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| by kenn on 9/26/2003 08:16:00 PM |
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Last Hurrah
The mega-selling rap mogul has announced he's going to hang up his mike to focus on his growing Roc-a-Family empire. Before ending his hard-knock rhyming, though, the Brooklyn-born rapper has confirmed plans for a final farewell tour in support of his swan-song solo CD, The Black Album, beginning with a benefit concert at New York's Madison Square Garden on November 25.
Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, made the announcement at a press conference this week. He said money raised from the MSG show will go towards Russell Simmons' Hip-Hop Summit Action Network and his own Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund.
Hyping this trek as his official "victory lap," the Grammy-winning rapper-entrepreneur-Beyoncé boyfriend laid out his blueprint for the future.
"When I came in the game, I was forced to be a businessman as well as a rapper, you know?" Jay says. "So now I have the choice to be more on the business side. That's what I wanted to do in the beginning. I just wanted to drop one album."
Jay-Z didn't stop with one LP, though. He followed up his 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt, with a string of multiplatinum discs, including 1997's Vol. 1...In My Lifetime, 1998's Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life, 2000's Vol. 3...The Life and Times of S. Carter and The Dynasty: Roc La Familia 2000, 2001's Blueprint and 2002's The Best of Both Worlds (with R. Kelly) and Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse.
Jay-Z also helped organize the summer's hugely successful Rock the Mic Tour, gathering together some of the biggest hip-hop acts (like 50 Cent) with a number of up-and-coming artists and his own protégés (like Beanie Sigel).
The Jigga man has previously said that after putting his "Big Pimpin'" days behind him, he'd like to try his luck on the silver screen, as well as to continue to oversee his Roc-a-Fella label and other business interests, which include the Roc-a-Wear clothing line and a liquor company.
Jay-Z has also been politically active, especially with Simmons' Hip-Hop Summit Action Network. To that end, he plans to use his MSG gig to promote the group's latest initiative, registering more than 1 million new voters.
But when it comes to giving up the microphone for good, Jay-Z knows better than never saying never.
While he says he wants to go out while he's on top of his game, Jay-Z says he'll still pop up from time to time, either through occasional singles or guest stints on other artist's albums, as he did on gal-pal Beyoncé Knowles' Dangerously in Love.
"There will be other releases, it just won't be a full-length Jay-Z album, so we'll see how that works out," he says.
Along with the Black Album, which hits stores November 28, Jay-Z is readying his autobiography, called the Black Book, due in the spring. He's also finishing up a black version of his signature Reebok sneaker, S. Carter.
Tickets for the Madison Square Garden show go on sale Saturday via Ticketmaster or through the MSG box office.
As for Cher, the diva says she will finally call it quits on Halloween night in Toronto, the 200th concert in her seemingly never-ending Farewell Tour.
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