Jay-Z is the wealthiest rapper of all time and has made a series of highly clever business choices to build his wealth over the years. Many consider him a savvy man whose industry insight could help them become rich. As such, a hypothetical question has emerged on social media: “Lunch with Jay-Z or $500k.”
The Brooklyn star recently answered this question in a sit-down interview with CBS’s Gayle King. Fans have been going wild with no consensus forming. Many say the business insight could help generate more than $500k, while others say the money is a better starting point.”
To finally answer this question and put an end to this divide, Gayle King posed this question to Jay-Z, and his answer was, “You got to take the money.” The lyricist stated this because he believes that all the guidance people need already exists in his music.
Explaining this, the rapper continued, “You got all that in the music for $10.99. Take the $500,000, go buy some albums and listen to the albums. If you piece it together and really listen to the music… it’s all there.”
The emcee (real name Shawn Carter) highlighted his 2001 album The Blueprint as a goldmine of information concerning business and achieving wealth. “Everything I said was going to happen, happened.” he told King, “Everything I said I wanted to do, I’ve done. There’s the blueprint. The Blueprint to me and my life and my journey is there already.”
Many listen to Carter’s music, but perhaps the lyrics go over their head. His tracks, especially his early music from the 1990s, are about business and how he transformed from a drug dealer on the street as a 13-year-old to selling over 140 million records.
The interview was in honour of Carter and drew attention to his exhibition, ‘The Book of HOV’, which is an ongoing exhibit at the Brooklyn Public Library celebrating the life and work of the hip-hop legend.
