Memphis Bleek reveals that Jay-Z gave him $2,000 to start rapping and stop dealing drugs. Bleek was was on The Justin Credible podcast when he told us that when he was still dealing drugs in the projects Jay-Z pulled up in a brand new Lexus and said he saw great potential in him.
“I’m in the building hustling. And I swear I’m getting money, and he pull up, and you know, Lexus, you know, they got their jewels on. Bleek continues. “He was like, ‘Man what are you doing over here?’ I’m like, ‘I’m getting that money man, you kidding me?’ I’m in the building, this my strip. This is what it is. And this is my building where we live at so he like, ‘Word? Let me see what you got.'”
Memphis thought that meant Jay-Z was looking to buy his drugs, so he gave Jay-Z $1,000 worth of product.
“See in the projects we had an incinerator where it was like a trash shoot but for the whole building…and you threw anything in there there’s no retrieving it, it’s over, just consider it gone,” Bleek goes on to say. “He threw my pack in the incinerator. Like this, ‘Yo man, don’t let me catch you hustling like this.’ So now I’m like wait a minute: that’s a G-pack fam. You just threw $1,000 away. He gave me two grand and he was like, “Man for you I see bigger things.’”
Jay-Z didn’t stop there. He and Memphis began to develop a very strong relationship. Memphis would go down as the very first artist signed by Hov to Roc-A-Fella Records. Bleek released his first solo debut record titled “Coming Of Age,” getting the inspiration from his appearance on Reasonable Doubt. Jay-Z continued to keep Bleek close and have him appear on all of Jay’s records, leading all the way up to The Blueprint 2. After that, Bleek went on to have a very successful solo career.
Who Had the Best Verse on “Renegade?”
Bleek goes on in the interview to talk about his feelings about a debate that has never been settled since it started back in 2001 and has been in the forefront of the hip-hop world for many years. Did Eminem have a better verse than Jay-Z on the song “Renegade?”
Several fans including Nas himself always believed Slim Shady earned the title of the best verse on the Blueprint cut, however Bleek remains loyal to Jay-Z by stating he truly had better bars than Em.
“Everybody, of course, I feel like certain songs Jay record be over people head, like it’s not at that time,” Bleek goes on. “To me, the streets and everybody, the public opinion of course says Eminem, right? At that time. Go back and listen to that record today, I bet you you’re gonna agree it’s Jay. Because, you know, Jay was talking something that was so far [ahead] of what you even understood or comprehend that you didn’t know what he was talking about.”
