TIRED OF BOGUS RETIREMENTS
Jay-Z isn't the first entertainer to pull a fast one on the public and come out of "retirement."
He just so happens to be the latest.
Roughly three years ago, the man also known as Shawn Carter ducked out of the rap game following 2003's The Black Album. On Nov. 21, he's scheduled to release an all-new CD titled Kingdom Come.
Between those discs, Jay-Z has served as the president and CEO of Def Jam, rapped on songs by girlfriend Beyonce and others, become a part owner of the New Jersey Nets basketball team and appeared in commercials for Hewlett-Packard and Budweiser. He also has participated in a campaign to raise awareness of the world's water crisis (it's being documented by MTV and will air next month).
Given that workload, it's unlikely that he had time to join fellow retirees for shuffleboard games, and his income from the aforementioned ventures probably meant he wasn't clipping coupons or racing for early bird dinners, either.
According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, "retirement" is a "withdrawal from work, business, etc., because of age." It also means "a place of privacy or seclusion."
Since 2003, Carter -- who will be 36 or 37 in December, depending on the source -- has done everything but withdraw from work or stay in seclusion. It can be argued that he has been in the news and in the public eye more during the last three years than ever before.
But just like anyone else, Jay-Z has the right to change his mind and rap again.
Just like Michael Jordan had the right to unretire from basketball -- twice.
The public also has the option to ignore Jay-Z, although that doesn't seem likely.
That said, perhaps he'll get it right with his next retirement. And maybe he can persuade the equally ubiquitous Diddy to join him.
Jay-Z isn't the first entertainer to pull a fast one on the public and come out of "retirement."
He just so happens to be the latest.
Roughly three years ago, the man also known as Shawn Carter ducked out of the rap game following 2003's The Black Album. On Nov. 21, he's scheduled to release an all-new CD titled Kingdom Come.
Between those discs, Jay-Z has served as the president and CEO of Def Jam, rapped on songs by girlfriend Beyonce and others, become a part owner of the New Jersey Nets basketball team and appeared in commercials for Hewlett-Packard and Budweiser. He also has participated in a campaign to raise awareness of the world's water crisis (it's being documented by MTV and will air next month).
Given that workload, it's unlikely that he had time to join fellow retirees for shuffleboard games, and his income from the aforementioned ventures probably meant he wasn't clipping coupons or racing for early bird dinners, either.
According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, "retirement" is a "withdrawal from work, business, etc., because of age." It also means "a place of privacy or seclusion."
Since 2003, Carter -- who will be 36 or 37 in December, depending on the source -- has done everything but withdraw from work or stay in seclusion. It can be argued that he has been in the news and in the public eye more during the last three years than ever before.
But just like anyone else, Jay-Z has the right to change his mind and rap again.
Just like Michael Jordan had the right to unretire from basketball -- twice.
The public also has the option to ignore Jay-Z, although that doesn't seem likely.
That said, perhaps he'll get it right with his next retirement. And maybe he can persuade the equally ubiquitous Diddy to join him.
posted by Chris M. Junior at 3:16 PM
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