Photo: Roc Nation
After 30+ years in the music industry, JAŸ-Z bared his soul to the world, revealing aspects of his life fans have never seen in his new docuseries.
The veteran MC sits down with Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin for an eight-part series on HBO Max called JAŸ-Z In 8. The black-and-white program features a podcast-style, one-on-one conversation between Hov and the groundbreaking producer, with episodes ranging from 37 to 61 minutes. The two integral figures in hip-hop discuss JAŸ-Z's legacy in the game, beginning with his debut album Reasonable Doubt.
"Let's step into the light," Rubin tells Hov in the first episode.
Throughout the series, JAŸ-Z recounts everything from making hit songs like "Can I Live" to "Legacy" off his 4:44 album, which he hasn't heard in full since 2017. He talks about working with the likes of Jaz-O, The Notorious B.I.G., Kanye West, and other major acts on albums like In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, The Blueprint, The Black Album, and even Watch The Throne. He also gets personal by sharing never-before-heard stories about himself and his family. He begins by revealing the first rap record he ever heard. His mother, Gloria Carter, owned a record by Fatback Band called “King Tim III (Personality Jock)." The rap song was released just months before Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" put hip-hop on the map.
Toward the end, Hov finally opens up about his glorified beef with Nas. He reveals that the beef started after the Queensbridge native skipped recording sessions for his debut album. He also believed Nas' intro to "The Message" from his 1996 album It Was Written was aimed at him.
“Nas was supposed to be on my first album; he just never showed up to the studio,” Jay said. “And I’m not really a guy like that… so that was that for me. I’m never asking him for anything again. [There’s] not a problem. But that was the end of it.”
And that's just the beginning. Fans received two fresh episodes each week following the series premiere last month. Now that the entire docuseries is streaming, check out some of the most shocking facts we learned about JAŸ-Z.
JAŸ-Z originally wanted to drop one album because he hated being an artist
JAŸ-Z has always said he only wanted to drop one iconic album, but in the first episode, he revealed why. He described his hustler mentality while coming up in his early years and how he viewed rap artists of his time. During the conversation, Hov explained he intended to drop one body of work and then focus on becoming an entrepreneur. "I didn't love being an artist," he explained. "I didn't like shooting videos, didn't like doing interviews. I didn't like speaking." Clearly, his plans changed following the release of Reasonable Doubt.
JAY-Z reveals why he cut The Notorious B.I.G.'s controversial line from "Brooklyn's Finest"
In episode two, JAŸ-Z opens up about his friendship with Christopher Wallace and how it flourished after recording "Brooklyn's Finest" for his debut album. The two got close and even wanted to buy property in Atlanta together. However, they did have one notable disagreement during the recording process over a lyric Biggie included in his verse. Hov said Biggie had a line in his verse in which he said, "I'm warning ya, most hated in Carolina." He said he cut the bar because he didn't want to be associated with the East Coast/West Coast beef that was brewing at the time.
JAŸ-Z says one of his favorite lyrics is on a slept-on song from The Blueprint
JAŸ-Z has a lot of music in his extensive catalog, but he says his favorite bars to this day are in a hidden track from The Blueprint. In episode three, Hov gets real hype when they talk about his "favorite lines" from "Breathe Easy (Lyrical Exercise)." On the Just Blaze-produced track, he raps, "Jigga Man is diesel when I lift the eight up." He says the bar was inspired by his own ability to pick up a .38 caliber gun, but it's also a double entendre that shouts out Shaquille O'Neal, a.k.a. "DJ Diesel," and the late Kobe Bryant, who famously wore the number "8." Hov was specifically referencing photos that show Shaq lifting Kobe with ease.
"This is my favorite line," he says to Rick Rubin.
JAŸ-Z met his dad once a month before he passed away
During a rare moment in episode four, JAŸ-Z opens up about the one time he met his father. Hov met his dad, Adnis Reeves, right before he passed away in 2003. He last reflected on their relationship (or lack thereof) on several albums, including his 2017 LP 4:44. During the conversation, JAŸ-Z admits he didn't know his dad was sick when they met and emphasized he doesn't know how he would've reacted if he didn't meet his dad before his death.
"I know if I had not spoken to him, oh, forget it… I don't know what happens… I don't know where I go," he says.
JAŸ-Z reveals the one beat he couldn't "crack"
JAŸ-Z is known for killing almost every beat he's hopped on, but there's one he admits he couldn't quite master. In episode five, Rick Rubin asks Jigga if there are any songs that he couldn't "crack." He immediately pointed to "Young Forever" from his 2009 album The Blueprint III.
“I never cracked it,” Hov says. “Still, to this day, when I hear that song, I’m like, ugh.”
JAŸ-Z and Kanye West argued over his controversial "red cap" bar on "Jail"
JAŸ-Z and Kanye West reunited on "Jail" in 2021. It was the first song they made as "The Throne" since they teamed up on Drake's "Pop Style" in 2016. Hov recorded his verse just four hours before Ye his first first Donda listening event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. However, in episode six, JAŸ-Z reveals that they got into a back-and-forth over his bar, "Stop all of that red cap, we goin’ home.” The line subtly jabbed at Ye's support of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement.
“I was like, ‘Sorry, I ain’t gonna change it. It’s how I feel,’” he explains. In addition, he told Ye, “You should probably take the verse off if you feel strongly enough about it. This is your project… everything on it should be the way you want it to be.”
Despite their disagreement, JAŸ-Z still offered some kind words about Ye. His sentiments may have changed since this interview was recorded before their relationship deteriorated last year.
“No matter what, he’s always... had this space for me and this reverence as his big brother,” Jigga says. “Obviously he does his things... but I know he hasn’t lost that feeling.”
JAŸ-Z addressed Kanye West's lines about him on "Big Brother"
Photo: Getty Images
Ye was also a hot topic of discussion in episode seven. During his conversation with Rick Rubin, JAŸ-Z randomly brought up Ye's bars from "Big Brother" off his 2007 album Graduation. “I told Jay I did a song with Coldplay/Next thing I know he got a song with Coldplay/Back in my mind, I'm like, ‘Damn, no way’," Ye raps on the track. The song in question is Hov's "Beach Chair" with Chris Martin off his 2006 album Kingdom Come.
"It's almost as if I betrayed him by having a song," Hov says. "Chris is my friend. I introduced them.... But that's how he says it. The world hears that and you think, 'Jay foul, he tried to…' It's not off the table that I'm doing a song with my friend because you did a song. But that's the sort of thinking. Part of it is an entitlement. We don't own people. He could do a thousand songs with a thousand artists. Whether you did the song first or not, who cares?"
JAŸ-Z speaks on his grandfather, who had a child with his daughter
In the final episode, JAŸ-Z discusses his song "Legacy," which explains how his grandfather "broke the family apart." In the song off 4:44, Hov raps about the impact of the Carter family name and explains that his father's dad, Adnis Reeves, Sr., was a preacher who molested his daughter. The daughter, who's Jay's aunt, went on to have a child by her father. He first learned the disturbing family secret in the late 2000s and revealed it publicly in his 2016 song "spiritual." He later expanded on the story during his 2017 Rap Radar interview.
Watch the entire series on HBO Max now!