It’s not often Jay-Z indulges in rap beef anymore. One of hip-hop’s billionaires in the industry, he hardly has to indulge in such exchanges anymore. The most you’ll hear is some stray shots in the occasional feature verse. Now, with his freestyle at the Roots Picnic, he’s giving some of his most concentrated disses in years.
The most notable of all the Hov subliminals was against Drake. On Drake’s ICEMAN cut “Janice STFU”, he rapped, “You boys got big on my name, that’s big enough … we know how you OGs rocking already my n****, the jig is up.”
Jay-Z responded accordingly, referencing the “Jig is up” line to one-up the Toronto MC. “A rapper can’t be my opp… The jig is up, n***a I’m up 10, wrong chart champ, n***as looked up to Hov, I never looked up to them,” he rapped at the Roots Picnic. “Them crackers got your publishing checks, go talk tough to them, don’t talk success to me, you n***as is workers, in perpetuity is how your contract is worded.”
Next on Jay’s hit list was Nicki Minaj. Nicki has openly criticized Marcy’s Finest in the past for being a part of the NFL’s halftime show decision-making process. Moreover, she claimed that he was the reason she pivoted towards a more conservative rhetoric politically. Consequently, he went for the jugular.
Jay-Z Trashes His Opposition During Roots Picnic Freestyle
“That lady back on that stuff, she sounds like she’s in love with em […] Her Ken can’t even… pick they kid… enough of them,” Hov spat. “A rapper can’t be my opp, I got MAGA republicans […] Those shots came from the very top of the government, good luck with them.“
Lastly, Jay-Z seemingly threw shade at his old friend Kanye West too. “You ever heard of wonder-kin? My children are some of them, have you n***as have no shame? You really wanna get under my skin? I’ll really get under ya skin, ask Un how I’m playing,” he continued elsewhere in his freestyle. “Y’all thugs with y’all thumb again, everybody thinks they’re the ones insane, you’re no maniac, watch how he sane he acts in my presence, n***as shrink.“
None of these disses promise that Jay-Z will emerge with new music or new disses soon. He admitted to GQ back in March that he felt his recently recorded music was too ‘heavy’ to release.
“Whatever it is, it just needs to be a true representation of how I feel,” he said of any potential new album. “Trying to create something that people like is where I think a lot of artists get jammed up. And people can feel that because it’s not authentic. I just got to make something timeless that I really love and that’s really honest and true to who I am.”
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