Last year, Beyoncé us all life by dropping her visual album “Lemonade”; an intense story of heartbreak, adultery, and forgiveness. It basically had us all shook and I was super annoyed because I was in New York when she dropped it and couldn’t blog right away.
Now, Jay Z has dropped his own revealing album, “4:44”, where he addresses everything from cheating on Beyoncé, his elevator fight with her sister Solange, and his mom being a lesbian.
A big part of me never really believed that Jay cheated on Beyoncé and “Lemonade” wasn’t even a direct attack on him, but Bey and Jay played it up because those two know how to hustle and make money. However, while they could still very well be playing me, “4:44” DOES seem to suggest that Jay has had some wandering dick moments, but Bey still chose to stick by him.
Of course, this could be some super brilliant musical soap opera they’re both trying to sell us, but, like, whatever, I guess.
In the title track, “4:44”, an apology to Beyoncé (four is their lucky number. They were both born on the 4th of a month, they got married on 4/4/8, they have matching IV tattoos, and Blue’s middle name is Ivy, so, yeah, naming the album that really suggests the importance of his relationship with Beyoncé), Jay raps:
“Look, I apologize, often womanize,
Took for my child to be born
See through a woman’s eyes.
Took for these natural twins to believe in miracles.
Took me too long for this song
I don’t deserve you….
…And if my children knew, I don’t even know what I would do,
If they ain’t look at me the same
I would probably die with all the shame
“You did what with who?”
What good is a menage a trois when you have a soulmate?
“You risked that for Blue?”
So, yeah, they could be pulling one over on us, or maybe Jay Z really DID cheat on Beyoncé at some point in their relationship.
Jay’s album is incredibly personal and a lot of it is dedicated to him taking responsibility for a lot of shit. In “4:44” he blames himself for Beyoncé’s previous miscarriage (“I apologize for all the stillborns/’Cause I wasn’t present, your body wouldn’t accept it”), and in “Kill Jay Z” he takes responsibility for that infamous elevator fight with Solange (“You egged Solange on/Knowin’ all along/All you had to say was you was wrong”).
He also calls out Kanye West, who late last year went on a little tirade about Jay and Beyoncé:
“I know people backstab you, I feel bad too, but this “fuck everybody” attitude ain’t natural, but you ain’t the same, this ain’t KumbaYe, but you got hurt because you did cool by ‘Ye, you gave him 20 million without blinkin’, he gave you 20 minutes on stage, fuck was he thinkin’?”
There is also a beautiful song, “Smile”, for his mother who recently, after years of hiding her sexuality, came out as a lesbian.
My favourite part of the whole damn album, though? When Jay refers to Bill Cosby as Pill Cosby. Has no one said that before? Because it seems painfully obvious and brilliant, but it was my first time hearing it. Either way, just fantastic stuff.
Side note: The names of the Carter twins have been revealed. Rumi and Sir Carter. Rumi is already, but Sir is stupid af. Also, Kanye West quit Jay Z’s streaming service, Tidal, thus confirming that Kanye West is probably in the sunken place.