With his and Kanye Westâs new album Watch the Throne landing in stores on August 8th, Jay-Z popped into Hot 97âs New York studios for an impromptu interview with Angie Martinez. Speaking with the radio hostess, Hov denied reports today that he and âYe were beefing over a tour budget.
âKanye is a genius. I kind of want to spend a gazillion dollars,â he said, contradicting reports that Yeezy had no respect for the money aspect of their tour as The Throne. âI think they got it backwards, but itâs all good. I made it. I donât really⌠I know that we doing something right now. When I woke up to all of that, I was like, oh yeah, we must be really hot right now. This is really happening. August 8th.â
It hasnât always been smooth sailing with âYe, though, as Jay explains that they sometimes snap on each other in the studio. But as far as letting their emotions get the best of them, he says nothing could break their bond.
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âYes, we get on each otherâs nerves. But thatâs part of pushing each other. We push each other. The people that have a problem with Kanye or myself are people who are complacent in life. People donât like to be pushed. Itâs like annoying. Itâs a thing when people are pushing you to be greater, and we push each other to be greater. So of course there are times when weâre in the studio and weâre yelling, but thatâs about it. I would never disrespect that man. I have so much respect for him.â
He also jested about his collaborative project with R. Kelly, Best of Both Worlds, which ended in a bitter legal battle after a Jay associate maced Kellz backstage.
âYeah, that was a tough one. But itâs almost like anything in life. You canât let that situation affect you going forward,â he said. âEspecially working with genius talent. He is a genius talent. Itâs just that he has other things on his mind.â
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As for the pressure to deliver a classic with Watch the Throne, the Roc Nation chief admitted that he felt some heat.
âI guess a bit after we started it, but I donât look at it like that. When you make music, youâre against history, youâre against whatâs current and youâre against past work. But as far as pressure of what itâs going to sound like, you try not to really let that affect you,â he said. âYou have to have a bit of arrogance to say that this is going to be good.â
Listen to the full interview below, where he also speaks on indie record shops being upset about the albumâs rollout, meeting President Obama and J. Coleâs upcoming debut.
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