Jay Z appeared on HBO yesterday to chop it up with Bill Maher, as well as premiere the new "art piece" accompaniment for "Picasso Baby". Jay spoke with Maher about his political view, his issues with Harry Belafonte, and of course, Obama. He then debuted the visuals for "Picasso Baby," in which he detailed the relationship between rap and art.
Read a few of the best quotes from the video and interview below.
On whether we need increased police presence: "More jobs would be better than police. I don't want to scare America, but the real problem is there's no middle class; the gap between the have's and the have not's is getting wider and wider. It's going to be a problem that no amount of police can solve."
On Harry Belafonte: "If it was a real problem, I'm not very difficult to find, especially for a man of that stature. he could reach out to me and we could have a conversation and do some good together. I just thought it was a bit grandstanding ... and I didn't appreciate that. Especially dragging my wife into it, it was a bit of a low blow."
On who he'd like to induct him into the Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame: "Obama, [laughs] He owes me a couple."
On concerts vs. performance art: "Concerts are pretty much performance art. The venues change. Just by nature of the venues, the performance changes. If you're in a smaller venue, it's a bit more intimate so you get to feel the energy of the people...In a concert, especially in a large concert, all that energy comes to you. What do you do with that energy? So, today, it's kind of an exchange. You have somewhere to drop it back off."
On personality in rap: "Rap is pretty much thinking out loud. You're talking and putting your fears and your vulnerabilities, you're putting your bravado and your insecurities all on music and it's there for the world to see. You're really giving a glimpse of who you are."
Watch the interview and video below.