Embodying the rags-to-riches rap dream, Jay-Z pulled himself up by
his bootstraps as a youth to eventually become the reigning rapper of
New York City and, in turn, a major-label executive following his
short-lived retirement from music-making. In the wake of his 1996 debut,
Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z's albums sold millions upon millions with each
release, and his endless parade of hits made him omnipresent on urban
radio and video television. He retained a strongly devoted fan base and
challenged whatever rivals attempted to oust him from atop the rap game,
sparring most memorably with Nas. Jay-Z and his Roc-a-Fella associates
greatly influenced the industry and established many of the trends that
pervaded during the late '90s and early 2000s. He consistently worked
with the hottest producers of the day (Clark Kent, DJ Premier, Teddy
Riley, Trackmasters, Erick Sermon, Timbaland, Swizz Beatz), and if they
weren't hot at the time, they likely would be afterward (the Neptunes,
Kanye West, Just Blaze, 9th Wonder). He similarly collaborated with the
hottest rappers in the industry, everyone from East Coast contemporaries
like the Notorious B.I.G. ("Brooklyn's Finest") and DMX ("Cash, Money,
Hoes"), to the best rappers from the South (Ludacris, Missy Elliott) and
the West Coast (Snoop Dogg, Too Short). After his self-declared
retirement from rapping in 2003, he assumed the presidency of the
seminal rap label Def Jam and, as an industry executive, embarked on
another phase in his illustrious career.
Born in 1969 and raised in the rough Marcy Projects of Brooklyn, NY,
Jay-Z underwent some tough times after his father left his mother before
the young rapper was even a teen. Without a man in the house, he became
a self-supportive youth, turning to the streets, where he soon made a
name for himself as a fledging rapper. Known as "Jazzy" in his
neighborhood, he soon shortened his nickname to Jay-Z and did all he
could to break into the rap game. As he vividly discusses in his lyrics,
Jay-Z also became a street hustler around this time, doing what needed
to be done to make money. For a while, he ran around with Jaz-O, aka Big
Jaz, a small-time New York rapper with a record deal but few sales.
From Jaz he learned how to navigate through the rap industry and what
moves to make. He also participated in the group Original Flavor for a
short time. Jay-Z subsequently decided to make an untraditional decision
and start his own label rather than sign with an established label like
Jaz had done. Together with friends Damon Dash and Kareem "Biggs"
Burke, he created Roc-a-Fella Records, a risky strategy for cutting out
the middleman and making money for himself. Once he found a reputable
distributor, Priority Records (and then later Def Jam), Jay-Z finally
had everything in place, including a debut album, Reasonable Doubt
(1996).
Though Reasonable Doubt only reached number 23 on -Billboard's album
chart, Jay-Z's debut eventually became recognized as an undisputed
classic among fans, many of whom consider it his crowning achievement.
Led by the hit single "Ain't No Nigga," a duet featuring Foxy Brown,
Reasonable Doubt slowly spread through New York; some listeners were
drawn in because of big names like DJ Premier and the Notorious B.I.G.,
others by the gangsta motifs very much in style at the time, still
others by Jay-Z himself. By the end of its steady run, Reasonable Doubt
generated three more charting singles -- "Can't Knock the Hustle," which
featured Mary J. Blige on the hook; "Dead Presidents," which featured a
prominent sample of "The World Is Yours," a 1994 hit by Nas; and
"Feelin' It" -- and set the stage for Jay-Z's follow-up, In My Lifetime,
Vol. 1 (1997).
Peaking at number three on the -Billboard album chart, In My Lifetime
sold much more strongly than its predecessor. The album boasted
pop-crossover producers such as Puff Daddy and Teddy Riley, and singles
such as "Sunshine" and "The City Is Mine" indeed showcased a newfound
embrace of pop crossover. Yet there were still plenty of hard-hitting
songs, such as "Streets Is Watching" and "Rap Game/Crack Game" to lace
In My Lifetime with gangsta rap as well as pop crossover. Jay-Z's next
album, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life (1998), released a year after In My
Lifetime, was laden with hit singles: "Can I Get A..." and "Hard Knock
Life (Ghetto Anthem)" broke the Top 20 of the -Billboard Hot 100, while
"Cash, Money, Hoes" and "Nigga What, Nigga Who" also charted. Vol. 2:
Hard Knock Life ended up winning a Grammy for Best Rap Album.
Like clockwork, Jay-Z returned a year later with another album, Vol. 3:
Life and Times of S. Carter (1999), which topped the -Billboard 200 and
spawned two hits: "Big Pimpin'" and "Do It Again (Put Ya Hands Up)." The
album was Jay-Z's most collaborative to date, featuring ten guest
vocalists and a roll call of in-demand producers such as Dr. Dre and
Timbaland. Jay-Z then scaled back a bit for Dynasty Roc la Familia
(2000), his fifth album in as many years. The album showcased
Roc-a-Fella's in-house rappers: Beanie Sigel guests on seven of the 16
tracks, Memphis Bleek guests on six, and both Amir and Freeway also make
guest appearances. On Dynasty Roc la Familia, Jay-Z also began working
with a few new producers: the Neptunes, Kanye West, and Just Blaze. The
Neptunes-produced "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" became a
particularly huge hit single this go-round.
Jay-Z's next album, The Blueprint (2001), solidified his position atop
the New York rap scene upon its release in September. Prior to the
album's release, the rapper had caused a stir in New York following his
headlining performance at Hot 97's Summer Jam 2001, where he
debuted the song "Takeover." The song features a harsh verse ridiculing
Prodigy of Mobb Deep, and Jay-Z accentuated his verbal assault
(including the lines "You's a ballerina/I seen ya") by showcasing
gigantic photos of an adolescent Prodigy in a dance outfit. The version
of "Takeover" that later appeared on The Blueprint includes a third
verse, this one dissing Nas, who, in response to the Summer Jam
performance, had called out Jay-Z, "the fake king of New York," in a
freestyle known as "Stillmatic." As expected, "Takeover" ignited a
sparring match with Nas, who responded with "Ether." Jay-Z accordingly
returned with a comeback, "Super Ugly," where he rapped over the beats
to Nas' "Get Ur Self a..." on the first verse and Dr. Dre's "Bad
Intentions" on the second. The back-and-forth bout created massive
publicity for both Jay-Z and Nas. In addition to "Takeover," The
Blueprint also featured "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)," one of the year's biggest hit
songs, and the album topped many year-end best-of charts.
Jay-Z capitalized on the runaway success of The Blueprint with a number
of follow-up projects. He collaborated with the Roots for the Unplugged
album (2001) and with R. Kelly for Best of Both Worlds (2002). He then
went on to record, over the course of the year, 40 or so new tracks, 25
of which appeared on his next record, the double album The Blueprint²:
The Gift & the Curse (2002). Though billed as a sequel, The
Blueprint² was considerably different from its predecessor. Whereas the
first volume had been personal, considered, and focused, the second
instead offered an unapologetically sprawling double-disc extravaganza
showcasing remarkable scope. As usual, it spawned a stream of singles,
led by his 2Pac cover "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" (featuring his glamorous
girlfriend, Beyoncé Knowles from Destiny's Child). Furthermore, Jay-Z
guested on a pair of summer 2003 hits: Beyoncé's chart-topping "Crazy in
Love" and the Neptunes' Top Five hit "Frontin'."
It was then that Jay-Z announced his imminent retirement after the
release of one more album. That LP, The Black Album (2003), was
rush-released by Def Jam and soared to the top spot in the album charts
at the end of the year. As always, it spawned a couple big hits -- "Dirt
Off Your Shoulder" and "99 Problems" -- and inspired a popular mash-up
bootleg, The Grey Album, by Danger Mouse. The subsequent year (2004) was
a whirlwind for the retiring Jay-Z. He embarked on a farewell tour that
was topped off by an extravagant Madison Square Garden performance
documented on the Fade to Black DVD, and he also embarked on an
ill-fated arena tour with the embattled R. Kelly that resulted in an
exchange of ugly multi-million-dollar lawsuits.
With his final album behind him and his reputation bigger than ever,
Jay-Z accepted an offer to assume the role of president at Def Jam
Records. The seminal rap label was struggling and needed someone to
guide it through a rocky transitional phase. Jay-Z accepted the
challenge and took over the company begun by Russell Simmons and Rick
Rubin roughly 20 years earlier. (As part of its deal with Jay-Z, Def
Jam's parent company, Universal, bought Roc-a-Fella, which resulted in
some bitterness among certain associates upset by the buyout.)
Considerable fanfare met the presidential inauguration, as Jay-Z became
one of the few African-American major-label executives in the business,
and he also became one of the few rappers to transition into that side
of the business. Numerous rappers owned or operated their own boutique
labels, but none had ever risen to such major-label heights. And the
rapper-turned-president didn't take his job lightly, either, at least
judging by his initial year at the helm. Within months of assuming his
position, he fostered a string of newfound talents -- Young Jeezy,
Teairra Marí, Rihanna, and Bobby V., all of whom enjoyed considerable
commercial success -- and only had a few setbacks (disappointing returns
on albums by Memphis Bleek and Young Gunz).
In 2005, Jay-Z came out of retirement for the I Declare War
concert in New York City. The ambitious show featured a parade of
high-profile guest stars, including Diddy, T.I., Kanye West, and in a
peacemaking move, Nas. With this longstanding beef squashed, Jay-Z
announced he was coming out of retirement for good. He made it official
when Kingdom Come hit the shelves in late 2006. Less than a year later,
Jay-Z returned with another post-retirement album, American Gangster
(2007), this one inspired by the concurrent film of the same name. Two
years later, he released a third installment in the Blueprint
series, The Blueprint 3. Announced with the single "D.O.A. (Death of
Auto-Tune)," the album featured productions from Kanye West and
Timbaland, plus guest features for West, Rihanna, Young Jeezy, and
Alicia Keys. Proof of the MC's enduring relevance, the album topped the
-Billboard 200. The Hits Collection, Vol. 1 followed in 2010. At various
points during 2010 and early 2011, Jay-Z worked on Watch the Throne
with partner Kanye West -- the duo was billed as the Throne -- and
numerous producers and songwriters. After taking several shapes, the
album was released in August 2011. Jason Birchmeier & Andy Kellman,
Rovi
