Jay-Z Once Explained Why His Relationship With Kanye West Is So Complicated
Jay-Z had a couple of reasons to have real problems with Kanye West over the course of their friendship. However, both were more than willing to bury the hatchet between them because of their bond. West even once made a public plea for Jay-Z to talk to him about their problems. In an interview, Jay-Z once clarified why his friendship with West wasn’t all that simple.
Jay-Z once explained his underlying competition with Kanye West
Jay-Z went from being skeptical about West’s music, to being one of his biggest supporters at one point. Jay-Z’s old Roc-a-Fella partner, Dame Dash, was impressed by West’s ability as a producer and potential artist, and acquainted West with the Brooklyn emcee. West would eventually become one of the biggest artists in the world right alongside his mentor Jay-Z. But Jay-Z explained that their competitive spirit, along with their strong personalities, made it easy for the pair to clash every now and then.
“It’s a complicated relationship with us. Kanye came into this business on my label. So I’ve always been like his big brother,” Jay-Z once opened up to The New York Times (via Complex). “And we’re both entertainers. It’s always been like a little underlying competition with your big brother. And we both love and respect each other’s art, too. So it’s like, we both — everyone wants to be the greatest in the world. You know what I’m saying?”
Still, Jay-z expected to be friends with West for a long time. So much so that he hoped they’d both look back and laugh at their sibling rivalry when they reached old age.
“In the long relationship, you know, hopefully when we’re 89 we look at this six months or whatever time and we laugh at that,” he added. “There’s gonna be complications in the relationship that we have to get through. And the only way to get through that is we sit down and have a dialogue and say, ‘These are the things that I’m uncomfortable with. These are the things that are unacceptable to me. This is what I feel.’ I’m sure he feels that I’ve done things to him as well. I’m not a perfect human being by no stretch.”
How Kanye West hurt Jay-Z and vice-versa
West and Jay-Z have fallen out with each other because of a few issues over the years. In an interview West did with Charlamagne Tha God, West revealed Jay-Z first really hurt him by not attending his and Kim Kardashian’s 2014 wedding. Granted, West acknowledged that the timing of the ceremony wasn’t ideal for Jay-Z. He was going through marital issues with Beyoncé back then that stemmed from his infidelity. But West still felt slighted that Jay-Z didn’t accept the invite.
“I understand they were going through some things, but if it’s family, you’re not going to miss a wedding,” West said.
But West admitted that he never personally asked Jay-Z why the business mogul and his wife missed his wedding.
Additionally, Jay-Z also didn’t appreciate West mentioning Beyoncé . West once referenced Jay-Z’s past infidelity with his wife and suggested the “Crazy In Love” singer should’ve just let Jay-Z cheat on her. However, that wasn’t the only time West mentioned Beyoncé . What once upset Jay-Z was when West accused Beyoncé of sabotaging his chances of winning a VMA award.
“Beyoncé, I was hurt! ‘Cause I heard that you said you wouldn’t perform unless you won Video of the Year over me, and over ‘Hotline Bling.’ In my opinion—now, don’t go trying to diss Beyoncé, she is great. Taylor Swift is great. We are all great people, we are all equal. But sometimes, we be playing the politics too much and forgetting who we are just to win. F***nning! F*** looking cool,” West said according to Vice.
Jay-Z confided that he didn’t appreciate the comments
“Kanye’s my little brother. He’s talked about me 100 times. He made a song called ‘Big Brother.’ We’ve gotten past bigger issues,” Jay-Z once said according to Fader. “But you brought my family into it,” he said. “Now it’s a problem with me. That’s a real, real problem. And he knows it’s a problem.”
However, Jay-Z was still willing to sit down with West and vice-versa. But West joked that he didn’t want Jay-Z bringing any of his assassins into the mix of their rivalry.
“I’ve been sent here to give y’all my truth—even at the risk of my own life, even at the risk of my own success, my own career,” West told the crowd during his Sacramento show. “I’ve been sent here to give y’all the truth. Jay Z, call me, bruh! You still ain’t call me! Jay Z, call me! Jay Z, I know you got killers, please don’t send them at my head. Just call me! Talk to me like a man!'”
