A MC who is easily in the top 25 of all time. A great rapper, hailing from BKNY. Has one definite classic album, called "Reasonable Doubt". Easily a 10/10 album, comparable to other great albums such as Illmatic, Criminal Minded, 36 Chambers, Capital Punishment, Lifestylez Ov Da Poor and Dangerous, ect.

Many of you people have only heard his commercial bullshit, which, granted, isn't great. He made a line to describe what ya'll hearing.

"I dumbed down for my audience to double my dollars."

Go cop Reasonable Doubt, and as someon else said, the 7 Minute Freestyle with Big L.

Stop being biased morons, and actually listen to more than Ether. Recognize an amazing flow and creative lyrics. And someone who has been around.

Can't Knock The Hustle
---
I'm makin short term goals, wonder whether foes
just put away the leathers and put ice on the gold
chilly with enough bail money to free a big willy
high stakes, i got more at stake than philly
shoppin sprees, copin three, duece fever i guess its fully loaded,
ah yes, bouncin in the lex luger, tires smoke like buddha
50 g's to the crap shooter,
niggas can't fade me
chrome socks beamin, through my periphial i see ya schemin
stop dreamin',i leave ya body steamin
niggas is feenin, whats the meanin
i'm leanin on any nigga intervenin with the sound of my money machine-in
my cuff runnin over with hundreds
im one of the best niggas that done it
six digits and runnin,
y'all niggas don't want it
i got the godfather flow, the don juan demarco
swear to god, don't get it fucked up

Brooklyn's Finest (no biggie)
---
Peep the style and the way the cops sweat us (uh-huh)
The number one question is can the Feds get us (uh-huh)
I got vendettas in dice games against ass betters (uh-huh)
and niggaz who pump wheels and drive Jettas
Take that witcha..

.. can't fade it
While y'all pump Willie, I run up in stunts silly
Scared, so you sent your little mans to come kill me
But on the contrilli, I packs the mack-milli
Squeezed off on him, left them paramedics breathin soft on him
What's ya name?

What? Keep rockin
No more, Mister, Nice Guy, I twist your shit
the fuck back with them pistols, blazin
Hot like cajun
Hotter than even holdin work at the Days Inn
with New York plates outside
Get up outta there, fuck your ride

Yeah, yeah, yeah
For nine six, the only MC with a flu
Yeah I rhyme sick, I be what you're tryin to do
Made a fortune off Peru, extradite, china white heron
Nigga please, like short sleeves I bear arms
Stay out my way from here on (CLEAR?) Gone!

(some consider this to be a freestyle, not known if it really is)

Dead Presidents II
---
who wanna bet us that we don't touch lettuce,
stack cheddars forever,
live treacherous, all the etceteras,
to the death of us, me and my confidants
we shine, you feel the ambiance
y'all niggas just rhyme,
by the ounce doe accumulates like snow,
we dont just shine, we illuminate the whole show,
ya feel me?,
factions from the other side would love to kill me,
spill 3 quarts of my blood into the street, let alone the heat,
fuck 'em, they hate a nigga lovin his life,
in all possible ways, know the feds is buggin my life,
hospital days, reflectin with my man laid up,
on a uptown hot block, he got his side sprayed up,
I saw his life slippin, this is a minor setback,
yo still in all we livin, just dream about the getback,
that made him smile though his eye said "pray for me",
I'll do you one better and slay these niggas faithfully,
murder is a tough thing to digest, its a slow process,
and I aint got nothing but time,
I had near brushes, not to mention,
3 shots close range, never touched me,
divine intervention cant stop I,
from drinking mataje, with tata, down in nevada, ha ha pa pa,
word life, by dabbling crazy weight,
without rap I was crazy straight, what...

'Cause game recognize game :O

Pretty much everyone who has written a definition for Jay is a fucking idiot. Jay-Z is one of the most lyrically brilliant rappers in raps short history. Thats not arguable its a fact. It is true that he began to commercialize his rap after his outstanding debut album Reasonable Doubt (one of the best rap albums in history) and that was unfortunate, but he turned it around with the Blueprint which was a great album and Blueprint 2 and Black Album were also very good. If I see one more person write that Jay-Z is fake or is a pussy im gonna go fucking insane. The beauty of the Jay-Z vs. Nas battle was that they are both lyrically brilliant, they both have lived what they say and are straight from some of the most infamous housing projects, or "hoods" in New York City and every accusation they made about eachother being fake was a lie. Jay-Z and Biggie Smalls were like fucking best friends (besides Puff) so of course they are gonna take some bars from eachother. Wait, who was in the two best collaborations Notorious B.I.G has ever done? Oh yeah - Jay-Z (Brooklyns Finest, I Love the Dough). Hes fake even though he was a huge drug dealer, and stabbed a guy just for leaking bootlegs of his album into the street (OH HE FUCKING FAKED THAT, OK THATS A FUCKING SMART THING TO SAY CONSIDERING THAT LANCE RIVERA MADE A PUBLIC STATEMENT THAT HE SAW JAY WALK OVER TO HIM IN THE CLUB AND STAB HIM). If he was that fake and that much of a pussy would "The Game" throw positive lines at him in ...

Facts/non-opinionated, accumilative definitions:

Jay-Z was a hip-hop artist in the 1990's. Jay-Z was pseudonym for Sean Carter, dirivative of his New York childhood nickname, Jazzy.

Jay-Z, over the period of his career in hip-hop, was very successful, and had a slew of hits, such as "Can I Get A..." "Big Pimpin" and "Hard Knock Life". Jay-Z's debut album "Reasonable Doubt" did not receive much success, but much acclaim for those who found the album. His later work was geered more towards a pop-oriented crowd, however, they became more and more successful. His "Blueprint" album was seen as his masterpiece, but not quite topping "Reasonable Doubt". Jay-Z and mogul Damon Dash started Rocafella records. He announced his retirement in early 2004 and "The Black Album" was his last album.

During Jay's career, he engaged in a feud or "beef" with another popular rap artist named Nas. Both MC's were considered applicable opponents for each other, unlike many beefs, and there would be no clear victor if they were to ever MC battle. Many people decided to take sides on this fight, while many stayed neutral.

This posters opinion:

I like Jay-Z. Though I always like the hip-hop stylings of Public Enemy, Run D.M.C, A Tribe Called Quest, and the Beastie Boys better, I still have an amount of respect for him being a known pop-oriented rapper and still making good albums and keeping a certain amount of street credibility. As for what side I take on the feud, I'm going to go ...

pretty good rapper, some say he's too commercial but it's certainly more enjoyable listening to him rather than say gay unit...

One the best rappers in Hip-Hop history. Born and raised in Marcy Projects located in Bed-stuy Brooklyn, he picked up the torch for NYC and for Brooklyn after the death of the Notorious BIG was murdered. Know for being one of the most consistant rappers in Hip-hop, putting out a new album every year in his career. Jay-Z left his mark on Hip-Hop with classic LP's like Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint, and The Black Album. Jay-Z is idolized by many of rap musics biggest names, as some refer to him often and even sample his voice in their songs. Jay-Z is a trend-setter and a very smart business man, owning numorous companys, and endorsing many products. Jay-Z's retirement concert which took place in Madison Square Garden sold out in minutes which is unheard of for Hip-Hop. Jay-Z sold out the concert singlehandedly, being the only performer scheduled to perform that night. Jay-Z is certainly one of best, if not the best rapper to ever grace the mic.

Used to describe anyone who gets murked by a man named Nasir Jones

jay z aint that bad of a rapper, but Nas smoked his ass with ether.

a rapper with abnormally large lips.

Oh, and also associated with Beyonce, Def Jam,Rihanna, and has beef with Nas.

But, mostly, has very, very large lips.