It has been five long years since Jay-Z released his most recent album, 4:44. And now fans are wondering if the 52-year-old rapper has retired from music.
But according to Hov, retirement is not on the horizon.
While sitting down with Kevin Hart in a season two sneak peek of Hart to Heart, the 24-time Grammy award winner discussed what’s ahead for his career in the future, which he said he’s leaving it up to chance, adding that he does not have plans to fully step away from music.
“I don’t know what happens next. I’m not actively making music, making an album, or have plans to make an album, but I never wanna say I’m retired. It’s a gift and who am I to shut it off?” the rapper told Hart.
After Jay-Z’s 2003 The Black Album release, he famously announced that he was retiring from hip-hop and even had a retirement party and concert at Madison Square Garden.
But three years later, he returned with another album, Kingdom Come.
“I tried that [retirement]. I’m terrible at that. I just needed a break. But I really thought that I was really burned out at the time,” the rapper explained. “I was releasing an album every year — ’97, ’98 — and then in between that, soundtracks, other people’s album, ROC-A-FELLA, touring back to back … and I had just looked up one day and I was like … ‘I’m tired.’”
Now the widely known greatest rapper of all time is leaving his music plans up in the air.
“It’s open to … whatever. And it may have a different form, a different interpretation. Maybe it’s not an album. Maybe it is. I have no idea. I’m just going to leave it open.”
