Throughout his career, Jay-Z has been a major force in elevating rap music in America. Outside of rapping, the 50-year-old has been growing into his own as a businessman and social activist.
However, sometimes Jay-Z’s worlds collide and he uses music to share a few choice words with us. On Jay Electronica’s long-awaited debut album A Written Testimony, the media mogul addresses his controversial collaboration with the NFL on the track titled, “Flux Capacitor.”
Hov raps that he has too much money to be a sellout and that his voice is needed on the gridiron.
“Why would l sell out? I’m already rich, don’t make no sense. Got more money than Goodell, a whole NFL bench. Did it one-handed like Odell, handcuffed to a jail. I would’ve stayed on the sideline if they could’ve tackled that s**t themselves.”
In August 2019, his company Roc Nation partnered with the NFL to lead a campaign focusing on the intersection of music and social justice, as Blavity previously reported. The deal was frowned upon by a number of the rapper’s fans because of his relationship with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick. At the press conference announcing the collaboration, Jay-Z praised Kaepernick for his demonstrations but noted it was time for a different approach to combating social issues.
"That's his version of an action item, this is our version of an action item," he explained. "We all do different things. We all work differently for the same results. I don't knock what he's doing, and hopefully, he doesn't knock what I'm doing,” he said according to Complex.
Critics have been vocal about how the rapper's NFL deal doesn’t match his approach to social justice and opposes Kaepernick’s struggle. But Jay-Z realizes the pressure that comes with this type of partnership. In a New York Times interview published before Super Bowl LIV, Jay-Z talked about the negative attention he’s received because of the deal.
"We didn't say, 'Let’s go make some money off the NFL,''' he said. "As long as real people are being hurt and marginalized and losing family members, then yes, I can take a couple rounds of negative press."
It doesn’t seem that Jay-Z is done making moves as an activist, a mogul or a musician, though. He’s a featured guest on Jay Electronica’s album with a prominent presence.
He tag-teams with Jay Electronic for a number of tracks that we will be playing all summer, including "A.P.I.D.T.A." This song was made on the night Kobe and Gianna Bryant were killed in a helicopter crash, according to Complex.
Both rappers take a somber approach to the track, with Jay-Z rapping about the phone calls he'll never receive and Jay Electronica revealing some of his emotions following the death of his mother. Bryant isn't mentioned by name in the song, but the timing of its creation suggests that “A.P.I.D.T.A.” was inspired somewhat by the late hooper.
