Jay Z’s 4:44 album was not only just a great tape from the G.O.A.T. but it shared even more on Jay’s personal life, surrounding the time his mother came out to him. The track “Smile” told us about it most when Jay raps: “Mama had four kids, but she’s a lesbian/ Had to pretend so long that she’s a thespian/ Had to hide in the closet, so she medicate/ Society shame and the pain was too much to take.”
In a recent clip from Netflix’s My Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman, Jay Z was the guest of honour where he talked about the special moment even more.
“Imagine having lived your life for someone else. And you think you’re protecting your kids,” the “Song Cry” rapper said, as seen in the clip below. “And for my mother to have to live as someone that she wasn’t and hide and, like, protect her kids — and didn’t want to embarrass her kids, and you know, for all this time.”
He continued: “For her to sit in front of me and tell me, ‘I think I love someone,’ I mean, I really cried. That’s a real story. I cried because I was so happy for her that she was free.”
The full episode hits Netflix on April 6th.
