Jay-Z is the second wealthiest man in hip hop, and since 1995, Hov has been bringing us quality music. From Reasonable Doubt to 4:44, the Brooklyn rapper has been around since the days of Big Daddy Kane and Biggie.
As one of the first artists from the genre to achieve billionaire status, Hov (real name Shawn Carter) is considered to be one of the best rappers of all time
Jay’s albums are considered classics, and many would see his catalogue as flawless in every sense of the word. However, the rapper (real name Shawn Carter) is not an egotist and has previously opened-up about his shortcomings and mistakes when it comes to making music, especially during his early days.
Although the Brooklyn native is seen as a figure of perfection nowadays, he made many mistakes when he first emerged in the late-90s. From assaulting Lance Rivera to “messing up” his sophomore project, he had imperfections.
In a 2009 interview with MySpace Today, the ‘Story Of OJ’ lyricist delved into the details of his early material and revealed some of his feelings looking back. Opening up about the trouble with his second body of work, Carter explained, “I had just made Reasonable Doubt, and it wasn’t successful in music industry terms. It was a cult classic on the street.”
He continued, “It wasn’t successful, so I tried to blend the two. If you look back on In My Lifetime Vol. 1, there were songs on there that were brilliant. But I don’t listen to that album anymore because I think I messed it up!”
Although it is a classic, the Roc-a-Fella co-founder doesn’t view it that way in hindsight. Elaborating on how he messed it up, the emcee detailed, “You got ‘Where I’m From,’ ‘Streets Is Watching,’ and ‘You Must Love Me’ there’s so many incredible records on there that I think I missed two classics in a row by trying to get on the radio…I can’t listen to it! When those records come on, it irks me!”
In My Lifetime Vol. 1 debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 in 1997 and was Jay-Z’s first platinum album. However, in his eyes, there were too many radio-friendly hits and no street records. You can listen to the album Jay-Z “messed up” below.