Almanac of Story Tellers: Jay-Z

Every day brings a new story.  And each day contributes to story telling -- in prose and in poetry, in art and in music, on the stage, on the screen, and, of course, in books 

Today is the story of Dec. 4th

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    It is the 338th day of the year, leaving 27 days remaining in 2022. 

   

    On this date in 1969, the musician Jay-Z was born in Brooklyn.

    He tells his stories through hip-hop and rap, populating his lyrics with first-hand experience, mastering the flow of his words with smoothness and clever wordplay to bring out the rhythms and rhymes in his head.

    With his successful music business that includes producing and mentoring younger rappers, he is one of the most influential artists of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.  

    He grew up listening to the soul and Motown music of the 1970s. Starting in the 1990s, he recorded his own music and sold CDs out of his car. With several others, he created Roc-A-Fella records, and his first album on his label, Reasonable Doubt, reached No. 23 on the Billboard charts.

    With Def Jam releasing his next albums, sales took off. Collaborations with Mariah Carey and other stars showed his talent and brought him fame. One album, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life in 1998, brought his the first of many Grammys.

    In 2004, Jay-Z became president of Def Jam records, and while continuing to record albums and perform -- despite an announced retirement -- turned his attention to other aspects of the music industry. This included mentoring others, including Kanye West and Beyoncé, whom he later married.

    He also created a clothing company, a film-production company, and bought a stake in the New Jersey (now Brooklyn) Nets of the NBA.

    In 2021. Jay-Z was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.