I wasn’t going to post this Jay-Z interview. In fact, I wasn’t even going to watch it. Like I suspect is the case with many of you, I’m feeling a bit of Jay-Z overload (even though he is my favorite rapper of all-time–yeah, I said it.). That said, damn, I’m glad I did watch it (and obviously I’m posting it). If you love hip-hop–I mean LOVE hip-hop–you have to love Jay-Z. Maybe not the man. Maybe not even the music. But, if you love the culture of hip-hop, you cannot deny the positive impact Shawn Carter has had. His intelligence, business acumen, music, guts, etc., have played a fundamental role in making hip-hop a worldwide industry that now entertains, influences and even feeds a world of (hundreds of) millions. The whole way he has played this album release has been nothing short of magnificent. Here’s a quick review of the stats: 1. he set up an absolute can’t lose proposition by taking a cool $5 Million off the table from Samsung BEFORE he even released the album, 2. he then broke the current norms for “breaking” an album–i.e., giving away all your sh*t with the hopes that enough people will like something enough to maybe buy it, 3. next he delivered one of his finest albums in years (it gets better with every listen) and, 4. as a follow up he has now done 4 incredible interviews (Angie Martinez, The Breakfast Club, Zane Lowe and Elliott Wilson) each of which covers very different subject matter. In this day and age, who does that??? His success was no accident and, contrary to the ridiculous opinions of far too many, it is not a product of the Illuminati, a deal with the devil or other such foolishness (people will believe anything to take credit from the hard work of others…). Instead, it is the result of hunger, focus, drive and supreme intelligence. Watch this interview and you will see it.