[JACQUES] Jay-Z’s latest album ‘4:44’ is seen by many as his most mature and vulnerable
body of work to date.
While some may poke fun by calling it “dad-rap” it does shed new light on
Hov’s evolving relationship with his own father.
With the release of the highly anticipated bonus track, “Adnis” - named after his
father, Adnis Reeves - the footnotes , released via Tidal, detail how Carter’s lyrics wrestled
with feeling of abandonment caused by an absentee father.
[Jay Z] "All my songs up this point have been about
anger with my dad.
Like, ‘You left and I didn’t see you for all these years and you ain't shit
and I don’t fuck with you.’
and but you know as an adult, looking back, now I look back on the situation and I have a different perspective of it."
Life experiences always give us new perspectives and in Jay-Z’s case,
But this respect wasn’t always given...
it had to be earned.
On Jay’s debut album, 1996’s 'Reasonable Doubt', Hov uses a clever bar in
“Can’t Knock The Hustle” to encapsulate this feeling of estrangement
Hov went at it again three years later on “This Life Forever” off of the
little-known project, 'Black Gangster'
These bars contain the bravado of a man who was left to forge it alone,
closely guarded and seemingly invulnerable
but the pain always manages to seep through.
On 1999’s Vol. 3…'Life and Times of S. Carter',
We hear this pain loud and clear on the outro, “Hova Song”
Jay’s feeling of estrangement began to evolve into a rage.
On 2000’s 'The Dynasty: Roc La Familia,' joined by then label mate, Beanie Sigel, Jay penned
an angry screed to his absent father on “Where Have You Been”
The same album gave us “Streets Is Talking” where Jay quickly explained
the departure that served as a foundation for his life.
In a 2001 follow up to “Where Have You Been”, Sigel and Jay strike a softer
tone towards their paternal figures on “Still Got Love For You” -
In 2002’s “Meet The Parents”,
Hov doesn’t outright make the song about his father, but it’s pretty much implied.
Jay-Z continues here to tell us what happens to a young man forced
to live with an absentee father.
In 2003 with the help of his mother, Gloria, Jay-Z and Adnis finally closed
the 20 year rift...and just in time.
[Jay Z] Once me and my pop you know before he passed away, you know had a conversation
And i was able to tell him everything that I felt
And everything that was on my mind I was able to let all those feelings go.
Reeve’s death had a profound effect on Hov -
and noticeably around this time his lyrics towards Adnis became more vulnerable
and introspective.
That same year he freestyled on 50 Cent’s “If I Can’t”
We hear this same pain on “December 4th” off of 'The Black Album'
And on “Moment of Clarity,”
Hov shares even even more context for what caused his father to leave
Uncle Ray was Adnis Reeves’ brother and Ray’s death due to a stabbing,
changed Adnis’...and Jay Z's life forever.
[Jay Z] That put my dad in like this weird place.
Obviously, he went through depression and started using drugs, and it became this slippery slope.
And he couldn’t face his children at some point.
Jay-Z also raps about this in 2007’s “Pray” off of 'American Gangster'
As well as “No Hook”
It is always said that one will never know what a parent goes through until
they have children themselves.
This hit Jay especially hard - 2011’s “New Day” off of Watch The Throne features Carter,
yearning to right the wrongs of his father
even while Blue Ivy was still a twinkle in his eye.
Blue Ivy Carter was born January 7th, 2012.
After all the years of dealing with the anger and abandonment regarding father’s departure,
Hov now had the pressure of being a father thrust upon him.
2 days later, Jay put that pressure into words on “Glory” - dedicated to his newborn daughter.
Jay-Z has two more children now a set of twins named Rumi and Sir Carter. Congrats.
And Hov is determined to use the hindsight of his past relationship with his own father
to be a strong influence in the lives of his three children.
I’m Jacques Morel with Genius News
bringing you the knowledge behind the music...peace!