Jay Z

Keys to Jay Z’s Success Story:

Jay Z Did What Came Natural To Him, What He Had A Passion For:

It is obvious to see that when Jay-Z raps, he has a deep inner craving for what he does. Jay-Z states that his secret to success is that he loves what he does and that he doesn’t make music to pay the bills, but rather does it for the passion of making music and truly enjoying it. He often says it’s a “god given talent.” This is very evident as he even grew up in a household indulged in music, his parents were music enthusiasts. For his birthday as a kid, Jay’s mother bought him a boom box which would ironically be the big spark for his career. From that point on, he began rapping metaphors, similes, and creating puns based on the environment around him, this gift of lyricism soon became second nature to him. In fact, hip hop is so natural to Jay, he is known for seldom writing down his lyrics and relies on memory. (a more in-depth analysis on Jay Z’s passion can be read here)

Jay Z Had Huge Dreams, But He Truly Believed In Them:

Jay-Z was a natural dreamer, but the kicker was that he believed in his dreams. In high school, he would daydream about playing baseball, and performing on stage. Although baseball didn’t happen, he became an iconic rapper. Jay-Z has not forgotten about baseball either, as he still promotes the Yankees in his songs. Jay Z also got his first glimpse of a “better” life when he was in high school on a field trip where he saw a refrigerator that dispensed water, this was not known in his hood and allowed him to see how life could be. Jay Z also created his own record label, Roc-a-fella Records based on the fact that no one else believed in his dreams more than he did, this was a courageous move that allowed Jay to become the hip hop legend he is today. It’s extremely important to have self-worthiness and it is clearly evident in Jay Z’s road to success. In this video, Jay Z says to believe in your genius level talent.

Jay Z Has A Hustler’s Mentality:

Jay-Z is one of the most successfully persistent people of all time. In an interview with Oprah (Oprah’s Masterclass Series), he stated that in the rap game, if you release a good song, you’re considered “hot”, but if you release song after song, album after album, which continues to be more and more successful, that’s what you call excellence; Jay-Z has clearly achieved excellence, which very few people have ever done in hip hop over the span of two entire decades. His hustler mentality comes partly from growing up in Marcy Projects where he’d drug deal to make ends meet which taught him the value of every dollar (Jay Z states he had to live for the day, and drug dealing (even dealing crack) was his way to make ends meet in such a poverty struck neighborhood). In fact he’s so persistent at working hard, he once stated “I’m far from being god, but I work god damn hard.” Jay also once stated that the line can’t knock the hustle is about the hustle of always wanting to get ahead, and that nothing can get in his way. Persistence pays off, and it pays off big. (Watch more on Jay’s hustler attitude here).

Little Known Success Fact:

Jay-Z started his clothing company, Roc-A-Wear with 3 sewing machines, and years later it sold for a staggering $200 million. Just goes to show where the power of momentum can lead you to. Hova was a hustler who never second guessed, but rather took action and executed when thoughts came to mind. Momentum begins with a single moment!