In my opinion, this article explains how jay-z grew up in a city called New Orleans and went through obstacles throughout his life.
Right on!
Go on with your bad young black man self!
Thank you for being our War Shield of the King! See Oyo Empire
My grandsons love your musical message and businessman husband father style.
Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z did not inherit his business from his father nor did he get a multimillion dollar loan from his father.
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4:44 is a CLASSIC !!! it's interesting because as a man in his late 40's with a young son in pre-school this album just SPEAKS to me ...When it dropped on Tidal it was about 9PM pst and my wife and son had gone to bed ,, I was like YES !! like a kid on Christmas morning I hit play and proceeded to listen to the cd 7 times in a row !!!! Since then I've listed thousands of times and can't wait to see Jay perform in Sacramento on the 17th of December !!! May god bless you and yours Jay !!! P.S. The Tidal X "B' side video on Tidal is AMAZING !!!!
7
This piece begins with an understatement about OJ that glosses over his murder of two people "I had to wonder if the pressure of that denial caused him to explode decades later". The fact that the author and Jay-Z can discuss the struggles in OJs life without mentioning his actual victims is a depressing commentary on how little we rate domestic violence. How can you still hero worship someone who has done that and has never faced up to it or had any real consequences? I feel like that is worthy of discussion, how you can give a pass to someone after that?
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Carolyn, I do not think there was an attempt to give a pass to domestic violence. The conversation they were having was about race and black malehood in particular in America. Jay Z's song Story of OJ was specifically about OJ's assimilation to whiteness and the struggle that blacks in America had long had with OJ about that. It was also shorthand for the issue of the disparate treatment of blacks in the criminal justice system in America and why many in the black community supported the idea of OJ getting offer as a symbol of the criminal justice issues. This is a separate issue from domestic violence and murder so I don't think it is fair to listen to the interview without the considering the context of what two highly successful black men were discussing i.e. does material success insulate one from racism and should one aspire to loose their racial and cultural identity to "make it". Jay-Z's answer was a clear no.
17
Well OJ was found innocent by a court of law. So there's that.
4
People are multifaceted, regardless of who or what they have done. The piece is looking at OJ from various angles 1) OJ's pull from where he is from and who he is...a black man and regardless of your status the [White] world sees you as a black man first 2) OJ was a great athlete you can't take that away from him. It's just a part of what makes OJ OJ. Baquet has fond childhood memories of OJ...childhood memories....the hardest to forget and you can't erase the emotion of a childhood memory.
Using an interview with Jay-Z as supposedly being a Black man’s experience in Trump’s America, is like interviewing Prince Charles as an example of a Muslim immigrants experience in May’s England! What?!
22
So uplifting! Thank you both for sharing this conversation. There's more here than there's room to thank you for so much.
5
This was really cool. Growing up, Jay-Z was this figurative ideal in my neighbourhood. Seeing how he's grown up emotionally to where he is today, and looking back seeing how I grew and people in my area grew, it's really inspiring and beautiful to see.
5
As someone who interviews rappers for a living and has been following Jay-Z since reasonable doubt, I can honestly say this was one of the best interviews I've heard Jay in. Dean you asked a lot of great questions about content on the album, and gave him space to just talk. I hope you do more of these with other musicians and entertainers.
11
This is such an important article for a few reasons. Yes, it's about Jay-Z, but I love the discussion about therapy. I haver been a therapist for many, many years, and I love the description about the connections. Connecting our experiences is actually a process of connecting neural networks that help assimilate experiences. When this happens we are able to synthesize our experiences and the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, because of the way our experiences (especially the most painful) become strengths. Thank you.
6
This was lovely. More. Please. And thank you.
6
I liked the fact that the questioning stayed on a deeper, more intellectual level, and I was really nervous that Dean might kill it with a totally ridiculous question, as he even said "gossipy" question, but he stayed classy and allowed Jay-Z's personality to come through. Jay-Z never had to say "I'd rather not answer this or that" because Dean was really interested in the important issues about race and affect on politics. Jay-Z was as honest as a celeb can be -- sure there is tension with Kanye, and yes I have had some serious marital issues, and no I am definitely not perfect. Well done.
8
I appreciate this interview with Jay-Z. I am unsure if it is editing or not but watching the video of the interview I felt that there were missed opportunities for Dean to prod further in areas where Jay-Z seemed willing to share more about himself. At times Jay-Z's pauses were an opening for further exploration but instead Dean jumped to another question immediately. It was almost as if he was being cutoff in the midst of his vulnerability which left me wondering if the interviewer was uncomfortable with it.
4
excellent interview and insights from Jay-Z. And the paintings by Chantal Joffe are also wonderful. Thanks NYT.
10
My heart is so completely full right now. As an African-American woman, same age as Jay, grew up not far from Marcy, watching this evolution is truly a treasure. 4:44 is poetic and nuanced but still just really good music. Would expect nothing less. I look forward to Jay's continued growth, both personally and professionally and wish him and Queen Bey a lifetime of happiness.
More than that, I pray that Jay's male fans are paying attention to the growth he experienced from finding a qualified therapist to work through his trauma. I've long joked that every black child born in America should leave the hospital with a voucher for 10 free therapy sessions. Barring that, make that worthwhile investment! It will change your life.
Thank you, Mr. Baquet for your thoughtful questions.
34
WOW. Thank you. This was much needed "good news" on a day filled with so much upheaval.
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