Kanye West updated his blog last night with a video from a tour stop at Madison Square Garden that features a surprise performance by Jay-Z.

The two impresarios debut a never-before-heard track from Jay-Z’s anticipated forthcoming album, Blueprint 3, in which he implores the ladies out there: Keep your tops on, Beyoncé is in the house.

“Ask Yeezy / I got girls on shoulders showing me their chi-chis,” Jay raps to the NYC audience. “I’m like life ain’t fair / Chill baby girl, my girl is here.”

Who else gets the cold shoulder from Jigga during the show?

The rapper’s got words for Noel Gallagher over his recent Glastonbury diss, saying:

“That bloke from Oasis said I couldn’t play guitar / Somebody shoulda told him I’m a f–kin’ rock star.”

That’s hip-hop: 1, moody British pop stars: 0.

West has two concert stops left on his hit Glow in the Dark tour—tonight in Connecticut and tomorrow in Baltimore.

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WENN

Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z hates hearing how his rap contemporaries “keep it hood”, because he’s convinced no one would voluntarily return to their poverty-stricken past in the streets.

The Big Pimpin’ hitmaker, real name Shawn Carter, is often criticized himself for living the high life and failing to keep in touch with his roots – the deprived Bedford-Stuyvesant district of Brooklyn, New York.

But he is unfazed by the remarks, because he is adamant no rap star would give up the luxuries fame has afforded them to go back to living in the ghetto.

He says, “I think it’s more important for me to be in touch with who I am than in touch with the streets, per se. Being in touch with the streets, keeping it real, that’s become a lie and a cliche. I’m not hanging on the corner in the Bed-Stuy. I hate it when rappers say, ‘I’m keeping it hood.’ I’m like, ‘Why? What do you mean? No one’s there by choice! You’re in the hood, by choice?!’”

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WENN

Employees at Jay-Z’s New York City nightclub are hitting out at its managers for allegedly threatening them against having any involvement in an ongoing labor lawsuit against the venue.

The music mogul’s hip-hop hotspot 40/40 was named in a lawsuit filed earlier this month in a Manhattan court.

Employees of the sports bar claimed they were denied hourly wages and forced to be compensated by customer tips alone.

And workers are now claiming the club’s general manager, Desiree Gonzalez, threatened one employee she would “f*** up his tax life” for having any involvement in the class-action suit.

According to a letter filed in court by the workers’ lawyer, the 40/40 boss allegedly told another worker she would “lock him up” if he refused to sign a release for the court case.

Federal Judge Loretta Preska admitted earlier this month the club owners violated federal labor laws after reviewing an earnings report for at least two workers who showed they were not paid for overtime at the venue.

Hundreds of former employees could be eligible to collect on the claims if their case wins in court.

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Jay-Z confronted a Sun journalist over his criticism of the rapper for appearing at Glastonbury.

Showbiz reporter Gordon Smart agreed with Noel Gallagher about Jay-Z not being “right” as a Glastonbury headliner in the paper.

But when Jay-Z spotted Smart at London club Paper on Saturday night, the rapper launched into a rant.

Smart said in his column: “With the big guy poking me in the chest and his minders all around, he launched into an incredible rant.

“He told me: ‘You were the only one who gave me a bad review. Everyone else said it was history.

“‘I’m not one of those guys who gets cut up about good or bad reviews but you missed the moment, man.

“‘It was a first for Glastonbury and you didn’t get it. You’re a non-believer. I was making history and you missed the moment.’”

Smart added: “I still respect him and would still buy his records…but still don’t think his set was quite right for Saturday night at Glastonbury.

“I would tell him that again — but next time I might take Ricky Hatton for moral support.”

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Jay-Z’s album sales have experienced a near five-fold boost after his triumphant Glastonbury performance, it has been confirmed.

The rapper’s appearance on the Pyramid Stage at the legendary Somerset festival had provoked much controversy, with many critics citing his booking as the reason for slower ticket sales for this year’s event while Oasis’ Noel Gallagher said a hip-hop artist performing was “wrong”.

But having wowed the Glastonbury crowds on Saturday night – including a tongue-in-cheek cover of Gallagher’s Wonderwall – sales of Jay-Z’s The Black Album have increased by some 480 per cent during and after the festival.

While the album is only just inside the current top 100 – meaning that its sales start from a lower base than other records – the increase in the rapper’s popularity is noticeable all the same.

His single 99 Problems is likely to shoot into the top 25 this weekend while Numb/Encore – his Linkin Park collaboration – Hard Knock Life, Big Pimpin’ and Dirt Off Your Shoulder are also set to climb the singles chart.

HMV spokesman Gennaro Castaldo commented: “With the huge amount of media coverage that it now enjoys, combined with the immediacy of purchasing music these days, the Glastonbury effect on artist sales appears more pronounced than ever before.

“The choice of Jay-Z to headline may have been a controversial one with some commentators, but it seems that the fans who were there or watched his performance on TV loved it, and we’re seeing some noticeable increases in sales of his albums and downloads at HMV as a result.”

MGMT and Vampire Weekend have both benefited from their Glastonbury exposure with sales up by 195 and 46 percent respectively while Duffy’s star continues to rise, with sales of her debut Rockferry increasing by 163 percent following her sun-drenched Other Stage performance.

The top ten bestselling Glastonbury artists are: (sales increase)

1 Jay-Z: The Black Album (480 percent)
2 MGMT: Oracular Spectacular (195 percent)
3 Duffy: Rockferry (163 percent)
4 Editors: An End Has A Start (134 percent)
5 Verve: Urban Hymns (123 percent)
6 Kings of Leon: Because Of The Times (78 percent)
7 Amy Winehouse: Back To Black (74 percent)
8 Elbow: The Seldom Seen Kid (54 percent)
9 Neil Diamond: The Best Of (51 percent)
10 Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend (46 percent)

Source

WENN

Rapper Jay-Z is at the center of a bitter lawsuit filed by current and former employees of his New York City nightclub.

The music mogul’s hip-hop hot spot 40/40 was named in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in a Manhattan court.

Employees of the sports bar claimed they were denied hourly wages and forced to be compensated by customer tips alone.

Workers allege in the class action that they were forced to pay for breaks, spills, and “walkouts” on the job.

According to the New York Daily News, hundreds of former employees could be eligible to collect on the claims if their case wins in court.

Federal Judge Loretta Preska has admitted the club owners violated federal labor laws after reviewing an earnings report for at least two workers who showed they were not paid for overtime at the venue.

She says, “The record contains corroborating evidence of the allegations.”
The workers’ lawyer Maimon Kirschenbaum added:: “It’s a good day for restaurant workers throughout the city.”

Source

WENN

Jay-Z is ecstatic with the way his performance was received by revellers at English music festival Glastonbury – branding the experience “amazing”.

Carter prompted a media furore after it was announced he would headline the event at the festival Pyramid Stage – prompting rocker Noel Gallagher to say: “I’m not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It’s wrong. Jay-Z’s got no chance.”

But the negative press he received spurred the hip-hop mogul on to wow the crowd – and he’s proud of his on-stage achievements.

He tells MTV News, “It was a historic night for Glastonbury and for myself (as) it’s the first time a hip-hop act had headlined.”

And the star used Gallagher’s hit track Wonderwall to open his Saturday night set, because he knew the mainly British audience would understand the irony behind the decision.

He says, “That’s my sense of humour. I have a sense of humour like a Brit so I thought people would appreciate that. Noel Gallagher was one of the biggest detractors so I figured that was a cool way to start the show.”

“I play that song (Wonderwall) a lot at my restaurant on Friday nights – after we’ve had a few drinks it works really well. That’s how I knew it so well.”

And when asked if he would play the festival again, the rapper adds, “Of course. It was incredible. I even had wellies in the car but I didn’t need them!”

Source

WENN