Jay-Z Goes from “Crooklyn to Carnegie” ⁷

by Fredara Mareva • Uncategorized • Tags: carnegie hall, Jay-Z

I planned to discuss something entirely different today, but I got sidetracked reading all of the internet fodder about Jay-Z’s performance at Carnegie Hall. For any number of reasons Jay-Z fascinates me. His journey from hustler to Hova is well-noted, but I am really intrigued how he has become the person around whom the narrative of hip hop turns. He has crossed over…and I don’t mean that in a pejorative way. There are courses about Jay-Z, he kicks it with Warren Buffet, he and his wife are among the highest paid entertainment couples, he’s a Broadway play producer. The list goes on.

Now he’s at Carnegie Hall. He’s not the first hip hop artist to play there (Wyclef Jean and Mos Def have played there as well), but he is the biggest hip hop artist to play Carnegie to date. Years ago I was fortunate to be a researcher on Carnegie Hall’s Honor Celebration commemorating the cultural impact of African Americans who have performed on its stage. Carnegie Hall has a long and illustrious history of hosting African Americans musicians that dates back to 1892. It has to mean something that arguably the most successful hip hop artist on the planet has now joined that list.

So I’m left with questions. I feel like this means something. Although I’m not sure what this moment means or how substantial (or not) it is. Is it just another marker of the mainstreaming of hip hop? What does it say that ghetto music is, yet again, being performed in tuxedos for swanky crowds? It’s worth noting that the proceeds from the Carnegie Hall shows go to the Shawn Carter Foundation which awards college scholarships to deserving high school students.