Jay-Z has come back in a big way on the rap scene with his latest album, 4:44. Received with nearly universal praise, he's still managed to illicit some strong negative reaction to one track, "The Story of O.J."
The track, which boasts some strong retro-flavored instrumentation via a Nina Simone sample, is about the rise-and-fall story of The Juice, former football player and now perhaps the most famous incarcerated individual in America. However, the song is also about your "blackness" and how that matters more than any other distinction, including the number of stacks you've got. In a way, it's a welcome throwback to a more storytelling kind of Jigga from his late-90's days.
The controversy comes from lyrics about Jewish people owning "all the property" in America. Some have defended his line as simply hyperbole taken out of context, while others are calling Jay-Z an anti-semite and moving for people to denounce the song and the album it comes from.
Quotable Lyrics
You wanna know what's more important than throwin' away money at a strip club?
Credit.
You ever wonder why Jewish people own all the property in America?
This how they did it.