Jay-Z Weighs In on Internet Debate About Himself

The question has been percolating online among fans of Jay-Z for several years: Would it be better to take $500,000 or have lunch with the rapper? When Gayle King of CBS News posed the question to Jay-Z himself, he didn't hesitate: "You've gotta take the money," he said. As People notes, King explained the debate: Some think they could glean wisdom from meeting the rapper, enough to make that amount of money and more so. Jay-Z, though, punched a hole in that logic.

If fans want to hear what the rapper has to say, they could plunk down much less money to buy his albums and listen. "If you piece it together and really listen to the music for the words, for what it is, it's all there," he said. "The blueprint—literally—to me and my life and my journey is there already." (The Blueprint is also the title of his iconic album of 2001.) It's not clear when the lunch-or-money online debate began, but Variety notes that some form of it was in circulation back in 2017. (More Jay-Z stories.)