Born Sean Carter in Brooklyn, N.Y., nimble-tongued
rapper Jay-Z started out as the Jaz's rhymin' partner, rapping on
the hit single, "The Originators." Jay-Z went solo in '95 with the
Payday/ffrr single "In My Lifetime" but didn't release a solo album.
Jay-Z then touched mainstream
in 1996 with the single "Dead Presidents" b/w its enormously successful b-side,
"Ain't No Nigga," featuring Foxy Brown. Later that year his solo debut,
Reasonable Doubt, came out; featuring cameos by SWV and Notorious
B.I.G., the album soon went gold and spawned the Top 40 single "Can't Knock
the Hustle," with Mary J. Blige.
In 1997 Jay-Z returned with Vol. 1 In
My Lifetime, featuring production work by Sean "Puffy" Combs and appearances
by Babyface, Foxy Brown and Lil Kim. Jay-Z has since released the
The Streets Is Watching soundtrack album and 1998's platinum-selling
Vol. 2 Hard Knock Life, which catapulted Jay popward with the
Annie-sampled "Hard Knock Life." The album featured cameos by DMX, Foxy,
the Lox, Jermaine Dupri and Timbaland.
Jay-Z's fourth full-length, Vol. 3 --
Life and Times of S. Carter, was released in late 1999 to favorable
reviews.