Jay-Z piece in Gotham Magazine

When Jay-Z enters the 50th birthday celebration of music magnate Lyor Cohen, his friend and mentor, he's wearing black from head to toe and his signature Tom Ford sunglasses. His demonstrative wife, Beyonce Knowles, is with him. There's no need for him to check out the scene because the entire scene descends upon him, and it's clear it's something he's used to.

"I don't dislike anything about myself," he says. "I know this sounds a little arrogant but I really accept what God has given me. I've got a short temper but I work on controlling it. I can say inappropriate things because I believe them to be true and sometimes that can be hurtful to others. But I think in the long run it is more helpful."

In the midst of one of the most successful hip-hop careers in history, Jay-Z, who turns 40 next month, has a lot to be thankful for. He was born Shawn Carter in 1969 and grew up in the Marcy Houses project of Brooklyn as "Jazzy." He was abandoned by his father at 11, shot his older brother for stealing at 12 and sold crack at 13. It wasn't until he released his first album, Reasonable Doubt, in 1996 on his label Roc-a-Fella Records that the then 26-year old left drug dealing, gangs and poverty behind. "[Making music] is a gift from God," he says. "I put it to the side for so long because it was so easy. It took me a while to really know it was my true calling. I wanted to tell my story."

He's told that story through 11 solo albums, the latest being September's The Blueprint 3—the third in his Blueprint trilogy, which includes 2001's The Blueprint and The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse in 2002. While The Blueprint was a soulful return to his musical roots, The Blueprint 2 had him collaborating with artists who make the music he loves—rock (Lenny Kravitz), R&B (Faith Evans) and reggae (Sean Paul). He calls the third installment a "new classic" for the next generation. On the track "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-tune)," for example, over a clarinet-heavy rework of Steam's 1969 classic "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye," he raps: "You rappers singing too much/Get back to rap/You T-Pain'n too much."

The main thread throughout the album is New York City. Heard in songs as literal as "Empire State of Mind" ("One hand in the air for the big city/Street lights, big dreams all looking pretty/No place in the world that can compare"), the nods to NYC abound—but it wasn't intentional. "I listen to 'A Star is Born' and 'Thank You' and hear New York City in every hook," he says. "I guess I was just really centered with my birthplace while I was making the record because it wasn't a conscious thing at all. New York is alive, real people, it never shuts down, the honesty of it, the variety of it. It makes you look forward to every single season. When it gets too hot, you look forward to fall. When it's fall, you look forward to seeing the snow. It's just the most beautiful place in the world to me."

"Jay has a great sense of curiosity and deep appreciation," says Cohen, who has a cameo in the "D.O.A." video. "His curiosity allows him to take risks. He is also totally brilliant, and good people finish first."

When selecting artists to collaborate with on the album, he listened to the arrangements for inspiration. "When I heard the piano licks on 'Empire,' I immediately thought of Alicia Keys [who performs on the song] playing the piano," he says. "The vocal range, how it sounds, just fit her so perfectly. It's not me looking at the Billboard and trying to find out who's hot at the moment to collaborate with. I pretty much try to find the person that fits the song best."

Would anybody say no to Jay-Z? "MGMT turned me down," he admits.

Along with music, Jay-Z has proven that his business understanding is similarly acute. He became president and CEO of Def Jam Recordings at 35, shortly after he officially retired from recording. "It was unprecedented at the time," he explains. "All the signs were saying you've done what you can do as an artist, now you must show a different side that can ascend to executive positions and be successful at it. This is the thing that took care of me and my family's situation."

"He's incredibly smart and passionate about what he wants and doesn't want to settle," says Neil Cole, CEO of Iconix Brand Group, which, in 2007, bought Rocawear—the urban clothing line that Jay-Z started with Damon Dash and Kareem "Biggs" Burke 10 years ago—for $204 million. "Being an icon of music and fashion [he] knows where America's youth is going."

Jay-Z remains creative director of Rocawear and majority owner of Roc Apparel, Rocawear's men's licensee. He's a part owner of the NBA's New Jersey Nets (the team is rumored to be moving to his home borough of Brooklyn). And when not dining at his favorite neighborhood boite, Nobu ("three or four times a week"), he's at gastropub The Spotted Pig in the West Village or the sports bar 40/40 Club (he owns stakes in both).

But it all seems to come back to the music. When he came out of "retirement" in 2006, "It went down pretty well," he notes modestly. In the years since, he's released the album Kingdom Come, signed a $150 million partnership with Live Nation, created the sound track to Ridley Scott's 2007 film American Gangster and completed the third Blueprint. His Roc Nation entertainment company recently launched another music label, StarRoc, with Norwegian-based StarGate. And he’s got a greatest-hits album coming out soon. It’s all due to an incredible drive that he attributes to his mother. “She always told me that the amount of work you put into it is what you get out of it,” he says.

Friends, family and privacy matter most at this point in Jay-Z's life. He's a mentor to artists like Rihanna and Kanye West. The most important thing on the horizon seems to be a plan to have children with Knowles, whom he wed on the roof of their Tribeca building last year. He keeps his perspective by remaining close with his family, all of whom work with him in some capacity. (His mother runs a scholarship program he developed.) He even made good with his estranged father before his death.

"Making music is art," he continues. "It doesn't change who you are as a person. It doesn't mean you're entitled or you're above the law. You still treat people as human beings. It doesn't change the laws of the universe. Life has a balance and for every action there is a reaction. So if you put negative energy in, negative energy comes back to you. You have to live your life within the laws of the universe and I haven't lost sight of that.

"You have to be close with your foundation and the people who know you best because they've known you for so long that they can see the changes in you,' he continues. "Fame is such a deadly drug that you can't see the changes because you are so consumed by it. You need a close-knit group of friends and family to make sure you stay grounded."

When asked what else he'd like to accomplish, he replies, "Go to the moon."

Completely grounded? Maybe not. But he just might do it.

by CRISTINA GREEVEN CUOMO
photographs, RANKIN/ICON INTERNATIONAL

Who had the better album????

Over the course of past few days I’ve been reading projections on what Wale’s debut, Attention: Deficit, is going to do. Needless to say, the “guesstimation” is about 28,000 in his first week. We really won’t know until next Wednesday but if those figures hold true that really sucks because Wale made a really good album.

In fact, I told y’all that a few months back when I reviewed the album. Since no one had heard it way back in September when the review dropped everyone kept hitting me with the exact same question: “Is it really that good?”

(Yes!).

I don’t blame anyone for doubting that Wale could’ve made a good album, because, honestly, I went into the listening session with the same concerns. I didn’t expect much so I was pleasantly surprised to hear good music (“Beautiful Bliss”), unique topics (“90210”), dope production (“Mirrors”), catchy hooks (“Pretty Girls”) and actual substance (“Diary”). Yeah, he has a tendency to say, “My name’s Wale” a heck of a lot but Attention: Deficit is a solid album.

Problem is with all the push back and delays I didn’t even know the album was dropping last week. Yeah, I know, career fail blah blah but I already heard the album back in like August so it wasn’t like I was anxiously waiting for the link to pop up online BestBuy to open last Tuesday morning. That doesn’t mean I don’t want the kid to win. Because I hate to see great projects go unnoticed while bullshit rises to the top of the charts.

Not that first week or total sales have any real effect on the actual quality of an album, I pray that these estimates are way off. I mean, that can’t be true, right? Think about it: Wale has had some pretty good looks. He was on the front cover of XXL’s 2009 Freshmen issue (among other mags); he had house band duties during the MTV VMA Awards, which must have increased his national visibility; he performed on most of the late night talk shows including Jimmy Fallon with the Roots; he has a couple songs in rotation, he landed opening act duties for Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 tour; and he actually delivered a good album.

What else does Wale have to do to succeed? Nothing actually. He did his part. The fans (read you & me) just have to.

Now I also had the pleasure of reviewing Kid Cudi’s album, which most of y’all defecated on (Oh, well). Despite popular belief, I still think Cudi made a good album. Personally, I like depressing music but that’s just me. I totally understand why most people didn’t care for the Cleveland kid’s kick-off disc, because even I’ll admit that it wasn’t the album I was expecting.

While in Wale’s case it was a welcome surprise, Cudi’s was more of a head-scratching surprise. It was way more singing than I had expected, but the more I listened to the album the more it grew on me.

Despite the glum overtones, there are joints that knocked (IMHO) like “Simple As…,” “Heart of a Lion (Kid Cudi Theme Music),” “Enter Galactic (Love Connection, Pt. 1)” and, of course, “Make Her Say.” Now I understand that the aforementioned tracks may not be up the alley (pause) of the diehard rap purist, but if you on some chill out shit these tracks would do the trick.

But, hey, I’m the same guy that liked Kanye’s last album (remember this) so maybe my tastes are just a tad different than most.

Still, if Cudi’s album was so “bad” why did he sell over 104,000 units in his first week, while Wale is only “projected” to sell a mere 28,000? Sure, Cudi has only managed to tally up an additional 90K since his release in September; but based on public opinion I’m sure most will say Wale made the better album. If that’s the case, it’s a shame that more people don’t support what they actually like. (No, shots at the Man on the Moon).

But I’m getting ahead of myself, as the final numbers for Wale won’t be out til next week. Like I said earlier, it doesn’t matter whether or not he sells 28K or 128K in his first week or 101st. I’ll paraphrase Cudi’s Mid Western brethren Common, “Black music is Black music and it’s all… Good.”

Who do you think made the better debut—Cudi or Wale? Did Cudi deliver the album you expected? What about Wale—did he surprise you with this record? Why do you think Wale is projected to sell so low?

Speak your piece… —Anslem Samuel

Pretty Girls...

Wayne's WORLD!!!!!

The wait is ova. No, not that one. After months of delays and rescheduled street dates, Lil Wayne's new album, Rebirth, finally has an official release date. According to Billboard.com, the disc long rumored to be Wayne's "rock" album will drop on December 15.

The album will come on the heels of his just-released No Ceilings mixtape. And while there has been some confusion about just how much actual rocking Wayne will do on it— he does appear on the new Weezer album — the rapper recently told Billboard that he does indeed bang his head on Rebirth.

"Yes, the album is still rock," he said. "I play guitar on 80 percent of the songs, and there's a lot of rock influences and rock beats. I also have Travis Barker on the album. But I don't want people to think I'm trying to do something I can't do. Don't think you're going to put on the album and hear me screaming and singing.

"When I said I was doing a rock album, it was about doing a freedom thing," he continued. "This album isn't hip-hop. When I do my Carter albums, I know I've got to rap, I know I've got to spit. I know the words I've got to say and the subjects I've got to talk about. I also know the things I shouldn't say, the things I shouldn't talk about. There's none of those limits on this album. I say what I want, how I want. That's what this album is: a freedom album."

Wayne has suggested that he might release Rebirth and the Young Money crew album as a double disc. Because a few of the songs from Wayne's album have leaked online during the past few months, he said he went back to the lab to cook up some new songs to throw off fans who thought they knew what he was up to.

"I had to add new cuts, because a lot of things leaked, making people think they had an idea of what I was doing with Rebirth and what it would sound like," he said. "And I hated that, because I never want anybody to think they know what I'm doing until I present it. So what I did was make it totally different. I flipped it."

In addition to protégé Drake, the album is slated to include guest spots from members of Fall Out Boy and Lenny Kravitz. It's unknown if Rebirth will be the last full-length album Wayne will release before he is scheduled to go to prison in New York for at least eight months after pleading guilty to a felony charge of attempted criminal possession of a weapon.

A spokesperson for Wayne did not return requests for comment at press time for confirmation that the Young Money album, We Are Young Money, will be packaged with Rebirth.

PLEASE COP THIS MAN'S ALBUM!!!!!

More from The Beans and Jigga Saga

So Siegel is down with 50 now... go figure.

50 Cent’s efforts to support former Roc-a-Fella Records artist Beanie Sigel seem to have resulted in a deal to bring the Broad Street Bully to G-Unit Records.



Both artists confirmed the move during a private screening of 50’s directorial debut, Before I Self Destruct on Tuesday evening (November 3) in Philadelphia.



The presentation was hosted by Power 99 (WUSL-FM), which allowed fans the opportunity to win tickets to the screening .



Sigel joined 50 towards the end of an on-air interview with “The Hot Boyz” Mikey Dredd and Uncle O, leading to a candid ten minute conversation.



During the interview, 50 and Beans revealed that “Beans is coming to G-Unit,” with no additional details as to how soon the new partnership might yield an album or single.



The interview also presented a chance for Sigel to respond to Jay-Z’s reaction to “Average Cat.”



“People think that I’m just speaking out because I’m in the position that I am and I ain’t put no music out. Let’s go to Jay-Z’s rebuttal about the complaints of Beanie Sigel: the two Bentleys that I obtained, Jay-Z had nothing to do with that. That was a car from Damon Dash and from Kareem Burke.”



He goes on to explain that the car was given to him after a conversation between Dame and others revealed that Dash was in fact the owner and driver of the Bentley, at which point he no longer wanted to be seen driving the vehicle.



The other Bentley was given to him as a birthday present by Burkes, leaving him to pay the remaining balance on the car note.



“So, Beanie Sigel was driving around to Bentleys and had to pay $5100 a month. It’s not like you helped me attain all this wealth and gave me the two Bentleys. You didn’t give me a record label. It only cost a couple hundred dollars to search the name ‘State Property Records,’ nobody owned it; I think I paid another couple hundred dollars and I patented the LLC. So my record label only cost me $750, to say on a piece of paper that I own State Property Records, LLC. I did that on my own, you didn’t give me that. And what artists was on that label?”



Beans reveals that he was only a 20% partner in the State Property clothing line, with Jay-Z, Dame Dash and their Rocawear partners owning the rest.



Sigel had presented the idea to Dash as their relationship drew strength based on the rift between Jay and Dame, he says.



Even though he revealed that Damon Dash allegedly went behind his back and sabotaged State Property’s clothing product, Sigel admonished Jay-Z for what he refers to as continued unnecessary jabs at a man he’s clearly defeated.



“Take me out, Dame and Biggs were your mans from day one. If he [Dame] was messing up the money y’all should’ve been able to straighten that out. Whatever the gripe, you took everything from him already,” Sigel argued. “You took the clothing line, the record label, he has nothing. Now he’s going through financial difficulties. Then he loses his wife and gets a divorce. You feel that comfortable on a record to say ‘Lucky Lefty, kiss the wife goodnight for me.?’ You already killed the man, he’s dead already! Now you’re going to stand over top of him and urinate on him and stomp on him? You can do that? I got something to say about that."



On whether to expect more diss records, Sigel made it clear he would continue to go at Jay lyrically until he gets a response, and predicted he has the skill set to emerge vuictorious.



“He's a crumb. I’m putting my foot on his neck ‘til he responds. Please make a record, ‘cause a week been out dog,” he taunted.



“Not taking nothing from Jay as an artist. All I’m saying is I ain’t gotta jog to keep up with him. Watch what I do next,” Beans “said as he did the signature G Unit stuttering proclamation.