BAQUET What do you think of the state of — I’m not gonna say just black leadership, but leadership, period, on the things you care about in the country? Who do you, like, look at and say, “This man or woman speaks for the things I care about?”
JAY-Z [laughs] I find it funny, but … I like Dave Chappelle’s [laughs].
BAQUET [laughs] Go ahead.
JAY-Z You know what I’m saying?
BAQUET You gonna vote for Dave Chappelle for president?
JAY-Z Yeah. ‘Cause he tells it in humor so you can deal with it, but it’s always a nice chunk of truth in there.
Hova was hurting for a long time, but you may have missed it.
BAQUET When I heard this latest album, and then I thought about the earlier albums, one theme was sort of reaching the promised land. You know, you’ve acquired influence, and not just money, but your life is good. And then when you listen to the newest album, you’re thinking: He must have been in a lot of pain when life was good.
JAY-Z Absolutely.
BAQUET Is that true?
JAY-Z Yeah. I did this song called “Song Cry.”10
BAQUET Mm-hmm.
JAY-Z And the idea of the hook — “never seen it comin’ down my eyes, but I gotta make the song cry.” It tells you right there what I was, I was hiding.
The strongest thing a man can do is cry. To expose your feelings, to be vulnerable in front of the world. That’s real strength. You know, you feel like you gotta be this guarded person. That’s not real. It’s fake.
