Upcoming Jay-Z Event Tickets

The top millennium top hip-hop artist, Jay-Z tied Elvis Presley for the most Number One albums by a solo performer with the release of his 2007 disc American Gangster. (The Beatles still hold the overall record with nineteen chart toppers). Born Shawn Carter, on December 4, 1970, in Brooklyn, New York, he grew up in the tough Marcy Projects Like fellow New York rappers DMX and Nas, he achieved broad mainstream acceptance for his unflinching accounts of urban life while his keen pop sensibilities and business acumen helped him ascend the top of the charts and the President of Def Jam records. After appearing on tracks by Big Jaz and Original Flavor, Jay-Z released his first album Reasonable Doubt (Number 23 pop, Number Three R&B, 1996), which included "Ain't No Nigga" (Number 50 pop, Number 17 R&B, 1996) with Foxy Brown. Another single, "Can't Knock the Hustle" (Number 73 pop, Number 35 R&B, 1996), featured guest vocals from Mary J. Blige. Unhappy with the album's distribution, Jay-Z formed his own record company, Roc-A-Fella, and signed a deal with Def Jam. In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (Number Three pop, Number Two R&B, 1997) was an unqualified success, but 1998's Volume 2...Hard Knock Life (Number One pop and R&B, 1998) allowed the rapper to thoroughly dominate the pop charts. Two singles, debuting within a month of each other, did the rest: the jaunty "Can I Get a..." (Number 19 pop, Number Six R&B, 1998), from the Rush Hour soundtrack, and "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" (Number 15 pop, Number 10 R&B, 1998), which used a sample of a children's chorus from The Original Broadway Cast of Annie. The rapper embarked on a hugely successful tour and boosted the careers of such proteges as Ja Rule, Beanie Sigel, and Memphis Bleek. Volume 2 sold more than 4 million copies and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. The 1999 followup, Volume 3... The Life & Times of S. Carter (Number One pop and R&B, 2000), along with two hits — Mariah Carey's Number One pop and R&B "Heartbreaker" (on which he rapped) and "Do It Again (Put Ya Hands Up)" (Number 17 R&B, 1999) — continued the winning trend. In December 1999 Jay-Z was charged with first-degree assault in the stabbing of record executive Lance "Un" Rivera. A new album, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (Number One pop and R&B, 2001), included the hit "I