Jay-Z has unveiled his much-anticipated album and as expected it has been the subject of online conversations. The album is a departure from what he is known for, prideful lyrics and bragging. In the album titled 4.44, Jay-Z undresses himself, revealing he once cheated on his wife Beyonce.
The Roc Nation president also revealed on the album that his mother, Gloria Carter, is a lesbian. He puts it this way:” Took for these natural twins to believe in miracles / Took me too long for this song / Like the men before me, I cut off my nose to spite my face / I never wanted another woman to know / Something about me that you didn’t know,” he raps on the title track ‘4:44’.
“If my children knew, I don’t even know what I would do / If they ain’t look at me the same, I would prolly die with all the shame / You did what with who? What good is a ménage à trois when you have a soulmate, you risked that for Blue?”
On ‘Smile’, Jay-Z opens up on his mother’s sexuality, stating that she dealt with the stigma of being a lesbian for so many years.
“Mama had four kids but she’s a lesbian / Had to pretend so long, that she’s a thespian. Don’t matter to me if it’s him or her / I just want to see you smile through all the hate,” he croons.
His mom who astoundingly features on the track delivered a spoken word verse, where she made remarks extensively on how she handled living in the closet.
She rapped: “Living in the shadow/Can you imagine what kind of life it is to live? In the shadows, people see you as happy and free/Because that’s what you want them to see.
“Living two lives, happy, but not free/You live in the shadows for fear of someone hurting your family or the person you love.
“The world is changing and they say it’s time to be free/But you live with the fear of just being me. Living in the shadow feels like the safe place to be/No harm for them, no harm for me
“But life is short, and it’s time to be free/Love who you love because life isn’t guaranteed.”
The album was released on his Tidal streaming service which is now co-owned by telecom provider Sprint.