This one is for my hip hop lovers who like to turn the stereo to the max and just drift alnong with the music.
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Born on December 4th 1969 as SHAWN COREY CARTER in New york city in the drug infested neighbourhoods of brooklyn, the last of four Children, His mother feels he was gifted from birth because of all her kids, He came out without pain. When he was 11 his father left and hia mother Gloria carter had to fend for the family.
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As hard as it sounds to believe he was actually a classmate of Biggie smalls, Christopher wallace also known as Notorious B.I.G. He even attempted pedling drugs as well as some gang related gun hustlings but eventually settled for rap as an escape from his enviroment and how well it has worked out.
In 1989, he joined the rapper Jaz-O—an older performer who served as a kind of mentor—to record a song called "The Originators," which won the pair an appearance on an episode of Yo! MTV Raps. It was at this point that Shawn Carter embraced the nickname Jay-Z, which was simultaneously an homage to Jaz-O, a play on Carter's childhood nickname of "Jazzy" and a reference to the J/Z subway station near his Brooklyn home.
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Even with a stage name, Jay-Z remained relatively anonymous until he and two friends, Damon Dash and Kareem Burke, founded their own record label, Roc-a-Fella Records, in 1996. In June of that year, Jay-Z released his debut album, Reasonable Doubt. Although the record only reached No. 23 on the Billboard 200, it is now considered a classic hip-hop album, including songs such as "Can't Knock the Hustle," featuring Mary J. Blige, and "Brooklyn's Finest," a collaboration with Notorious B.I.G. Reasonable Doubt established Jay-Z as an emerging star in hip-hop.
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After that and his marriage to Beyonce in 2008 the rest is breaking and setting of records and awards which are stories we are familiar with, I will at this point pause so we get some lessons from these story.
It was hard in the beginning
As it is with most big shots that we have featured so far, it was not easy for him, his father even left him at 11 years and kept on grinding and guess where he is, some of us a still resting on the complains of how things has been and is still hard on us and how people have failed us, bit really who cares? You just have to get up get through and keep going.
Find your escape
The world may not like you and in all honesty it won't but but so what? Find your escape from the world and all its pressure and be good in your way, the enviroment wont force you and it wont let you go until you find a reason stronger that what it is giving you to keep going.
Keep the hustle going
In as much as there are challenges and huddles to jump if you know what you want, then go for it and rid yourself of the excuses why you cant hang on or keeep grinding, believe in your hustle and keep grinding and in the end you will be awesome in the end.
Carry love along
Even in all the hustle and all, He found love, kept it and is still with it, so while we are all stuck in the hustle and grind, we should pick interest in love when you see it because trust me it can be lonely at the top without loved ones weather family or friends.
Lend a hand when you can
When he created his label, he provided a platform for others to progress, Rihanna, Shakira and others are good examples, when you can please help others.
These are just a few of the lessons i got from it, there is more to it am sure so please share and upvote and dont forget to reply with your thoughts.