Jay Z

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Jay Z

Jay Z at the Shawn Carter Foundation Carnival, 2011

Shawn Corey Carter
December 4, 1969 (age 45)
Born
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Los Angeles, California, U.S.[1]
Residence
Rapper
record producer
Occupation
entrepreneur
1990present
US$510-520 million (2014)[2]
Beyonc (m. 2008)
1
Musical career
Hip hop
Genres
Vocals
Instruments
Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam, Roc Nation
Labels
Beyonc
Foxy Brown
Jaz-O
Justin Timberlake
Kanye West
Associated acts
Linkin Park
Memphis Bleek
Pharrell Williams
R. Kelly
Years active
Net worth
Spouse(s)
Children

Rihanna
Big L
Notorious B.I.G

Website
lifeandtimes.com
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969),[3] known by his stage name Jay Z (formerly
Jay-Z),[4][5][6] is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. He is one of the
most financially successful hip-hop artists and entrepreneurs in America. In 2014, Forbes
estimated Carter's net worth at nearly $520 million. [7][8] He is one of the world's best-selling
artists of all time, having sold more than 100 million records, while receiving 19 Grammy
Awards for his musical work, and numerous additional nominations. [9][10][11] Consistently
ranked as one of the greatest rappers ever, he was ranked number one by MTV in their list of
The Greatest MCs of All-Time in 2006.[12] Three of his albums, Reasonable Doubt (1996),
The Blueprint (2001), and The Black Album (2003), are considered landmarks in the genre
with all of them featured in Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[13][14][15]
As an entrepreneur and investor, Jay Z co-owns the 40/40 Club, and is the co-creator of the
clothing line Rocawear.[16] He is the former president of Def Jam Recordings, co-founder of
Roc-A-Fella Records, and the founder of Roc Nation. He also founded the sports agency Roc
Nation Sports and is a certified NBA and MLB sports agent.[17] As an artist, he holds the
record for most number one albums by a solo artist on the Billboard 200 with 13.[18][19] Jay-Z
also has had four number ones on the Billboard Hot 100, one as lead artist. On December 11,
2009, Jay-Z was ranked as the tenth-most successful artist of the 2000s by Billboard as well
as the fifth top solo male artist and fourth top rapper behind Eminem, Nelly, and 50 Cent.[20]
He was also ranked the 88th greatest artist of all time by Rolling Stone.[21]
Jay-Z married American R&B singer Beyonc in 2008.[22] They have a daughter named Blue
Ivy Carter, born January 7, 2012.

Contents

1 Early life
o 1.1 Early career
2 Music career
o 2.1 199597: Reasonable Doubt and In My Lifetime, Vol. 1
o 2.2 19982000: Vol. 2..., criminal charges and mainstream success
2
o 2.3 200102: Feud with Nas, The Blueprint and The Blueprint
o 2.4 200305: The Black Album, initial retirement and collaborative albums
o 2.5 200507: "I Declare War", Kingdom Come and American Gangster
o 2.6 200811: The Blueprint 3 and Watch the Throne
o 2.7 2012present: Magna Carta Holy Grail and other ventures
3 Musical style
o 3.1 Influences
o 3.2 Rapping technique
4 Business career
5 Personal life
o 5.1 Relationship with Beyonc

o
o
o
o

5.2 Legal incident

5.3 Philanthropy
5.4 Politics
5.5 Criticism
6 Discography
7 Awards and nominations
8 Filmography
9 Official tours
10 Bibliography
11 References