Jay-Z’s humorous nature may be notorious among his close friends and peers, but it’s understated in the eyes of many fans who’ve come to know him primarily as a lyrically adept, shrewd mogul. However, Hov has a history for littering his albums with comedic moments in the form of interludes. One example is the song “Threat” from his 2003 release, The Black Album. Unbeknownst to many fans, the shrill voice listeners hear during the opening of the track belongs to none other than comedian and actor Cedric The Entertainer, who recently spoke on the creation of the skit and how he became involved.
“It was random,” the King of Comedy, who linked with Hov in the studio in NYC, told William “Fuzzy” West and Quincy Harris on the FAQ Podcast. “I was in there, watching him do his thing. The Black Album was his last album so I pitched him an idea. He was on his way out and I was like, ‘Yo man, I’ve been having this funny idea of doing the Beverly Hills Cop thing with you.’”
“He was like, ‘Oh, that’s funny. I like that. But I’m working on this song called ‘Threats’ that I need somebody just threatening people on.’ I was like, ‘Aiight!’ So then he left and it was me and [Young] Guru. I just went in there and freestyled that sh*t! Just was making it up, having a good time.” After listening to what Cedric laid down that evening, Hov eventually informed him that his skit was going to make the album, a moment the renowned entertainer remembers vividly.
“That was a crazy call,” he said of the conversation. “He was like, ‘Yo Ced, what’s up? This sh*t made the album, the ‘Threats’ sh*t.’ I was like, ‘What the hell?! I’ma be on The Black Album, ni**a?!’ That sh*t was legendary, dawg. That was one of those f**king dope-a** moments.”
According to Young Guru, Jay-Z’s longtime engineer, there are unused portions of Cedric’s recordings from that particular session that are still in the vault and only accessible to himself and producer 9th Wonder, who scored the track. “A couple years ago I did some ‘special edits’ where I used some of the other stuff he said that night,” Guru revealed while reposting the FAQ Podcast clip on Instagram. “Only me and @9thwonder have that version.”