Make Another Hov: 7 Celebrities Who've Done Jay Z Impersonations

October 4, 2014 - 8:27 pm by Chris Yuscavage

Denzel Washington is obviously a phenomenal actor. So when he made an appearance on The Queen Latifah Show recently, it wasn't a surprise to see him attempting to do an impersonation of someone. What was surprising, though, was that he managed to nail an excellent impersonation of none other than Jay Z. "Yeah, D," he said in Jay Z's voice, before unleashing an impression of Hov's laugh, "I'm gonna put this on for you, just tell me what you think."

It was one of the better Jay Z impersonations that we've ever seen. But it's definitely not the only one that we've watched in recent years. So how did Denzel's impression stand up to all of the others? Check out these 7 other celebrities who have impersonated Hov and see for yourself.

The Celebrity: Jay Pharoah When He Did His Impression: July 2013 How Good Was It? Pretty good. Although there were some people at the 2013 ESPY Awards who didn't appreciate him poking fun at Hov by doing his impersonation—we saw you, Diddy!—he sounded like him, laughed like him, and even wore a Roc-A-Fella chain throughout the duration of his impression. It was good enough to get a laugh out of LeBron James, so it was good enough for us. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Aries Spears When He Did His Impression: July 2010 How Good Was It? Very good. If you've got some free time, go on YouTube and watch all of the Jay Z impersonations that the comedian has done in the past. He's done them so often that, at times, he sounds like he's tired of doing them. But he's got Hov's voice down pat. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Andy Roddick When He Did His Impression: January 2014 How Good Was It? Not good at all. We're still a little bit confused as to why the tennis player decided to do this after seeing Hov at the Grammy Awards this year. *shrugs* [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Kevin Kiermaier When He Did His Impression: June 2014 How Good Was It? Kind of good. The Tampa Bay Rays outfielder isn't going to blow you away with his impression. But it was kind of funny to hear him read baseball highlights in his best Jay Z voice this summer. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Affion Crockett When He Did His Impression: August 2011 How Good Was It? Better than everyone else listed here. Crockett can do a lot of impersonations. But there's a reason why people ask him to do Jay Z most often. He does him so well that he can rap and still sound like Jay. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Ry Doon When He Did His Impression: October 2013 How Good Was It? Good enough to earn him some Internet fame. It's a little weird that this guy recorded an entire series of Vines featuring him doing his Hov impression in different places like the grocery store and the Olive Garden. But hey, it's why we're talking about him right now, even though he's not technically a "celebrity." He gained notoriety on the 'net as a result of his ability to channel Jay Z. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

The Celebrity: Denzel Washington When He Did His Impression: September 2014 How Good Was It? Surprisingly good. We'd need to hear more before we crown his Hov impersonation as the best, but he showed us on The Queen Latifah Show that King Kong ain't got shit on Denzel's Jay Z impression. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

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