Jay-Z Doesn’t Like Being Filmed for a Specific Reason
Jay-Z is widely regarded as a hip-hop legend thanks to his years in the music industry and undeniable talent for rapping. He’s continued to remain a high-profile figure thanks to his music career as well as his marriage to Beyoncé. But despite being in the public eye, Jay-Z isn’t necessarily a fan of being on camera all the time.
Jay-Z has been in the public eye for nearly 3 decades
Jay-Z first started rapping in the mid-1990s in the wake of his fellow Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn native The Notorious B.I.G. The two even collaborated together on the songs “Brooklyn’s Finest” and “I Love the Dough.”
Jay-Z released his debut album Reasonable Doubt in 1996. He followed it up in the following years with In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life, Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia, and his seminal 2001 album The Blueprint.
His 2003 album The Black Album was intended to be his last, though he would return to music with several new albums over the following years, his most recent being the personal 2017 album 4:44.
Jay-Z doesn’t like being filmed
As Jay-Z was recording The Black Album, he had cameras follow him as he brought what was believed to be his final project to life. The result was the 2004 documentary Fade to Black.
Jay-Z reflected on having cameras document his life in a January 2023 interview with Tidal. When asked why he often avoids the cameras, he explained his reasoning honestly. “Yeah, we don’t come from that school,” he said. “We come from the don’t-you-ever-record-us school.”
To drive his point home, he quoted his 2013 song “Oceans.” “What was the line? ‘See me in s*** you never saw / If it wasn’t for these pictures you wouldn’t see me at all.'”
“We come from that school and we had fights over that,” he continued. “N****s trying to record — ‘Aye yo, don’t record me, champ. I ain’t into that.’ We come from a different world.” His usual avoidance of cameras is “why The Black Album was so special,” saying, “It was the first time cameras came into the studios and just lived with us.”
Jay-Z performed at the 2023 Grammy Awards
Jay-Z has continued to remain active in the music world since the release of his 2017 studio album 4:44 and 2018 collaborative album with Beyoncé, Everything Is Love. He’s appeared on songs as a featured guest, with recent outings including “God Did” with DJ Khaled, Rick Ross, John Legend, and Fridayy.
Jay-Z took the stage at the 2023 Grammy Awards to perform “God Did” with his collaborators and close out the show. The 2023 Grammy Awards was a special night for hip-hop specifically, as the ceremony featured a 14-minute tribute to the genre in advance of its 50th birthday in 2023. Performers included rappers from various generations, including Big Boi, Black Thought, Busta Rhymes, De La Soul, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Missy Elliott, GloRilla, Grandmaster Flash, Grandmaster Melle Mel, The Furious Five, Public Enemy, Ice-T, Lil Baby, Lil Uzi Vert, The Lox, Method Man, Nelly, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, Rahiem, Rakim, Run-D.M.C., Salt-N-Pepa, Scarface, Swizz Beatz, and Too $hort.
