Eileen Lucas - Jay-Z: Hitmaker and Business Leader

Published in 2020 by Enslow Publishing, LLC. 101 W. 23rd Street, Suite 240, New York, NY 10011 Copyright 2020 by Enslow Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Lucas, Eileen, author.

Title: Jay-Z: hitmaker and business leader / Eileen Lucas. Description: New York: Enslow Publishing, 2020. | Series: Stars of hip-hop | Audience: 2 | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018048703| ISBN 9781978509580 (library bound) | ISBN 9781978510166 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781978510180 (6 pack) Subjects: LCSH: Jay-Z, 1969Juvenile literature. | Rap musiciansUnited States BiographyJuvenile literature. Classification: LCC ML3930.J38 L84 2020 | DDC 782.421649092 [B] dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018048703 Printed in the United States of America To Our Readers: We have done our best to make sure all websites in this book were active and appropriate when we went to press.

However, the author and the publisher have no control over and assume no liability for the material available on those websites or on any websites they may link to. Any comments or suggestions can be sent by email to . Photo Credits: Cover, p. John Ricard/Getty Images. CONTENTS COMING FROM NOTHING T he bike was too big for Shawn. A fouryear- old was on a two-wheeled bike! Shawn rode it anyway.

The neighbors were amazed. Shawn called it a taste of being famous. I liked it, he said. Felt good. Shawn Corey Carter was born December 4, 1968. He became the famous rapper and successful businessman Jay-Z.

But he started out poor in Brooklyn. His family lived in the Marcy . This is where the poorest people lived. Jay-Z attends the premiere of the video game NBA 2K13 in 2012. He produced the game and hosted the party at his 40/40 Club in New York City. A GIFTED CHILD Shawns dad was Adnis Reeves.

He left when Shawn was young. His mom, Gloria Carter, worked hard. She did her best to care for Shawn, his sisters, and his brother. Shawn was a good student. He loved to read. He also liked to think up rhymes.

The Marcy Projects Jay-Z grew up in a project. Projects are crowded apartment buildings. They were built for poor people who couldnt afford to live anywhere else. There was a lot of crime there. Jay-Z rapped about this in his songs. He wrote them down on scraps of paper.

Then hed stuff them in his pocket. He also wrote rhymes in a notebook. Sometimes he woke the family up at night. He was tapping out a beat for his rhymes. SURVIVING THE STREET LIFE Shawns mom worked a lot. He started spending time on the streets.

He began selling drugs. Shawn saw what drugs, especially , did to people. Drugs destroyed lives. He didnt use drugs. But selling them became his job. Jay-Z is photographed with his mother, Gloria Carter, at a fund-raising event in 2011.

Selling drugs put Shawns life in danger. Guns and knives were everywhere. He was afraid of being beaten or killed. He worried about going to jail. Jay-Z ( right ) was in his early twenties in this photo with hip-hop artists Jaz-O ( left ) and Queen Latifah. Shawn met a rapper named Jaz-O.

Maybe rap could lead to a better life. Jay-Z became Shawns rap name. All I got is dreams, nobody else can see. Nobody else believes, nobody else but me. RAPPING ON THE SPOT Jay-Z kept writing rhymes. He rapped at parties.

Jay-Z rapped every chance he could. He often rapped FIVE YEARS, FIVE ALBUMS D amon Dash was a businessman from East Harlem. Harlem is part of New York City. Dash and Jay-Z both loved hip-hop. In 1995, they started a company together. They called it Roc-A-Fella Records.

Dash ran the business side of it. Jay-Z took care of the music part. In 1996, they recorded Jay-Zs first album. It was called Reasonable Doubt. Jay-Z rapped about life on the streets. Jay-Z celebrates Damon Dashs birthday at a party for his partner in 2002. Jay-Z celebrates Damon Dashs birthday at a party for his partner in 2002.

ONE OF THE RAP GREATS Another rappers voice is on Jay-Zs first album. His name was the Notorious B.I.G. Sometimes he was just called Biggie. Jay-Z and Biggie became friends. Jay-Z was working on his second album, In My Lifetime, Vol. 1.

He learned some bad news. Biggie had been shot and between rappers from the East Coast and those from the West Coast. Still, Jay-Zs new album sold well. Roc-A-Fella got some help from Def Jam Records. Def Jam was big in the hip-hop world. Meaningful Rhymes For Jay-Z, rap was part reporting, part having fun, and part art.

He created phrases with layers of meaning. He wrote songs about growing up in a world that felt like a war zone. Jay-Zs next album was one of his most successful. It was called Vol.2 Hard Knock Life. Jay-Z won a Grammy Award for it. The Notorious B.I.G. performs in 1995. performs in 1995.

He was killed in 1997. Jay-Z signs autographs at a 2003 event in a Bloomingdales clothing store. The Rocawear clothing line has become a huge success. GOING INTO FASHION In 1999, Jay-Z released his fourth album. Another album came out the next year. This made five albums in five years.

Jay-Z and Damon Dash started a hip-hop clothing line. They called it Rocawear. Jay-Z wore Rocawear clothes onstage. I did bad things [in the past] . I try not to do bad things anymore. Then Jay-Z got in big trouble.

He was fighting the for the attack. He promised himself he would never get in trouble like that again. FORGIVING THE PAST J ay-Zs sixth album, The , came out September 11, 2001. That was the day the United States was attacked by terrorists. But in time, The Blueprint became successful. Jay-Z released another album in 2002.

It was called The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse. One of its songs featured singer Beyonc Knowles. They were dating. On Jay-Zs next album, The Black Album, Gloria Carters voice can be heard. Jay-Z recorded his mom as she talked in the studio one day. Jay-Z also opened his first 40/40 Club.

More sports bars in other cities would follow. Many athletes and stars spent time there. Jay-Z and Damon Dash celebrate the opening of the first 40/40 Club in New York City. RETIRING FROM RAP Jay-Z wanted to take a break from making studio albums. He held a concert in Madison Square Garden. He called it a retirement party.