We all saw that scary CCTV video back in 2014, of Beyoncé’s sister Solange kicking seven shades of cheese out of Jay-Z in a lift. Supposedly it was all because of Jay-Z’s alleged infidelity against Beyoncé, but the truth never really came out, as it never does - these things always just fade away and everyone is forgiven. That’s entertainment!
But now, thanks to an in-depth interview with the New York Times, the rapper has come clean - these allegations are ‘alleged’ no more. Speaking to journalist Dean Baquet, he admitted his transgressions and went deep on a number of important subjects.
Talking about his infidelity, he revealed: “You have to survive. So you go into survival mode, and when you go into survival mode, what happens? You shut down all emotions.
“So, even with women, you gonna shut down emotionally, so you can’t connect…
“In my case, like, it’s deep. And then all the things happen from there – infidelity.”
He then goes on to mention that as a result of the relationship troubles, the couple attempted to make a joint album, as a sort of therapy: “We were using our art almost like a therapy session. And we started making music together. And then the music she was making at that time was further along. So, her album came out as opposed to the joint album that we were working on…
“We still have a lot of that music. And this is what it became. There was never a point where it was like, ‘I’m making this album.’ I was right there the entire time.
“But the best place in the hurricane is in the middle of it. The best place is right in the middle of the pain.
“And that’s where we were sitting. And it was uncomfortable. And we had a lot of conversations.
“[I was] really proud of the music she made, and she was really proud of the art I released.
“And, you know, at the end of the day we really have a healthy respect for one another’s craft. I think she’s amazing.”
Kanye, Jay-Z and Beyoncé all together, back in 2012
On the subject of relationships, he also talked about his complicated friendship with Kanye West: “I [talked to] Kanye the other day, just to tell him, like, he’s my brother. I love Kanye. I do. It’s a complicated relationship with us.
“Kanye came into this business on my label. So I’ve always been like his big brother. And we’re both entertainers. It’s always been like a little underlying competition with your big brother. And we both love and respect each other’s art, too.
“So it’s like, we both — everyone wants to be the greatest in the world. You know what I’m saying? And then there’s like a lot of other factors that play in it. But it’s gonna, we gonna always be good.
“Hopefully when we’re 89 we look at this six months or whatever time and we laugh at that. You know what I’m saying? There’s gonna be complications in the relationship that we have to get through. And the only way to get through that is we sit down and have a dialogue and say, These are the things that I’m uncomfortable with. These are the things that are unacceptable to me. This is what I feel.’
“I’m sure he feels that I’ve done things to him as well. You know what I’m saying? These are — I’m not a perfect human being by no stretch.
“You know, my first album came out when I was 26. So I was already a different artist. You know, a lot of people’s album come out they’re 17, 18. So their subject matter is that of a 17- or 18-year-old. Unless you’re Nas, and you like, well-read — like, he was way more advanced with the album that he wrote.
“So I just grew up a different way. But [West is] a very compassionate person. And a lot of times he get in trouble trying to help others. So I can identify with it. It’s just that there’s certain things that happened that’s not really acceptable to me.
“And we just need to speak about it. But there’s genuine love there.”
If you fancy reading and/or watching (there’s a video!) the full interview then check it out here, it’s a long read, but a good read.
(Image: Rex)
