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G-to-the-ay-marriage is OK with Jay-Z, but don’t read his lyrics

Sarah Hofmann Contributor
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Rap mogul Jay-Z publicly backed President Barack Obama‘s newest position on same-sex marriage, an interesting move for an important figure in an industry that is regularly regarded as outspokenly homophobic.

In an interview with CNN on Monday, Jay-Z said he has always believed prohibiting same-sex marriages was “holding the country back.” He said, “you can choose to love whoever you love.”

But a short journey through the prolific history of the iconic rapper’s lyrics indicates that he may not be the best spokesman for gay marriage advocacy.

In his debut album “Reasonable Doubt,” released in 1996, he rapped: “Too manny faggot niggas clocking my spending” in the song “22 Two’s.”

His second album, “Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life,” brought us the gem of a song “Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originator ’99)” where he says that when “faggots wanna talk to Po-Po’s,” he would “smoke em like cocoa.” Either Jay-Z does not want gays talking to the police, or he believes anyone talking to law enforcement must be homosexual. In the song “Gangsta Shit,” he leans toward the latter possibility: “His little faggot in the corner calling 911.”

Here are some other notable lyrics from Jay-Z’s discography:

  • “What you gay? Nigga Jay straight like Indian hair” – From “2 Many Hoes”
  • “And since you infatuated with sayin’ tha gay shit” – From “Super Ugly”
  • “Had niggas mad for real like ‘I wish he was gay'”- From “Hey Papi”
  • “Hate a nigga like that faggot, get your own”- From “Lucky Me”
  • “That’s gay, I ain’t into liking dudes no way”- From “La La La (Excuse Me Again)”

So why the sudden endorsement of the president’s newfound “evolved” opinion? As he said in his first album, it’s just “politics as usual.”

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Sarah Hofmann