Many social media users were stunned on January 28 to see rumblings of a new Jay-Z album arriving in 2024 — including the rapper’s own entertainment company.
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It’s been six years since the hip-hop mogul last gave the world new content (his album 4:44 hit shelves in June 2017.) So naturally, director Hidji World set social media ablaze Sunday with a post to his Instagram story that claimed he was “shooting today” with Jay-Z.
Hidji World shared a picture of a white slate board that pointedly announced, “Jay-Z 2024 Album.” The board, dated January 28, listed Hidji as the director, along with Leroy Farrell as the director of photography.
The news of potential fresh Hova content spread like wildfire, with one post from NFR Podcast receiving 2.4 million views on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The podcast’s post caught the attention of Jay-Z’s entertainment company, Roc Nation, which quickly stepped in to seize control of the narrative (and invariably crush millions of hip-hop fans’ hopes in the process.)
“That’s news to us,” Roc Nation wrote Sunday on X.
Fans did little to hide their disappointment, with one user commenting, “can’t even get excited for 24 hours.”
New Jay-Z Album Rumors Date Back to 2023
The “Empire State of Mind” rapper may have inadvertently fueled rumors of a new LP as far back as November 2023 when he returned to Instagram following a two-year hiatus.
Jay-Z touted upcoming projects in his first post back, confirming his contribution to the soundtrack for the newly-released Biblical comedy “The Book of Clarence.”
The rapper is also among the producers for the film, which hit theaters Jan. 12 and tells the story of a “down-on-his-luck” man living in Jerusalem who tries to capitalize on the budding influence of the Messiah.
So When Can We Expect a New Jay-Z Album?
The rumor mill likely has Jay-Z fans clamoring more than ever for new music. But the music and cultural icon, who was born Shawn Carter, has made it clear you can’t rush perfection.
“I’ll say I want to make music, but it has to be something important. I don’t want to just make a bunch of tunes,” Jay-Z told Gayle King in an October 2023 CBS Mornings interview.
The mega-mogul went on to add, “It has to mean something, you know? It has to mean something to a larger society.”
(Photo by Monica Schipper/WireImage)
