JAY-Z extols the power of black capitalism throughout his new album 4:44, most prominently on the song’s second track “The Story of O.J.” While some have praised Jay’s message of fiscal responsibility, one particular line from the song seems to have struck a nerve with Louisiana rapper Boosie Badazz.
On the song’s second verse, Jay references rappers holding giant stacks of cash to their ears, which Genius contributors Brian Erwin and q_huncho break down in an annotation:
In an Instagram Live broadcast, Boosie responded to the lyrics with a lengthy statement:
I don’t know about New York and Jersey and all these places, but in Louisiana and Jackson, Miss. that shit don’t fly. And I’ll say that to JAY-Z, I’ll say that to anybody because I’m a stand-up type of nigga… People can keep on going to social media, under my DMs saying, ‘If you’re trying to get JAY-Z money, you shouldn’t put stacks to your ear.’ JAY-Z don’t tell me what to do. I don’t know about y'all, but he doesn’t tell me what to do.
Boosie later claimed that posing with large stacks of cash is part of Southern rap culture. “In Louisiana, that’s just like a trend,” he said. “Shit won’t stop in Louisiana of us putting stacks to our ears and shit like that. JAY-Z is a powerful person. He stopped the Auto-Tune, he stopped all kinds of shit, but he won’t stop what’s born and bred in people’s hearts in Louisiana. Everybody don’t have bank accounts. Everybody don’t know about assets. Everybody’s not business-minded like that.
Jay references his business savvy throughout the song, like when he drops bars about investing in the now-gentrified Brooklyn neighborhood DUMBO on the first verse:
I coulda bought a place in Dumbo before it was Dumbo
For like 2 million
That same building today is worth 25 million
Guess how I’m feelin'? Dumbo
Later on, he encourages smart investment strategies:
Financial freedom my only hope
Fuck livin' rich and dyin' broke
Watch Boosie’s response above and read all the lyrics to JAY-Z’s “The Story of O.J.” on Genius now.
