50 Facts About Jay-Z That Will Put You in an Empire State of Mind

31. He tricked his mom into lending her voice to “December 4th” off 2003’s The Black Album. “I advised her to meet up with me down at the studio and we have been heading to go to lunch,” he wrote in Decoded. “She arrived down to the studio, and I just brought the monitor up and I stated, ‘I just want you to talk on it.’ Since I realized if I told her [she was going to be on the song], she’d get actually anxious. [She said], ‘What do you want me to say?’ And the rest is heritage.”

32. He introduced his (finally non permanent) retirement with a 2003 live performance at Madison Sq. Yard, that includes the Roots, Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, Beyoncé and Pharrell Williams. All proceeds went to charity.

33. His next act began with the sale of Roc-A-Fella and currently being named the president of Def Jam Data.

34. His significantly-reaching empire consists of garments (retailer Rocawear), liquor models (Armand de Brignac champagne and D’Ussé cognac), a stake in the Brooklyn Nets, streaming company Tidal and Roc Country, which represents top rated names in leisure (examine: Rihanna) and sports (Kevin Durant, Todd Gurley).

35. The musician has also inked rewarding endorsement specials with Reebok, Budweiser and watchmaker Audemars-Piguet.