Jay-Z appeared relaxed and casual as he went for a jog with friends in The Hamptons on Friday. The 51-year-old rap mogul sported a black zip-up jacket, coordinating shorts, and blue and white sneakers. He completed his look with an aqua blue baseball cap worn backward and sunglasses over his dark brown eyes.
One of Jay-Z’s friends donned an olive green t-shirt, matching shorts, and a navy baseball cap, while another friend sported a similar outfit.
Earlier in the week, on Thursday, Kanye West delighted fans at a listening event for his new album Donda by performing a new track featuring Jay-Z. The event, held at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, marked the first musical collaboration between the two artists since their very public falling out.
During the event, Jay-Z’s verse on the track, reportedly titled “Guess Who’s Going to Jail Tonight,” included lines such as:
“God in my cell, that’s my celly / Made in the image of God, that’s a selfie / Pray five times a day, so many felonies / Who’s gon’ post my bail? Lord, help me.”
In a subsequent verse, Jay-Z seemed to reference their 2011 collaborative album Watch the Throne:
“Hol’ up, Donda, I’m with your baby when I touch back road / Told ’em stop all of that red cap, we goin’ home / Not be with all these sins, casting stones / This might be the return of the throne.”
He also drew a comparison between themselves and Biblical figures:
“Hova and Yeezus / Like Moses and Jesus.”
The collaboration was notable given the history between Jay-Z and Kanye West. Their relationship began in the 1990s when West produced tracks for Jay-Z’s Roc-A-Fella Records. However, their friendship soured over time.
Speculation about their strained relationship intensified when Jay-Z and Beyoncé did not attend Kanye and Kim Kardashian’s wedding in Italy in May 2014. Two years later, West publicly criticized Jay-Z during a Sacramento show, expressing frustration over Jay-Z’s lack of support after Kim Kardashian’s robbery in Paris.
West said, “Don’t call me after the robbery and say ‘how you feelin?’ You wanna know how I’m feelin? Come by the house. Bring the kids by the house. Like we’re brothers. Let’s sit down. I can’t take this s**t bro. Our kids have never even played together.”
In response, Jay-Z addressed the situation in his 2017 album 4:44, which led to West leaving Jay-Z’s Tidal streaming service.
Despite these past tensions, the two artists appeared to have reconciled, reuniting during Diddy’s 50th birthday party in December 2019. Their recent collaboration on Donda marks their first joint effort in nearly a decade.