted LL’s furious response, and the records that followed only made LL’s battle rap status grow larger. Canibus’ “Second Round KO” and L’s “The Ripper Strikes Back” also introduced whether fans preferred battle records from overtly lyrical rappers or more commercially renowned artists.
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5. 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G.
Largely remembered for the shocking claims made by 2Pac against Biggie on the song “Hit Em Up”, the primarily one-sided beef spurred a slew of responses from Biggie and others, both directly and subliminally which fueled the environment that led to their untimely deaths. The behind-the-scenes antics between Bad Boy Records and Death Row only exacerbated the tension and forced former friends to cross all types of lines that rap had yet to see before then.
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4. Jay-Z and Nas
After years of tension and perceived disrespect, Jay-Z and Nas’ early 2000s beef produced two of rap’s biggest diss records, “Takeover” and “Ether,” and simultaneously added to both stars’ classic repertoire of albums and songs. Despite the propensity for violence that existed, both men’s decisions to end their issue and work together represented a rare display of maturity, unlike anything we’d seen at that time for stars of their magnitude.
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3. Ja Rule and 50 Cent
Arguably one of the most influential rap beefs of the early 2000s, 50 Cent’s and Ja’s behind-the-scenes issues spilt onto the national stage when 50 attacked Ja multiple times on his debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin’. 50’s unrelenting vendetta against Ja and Murder Inc. successfully made him a legend in many eyes and all but erased the stellar run of one of rap’s most influential and successful rap labels. Despite both artists moving on to different endeavours, the beef between them remains one of rap’s most noticeable land mines, going off at least once a year on social media without fail.
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2. Ice Cube and N.W.A
In the eyes of many rap fans including Cube himself, his 1991 diss response “No Vaseline” is arguably the most known and well-crafted. Before rap fans became accustomed to the idea of a 20 v 1 type battle, Cube took it upon himself to diss his former group N.W.A singlehandedly, so much so that they decided not to respond. At the top of his game both critically and commercially, his diss carried the same weight as Jay-Z and Nas with a level of sophistication and execution that has yet to be reached by a diss record since.
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1. Kendrick Lamar and Drake
Much like how Jay-Z and Nas’ beef festered over the years before exploding onto the scene, Kendrick and Drake’s feud following his verse on Big Sean’s “Control” grew, culminating in years of subliminal jabs. Kendrick’s feature on the Future and Metro Boomin’ single, “Like That” forced both sides into the competition and from there, we got more rap disses in a week than we’d ever seen from two competitors. The speed of their releases, rollout strategies and cleverness upped the ante for rap feuds that typically played out over time and showed us the lyrical brilliance of both camps regardless of who you felt was the victor.
Culturally, the response to Kendrick’s song, “Not Like Us” both online and during Kendrick’s Juneteenth concert, continues the communal call-and-response aspect of rap disses that we’ve loved since its inception. In a short amount of time Not Like Us has become a rap anthem and one of the year’s most streamed songs, much like Drake’s Back to Back became a Grammy-nominated song.
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When Biggie Smalls asked, “What’s Beef?” he posed the question at the height of the East Coast/West Coast rap rivalry, which would ultimately result in the death of the Brooklyn MC—as well as Tupac Shakur.
But, does beef always have to end in death? Most Hip-Hop fans would hope not. The very nature of the culture is competitive, and rivalries can be thrilling and entertaining when they stay on wax.
The recent rivalry between Kendrick Lamar and Drake has been one of those quarrels that has reenergized the culture and entertained Hip-Hop fans in a way not seen in years.
SlotsUp online casino and Media Lab Insights recently prepared and shared statistics that detail the legacy of rap beef—by breaking the statistics and songs into eras which are marked by a major event.
“These timelines were used to better understand the development of conflicts, success, and the demand for performance in the hip-hop industry,” the report notes. “Their comparison is focused on three main points: the technical aspect (the average tempo of the tracks (which can be calculated by the amount of bars, and the length), the profitability (the amount of platinum albums), and the risks involved (death rate).”
Researchers at SlotsUp commented on the study. “Until our current era, the more beef was around, the more successful the artists were. Our current era is going against this pattern, with the same amount of deaths and diss tracks as the first era, but with more platinum albums. Over the years, Hip-Hop became less technically demanding, especially after 2004. This study shows that conflicts aren’t always profitable, and violence can be avoided.”
The first era was marked by what the researchers called “The Roxanne Wars” in the mid-1980s. Two of the most significant songs were “Roxanne, Roxanne” and “Roxanne’s Revenge.” However, cultural commentators say that there were up to 30 songs related to the beef. The only major death to come out of that era was Scott La Rock—whose murder has not been directly attributed to the beef. The clear winner of this battle was Roxanne Shante, who went on to a lengthy career and is credited as one of the foundational female MC’s.
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The second era was one of the most deadly. Lasting from 1992 to 1997, the beef sparked the true rise of the diss track. The research shows that diss tracks and deaths more than doubled while platinum albums skyrocketed to 35. The era saw 10 deaths, with three being the most prominent—Eazy E, 2Pac, and The Notorious B.I.G. The winner of this era could be seen as the recently disgraced Sean “Diddy” Combs as his Bad Boy imprint saw some of its biggest success following the death of B.I.G. This era also marked Hip-Hop’s biggest foray into the pop genre with an increase in record sales that would last for more than a decade—before the proliferation of streaming.
The third era, lasting from 1998-2004, featured the beef between Jay-Z and Nas. This era was also the most financially successful with more than 50 platinum albums. “Eminem was significant in this era,” as the study shows that the Detroit rapper released nine diss tracks. The winner of this era continues to be debated. However, the culture benefited from the end of the beef with Jay and Nas making several concert appearances together.
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The fourth era: 2005-2008, is one largely of peace—kicked off by the end of the beef between Jay-Z and Nas—two New York rap titans. Also worth noting is the average length of rap songs would begin to get shorter with many getting under the 4-minute mark. The fifth era from 2009-2012, was marked by the release of Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid, M.A.A.D City. It would be the second era that Eminem would be involved in numerous beefs including with Benzino and Mariah Carey. It was during this era that beef would escalate in southern states with one significant death being that of Slim Dunkin.
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Era number six was from 2013 to 2019. The most significant beef was between Drake and Meek Mill. However, the two would eventually collaborate (again, since they were cool prior to Meek’s Twitter fingers) on “Going Bad.” This era is also marked by continued financial success with more than 40 platinum albums. The murder of Nipsey Hussle would mark the end of this era.
Our current era began with the coronavirus pandemic, which affected the entire world but also highlighted the significance of “beef,” with the good-natured but often tense musical battles as part of the Verzuz series. But without question, Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” is thus far the most powerful diss song of the era—but whether or not it’s over is still up for debate, and Drake. Fortunately, K. Dot did his victory lap by bringing gang members together on one stage as a show of unity at the conclusion of his pop out concert on Juneteenth.
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Over the past few days it seems like Jay-Z has finally decided to come out of hibernation as the iconic rapper made a surprise performance at Tom Brady’s Hall Of Fame ceremony just last week, and last night, once again, shocked an unsuspecting audience when he joined Alicia Keys at the 77th annual Tony Awards.
With their classic song “Empire State of Mind” having recently hit 1 billion streams, Alicia Keys decided it was only right to celebrate the milestone by bringing out Jay-Z while she and the cast to her Broadway play Hell’s Kitchen were doing their thing on stage. Stepping out in some baggy jeans, Timbs and a durag, Jay-Z channeled his 2009 self and took everyone on a trip down memory lane as Alicia Keys belted out the classic chorus after he was done spitting his verse.
So are baggy jeans officially back in style? We need confirmation from fashion stylists and aficionados out there so we can dust off the old-school Girbaud jeans we have in storage. Just sayin’.
Now that they’ve reunited on stage, do Alicia Keys and Jay-Z have something cooking up in the studio? We don’t know for certain, but Alicia Keys definitely teased something was in the works as she took to her official Instagram page to post a video of herself hanging out with the Hip-Hop Gawd. The caption read, “1 Dream. 1 Song. 1 Billion streams 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽 Thank you! We love you. What’s next….👀🤫”
Whatever Alicia Keys and Jay-Z might be working on, y’all already know it’s going to be produced by Alicia Keys’ famous hubby, Swizz Beatz.
What did y’all think of Jay-Z’s surprise appearance at last night’s Tony Awards? Are y’all looking forward to another Hova and Keys collaboration? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Jay-Z gave a surprise performance at a gala for NFL great Tom Brady, which drew some comments criticizing his appearance.
Jay-Z’s always been in association with the greats, and more proof of that occurred on Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts as the New England Patriots were inducting Tom Brady into their Hall of Fame. The superstar rapper opened up the proceedings, taking some of the crowd by surprise as he emerged from the smoke onstage and uttered the first line from his hit “Public Service Announcement” from The Black Album – “Allow me to reintroduce myself, my name is Hov!”
The song is a personal favorite of the renowned former quarterback, who would be introduced to the crowd before each Patriots home game to “PSA” as he ran out of the tunnel pumping his fist. Jay-Z’s performance was timed just as Brady was making his way into the VIP area in front of the stage. “Foxborough, make some noise!” Jay said to the crowd, with Young Guru on the turntables and sound boards behind him. “Put one hand in the air for the GOAT, Mr. Tom Brady tonight!” It was a good backdrop for Brady, whose number 12 would be retired by the Patriots never to be worn again in honor of his stellar 23-year career. Some online weren’t too happy seeing Jay-Z at the function, highlighting that the MC who tends to be low-key was not present at the numerous concerts honoring Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary last year.
Jay-Z and Tom Brady have enjoyed a friendly relationship throughout the years, as the seven-time Super Bowl champion has crossed paths with Jay-Z who has overseen the halftime show at the Super Bowl with Roc Nation as the entertainment strategist for the National Football League. The two have also been brought together by Michael Rubin, the CEO of Fanatics and a mutual friend on a few occasions, recently speaking to rookies at a luncheon held by the NFL and Fanatics in May. Jay-Z has also been in collaboration with Patriots owner Robert Kraft in the past.
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Jay-Z and Roc Nation have come under fire for backing a program in Pennsylvania, which critics say aims to gut public education.
A new campaign underway in Pennsylvania is aiming to get students from low-income households in Philadelphia into the city’s private schools. The Pennsylvania Award for Student Success (PASS) program is spearheaded by Jay-Z and his Roc Nation entertainment company, which also refers to the PASS grants as “Lifetime Scholarships.” Roc Nation had publicly pledged an investment of $300 million towards the cause. “PASS – which is also known as Senate Bill 757 – is legislation aimed at increasing education opportunities for underprivileged youth attending the state’s lowest performing public schools,” a press release by the group stated.
But critics, including teachers’ groups, have called out the campaign for being heavily influenced by Republicans to gut public education and pointed to Jay-Z’s friendship with a key figure of the campaign. “This ain’t it,” wrote the American Federation of Teachers Pennsylvania in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “And for good measure, here’s a still of @sc and Jeffrey Yass, PA’s richest man, potential Trump Treasury Secretary, and the force behind the voucher push in PA.” The push comes as House Democrats are advancing a bill for $5.1 billion in school funding, capping charter schools’ annual tuition fees.
Criticism also came from individuals such as parent Dena Driscoll, who said that “Jay-Z is like ‘defund Abbott Elementary‘ and for real though my actual Philadelphian children’s public school. Lifeline Scholarships mean most of our children are left to drown.” Journalist and scholar Nikole Hannah-Jones blasted initial coverage of the PASS program as well in a thread of posts on X, calling Roc Nation out for lending its name to efforts in trying to get the bill passed, stating its “involvement is to convince poor Black parents to leave the public schools. “This is no different than the right-wing efforts in Arizona, Florida, and elsewhere just because they put a Black face on it,” she wrote.
Jeff Yass is a billionaire who is the largest megadonor to Republican federal campaigns this election cycle, according to CNBC, totaling over $46 million to date. School choice has been a major focus of PASS and the groups he funds through various entities, with sources remarking that he is a top choice for a cabinet position under Donald Trump if he were to win the presidential election in November.
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Fans of Roc-A-Fella Records should be familiar with the name Oschino, who spent time on the label as part of the State Property collective. Via a new interview, Oschino shared that he felt Jay-Z betrayed Beanie Sigel during a tough time for the Philadelphia star.
Oschino sat down with the SAY CHEESE! YouTube show to discuss his rise as a rapper, signing with Roc-A-Fella, auditioning for Jay-Z, and more. During the portion when he discussed his time under the Brooklyn mogul’s label, Oschino expressed disappointment in the honcho for not stepping up during Beanie Sigel’s attempted murder trial.
“I came to court for Beanie when he allegedly shot somebody,” Oschino Vasquez said. “JAY-Z got on the stand and they said, ‘Are you gonna be responsible for him if we let him go?’ Jay-Z said, ‘No.’ I was there. This ain’t hearsay; this was me in the courtroom.”
Vasquez went on to say that he was shocked that Jay-Z wouldn’t tell the court that he would step up and assist Beanie Sigel in his return to public life, stating that his time in jail raised him to view such matters differently.
He continued, “And nobody didn’t say nothing, nobody flinched. Mind you, I’m a jail n*gga so I’m looking around like, ‘Nobody not saying nothing?!’ Like it was normal.”
Check out Oschino’s interview speaking about the matter below.
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Jay-Z has kept a largely low profile on the music front but the Brooklyn superstar remains active on the scene in other ways lately. Over the weekend, Jay-Z was seen at London’s Wembley Stadium and linked up with Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr., who is signed to Hov’s sports agency.
Vinicius Jr., 23, is a Brazilian soccer forward for Real Madrid and his team locked horns with Borussia Dortmund for the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League final.
Ahead of the game, Jay-Z dapped up Vinicius Jr., who scored a goal in the match alongside Real Madrid right-back defender Dani Carvajal with the team defeating Borussia Dortmund 2-0 for the coveted title. Among the celebrations with his Real Madrid teammates, Vini, as he’s also known, took a moment to take some photos with Jay-Z before hoisting the trophy with his fellow players.
In the summer of 2023, Roc Nation Sports acquired Brazilian soccer agency TFM which counted Vinicius Jr. as a client along with other association football stars such as Gabriel Martinelli, who plays for Arsenal.
Congratulations are in order for Real Madrid for capturing the UEFA Champions League championship win.
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Azealia Banks was once considered one of the best women rappers of her generation but has achieved more notoriety lately for her fiery rants against the culture. Once more, the Harlem artist aimed barbs at Beyoncé and Jay-Z, sparking outrage and criticism from the Beyhive and beyond.
Beyoncé put the world on notice after sharing details behind her upcoming studio album, Act II: Cowboy Carter, the highly anticipated follow-up to 2022’s Act I: Renaissance. The Houston superstar explained in detail the impetus behind the album and expressed gratitude for having her song “Texas Hold ‘Em” going No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, the first Black woman to do so via a country music song.
Azealia Banks took to social media and had plenty to say about the rollout of the upcoming album, taking shots at Beyoncé’s husband in the process.
“Wow we didn’t even try to put even a little effort into a more artistic title?” Banks wrote via her Instagram Stories feed on March 19. “Sis I live for whiteyonce Donatella Bianca Bardot DOWN, But I’m kind of ashamed at how u switch from baobab trees and black parade to this literal pick me stuff.”
Banks added, “Like u do lame stuff like bring out some black listed white women (Dixie chicks) at the country music awards and they would never ever do the same for you. Ur always sharing ur platform with white women who are so jealous of you but have such a long history of sabotaging other black womens careers.”
Caught in the fray was Hov with Banks saying, “Ugh I’m so saddened by Jay-Z and his overstrategizing everything beyonce to the point where it’s clearly his influence and not the real Bianca Bardot. Someone tell Jayz his strategies are corny and beyonce has better ideas.”
Okay, then.
On X, formerly Twitter, reactions from all sides to the comments from Azealia Banks poured in. Some suggested that Banks focus on putting out new music while others agreed with some of her points, albeit some did so with reluctance.
We’ve got those reactions listed below.
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