Veteran journalist Elliot Wilson caught up with Jay Z at Yankee Stadium before he lit up the stage alongside Justin Timberlake for the Legends Of Summer tour. Jay offered up straight facts in their hour-long exchange, and Mr. Carter didn’t leave any stone unturned as he dived into topics about his love for art, the new legends of hip-hop, his relationship with Beyoncé and his fears of being a father. Check out 10 of Hov’s most revealing quotes.
On his business deal with Samsung
“We’ve been working within the system, with Roc-a-Fella, we’ve been working within those systems and we’ve been fighting for our own identity, who we are. This is Roc-a-Fella. We love you Def Jam and thank you, Universal, but this is Roc-a-Fella. We’ve been doing that from day one, so I’m well versed in that fight. I don’t have any fear of working with Samsung because I’m not gonna let them put a phone on my forehead; that’s just never gonna happen.”
On striving to be the best in the game
“Shakespeare was a man who wrote poetry. I’m a man who writes poetry. Why not compare yourself to the best?”
On the controversy over his sales for Magna Carta Holy Grail
“What people have to understand is Billboard is a magazine. They’re like elected officials – they work for us.”
On why he still lives in an apartment in Tribeca
“New York – I’m connected. This is my core. I feel like if I’m not connected to New York then I don’t even know what to do with myself.”
On how he stays so grounded
“I came into this music business at 26 years old. I was a fully developed man at that point. At that age I didn’t have anything to prove.”
