Jay-Z Says He’s Got an ‘A++’ Playlist Game: ‘I Challenge Anyone Out There’

After selling the majority of Tidal to Jack Dorsey, Jay-Z sat down with the tech billionaire to talk about his playlist-making acumen and more.

Jay-Z
Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Jay-Z

Less than two months after selling a majority stake of Tidal to Jack Dorsey, Jay-Z sat down with the Twitter CEO to discuss the streaming service and all things music.

During a half-hour conference the pair of entrepreneurs held Monday on Twitter Spaces, Jay-Z spoke about his motivation in partnering with Dorsey, whose mobile payments company Square acquired a majority ownership stake in Tidal in May. 

“I think we were aligned in our conversation, and viewing artists and creatives as small businesses and treating each individual artist as a business,” Hov explained. “And the things that Square and Cash App were doing is pretty much aligned with what one does with their own brand. You create a business, take out a small loan, get the things you need to help you be successful and build it out from there. So our conversations just naturally aligned.”

Later in their conversation, Hov boasted about his talent as a curator. 

“I found so many songs [on Tidal], my playlist game is A++. I challenge anyone out there...I’m definitely, you know, in the top tier of playlist creators,” he joked. 

Of course, Hov has a history of making Tidal-exclusive playlists. In December he released a year-end playlist on the platform that featured songs from artists like Drake, Busta Rhymes, Jay Electronica, Pop Smoke, Burna Boy, and more.

Meanwhile, in April, Jigga decided to curate a playlist paying homage to his Queensbridge friend and fellow rap legend Nas. Titled “The Genesis,” Jay curated some of Nasir’s classic songs including “N.Y. State of Mind,” “Verbal Intercourse,” and newer joints like “Cops Shot the Kids,” a standout off of the Kanye West-produced Nasir album. 

While we wait for Hov’s next Tidal-exclusive playlist, check out his curated playlist dedicated to Nas below.

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