Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), better known by his stage name JAY-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. Often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he has been central to the creative and commercial success of artists including Kanye West, Rihanna, and J. Cole. He is the founder and chairman of entertainment company Roc Nation and was the president and chief executive officer of Def Jam Recordings from 2004 to 2007.
Born and raised in New York City, JAY-Z began his musical career in the late 1980s; he co-founded the record label Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995 and released his debut studio album Reasonable Doubt in 1996. The album was released to widespread critical success and solidified his standing in the music industry. He went on to release twelve additional albums, including the acclaimed albums The Blueprint (2001), The Black Album (2003), American Gangster (2007), and 4:44 (2017). He also released the full-length collaborative albums Watch the Throne (2011) with Kanye West and Everything Is Love (2018) with his wife Beyoncé.
Through his business ventures JAY-Z became the first hip-hop billionaire. In 1999, he founded the clothing retailer Rocawear, and in 2003, he founded the luxury sports bar chain 40/40 Club. Both businesses have grown to become multi-million-dollar corporations, and allowed him to start up Roc Nation in 2008. In 2015, he acquired the tech company Aspiro and took charge of their media streaming service Tidal. In 2020, he launched "Monogram", a line of cannabis products.
One of the world's best-selling music artists, with over 140 million records sold, JAY-Z has won 24 Grammy Awards, the joint-most Grammy awards of any rapper along with Kanye West. JAY-Z also holds the record for the most number-one albums by a solo artist on the Billboard 200 (14). The recipient of the NAACP's President's Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Sports Emmy Award, he has also received a nomination for a Tony Award. Ranked by Billboard and Rolling Stone as one of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, JAY-Z was the first rapper honored in the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the first solo living rapper inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2013, Time named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
He made his musical guest debut on Saturday Night Live on December 16, 2000, the eighth episode and the Christmas show of Season 26, hosted by actress Lucy Liu. He performed "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" and "Is That Your Chick" and appears on the "Murder in the Make Believe Ballroom" live commercial sketch, where he accidentally mutters the word, "Shit!" when the ashes of his cigar fall off.
He returned to Saturday Night Live for his 2nd musical guest appearance on November 2, 2002, the fourth episode of Season 28, hosted by Canadian actor Eric McCormack, star of the NBC hit series Will & Grace. He performed "Guns & Roses" (with Lenny Kravitz) and "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" (with later-wife Beyoncé Knowles).
He returned to Saturday Night Live for his 3rd musical guest appearance on May 8, 2010, the twenty-first episode and Mother's Day show of Season 35, where he performed a medley of "Public Service Announcement", "On to the Next One", "99 Problems", "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" and "Empire State of Mind" (featuring back-up singer Bridget Kelly) and "Young Forever" (with Mr. Hudson), which he also dedicated to guest host Betty White.
He then returned to Saturday Night Live once again his 4th musical guest appearance on September 30, 2017 for the Season 43 premiere, hosted by Canadian actor Ryan Gosling; which coincidentally, was the first episode for cast members Heidi Gardner, Luke Null and Chris Redd. He performed "Bam" with Damien Marley and after that he performed "4:44".
He also made cameos on May 17, 2003, where he joined later-wife Beyoncé performance of "Crazy In Love" for the season finale of Season 28, hosted by original (and former) cast member Dan Aykroyd and on March 9, 2013 where he joined Justin Timberlake's performance of "Suit & Tie".
He was also impersonated by Jay Pharoah on the January 15, 2011 episode during the "Bar Mitzvah" sketch, on the February 18, 2012 episode during the "Baby Blue Ivy" sketch and on the April 14, 2012 episode during the "America's Next Top Empire State Of Mind Parody Artist" sketch.
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