4:44 (album)

## **Singles from *4:44***

1. "4:44"
Released: July 11, 2017
2. "Bam"
Released: September 26, 2017
3. "Family Feud"
Released: January 26, 2018

***4:44*** is the thirteenth studio album by Jay-Z. It was released on June 30, 2017, through Roc Nation as an exclusive to Sprint and Tidal customers. On July 2, the album was made available for free digital download on Tidal's site for a limited time. A physical edition was released on July 7, including three additional tracks. On the same day, the album was made available to other streaming platforms. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on July 5, 2017, purportedly selling a million copies in five days. At the 60th Annual Grammy Awards, the album received a Grammy Award nomination for Album of the Year, while the title track was nominated for Song of the Year and "The Story of O.J." was nominated for Record of the Year.

## Background

A majority of the project's recording was done at No I.D.'s Hollywood studio, which began in December 2016 up until the album's near release. The producer told *The New York Times* that Jay-Z wanted an record "about the things that I've never talked about." When asked if it was made in relation to Beyoncé's *Lemonade*, he clarified, "No, we never directly spoke about that album. Mainly because if he talks about himself, it's going to bleed into that regardless. But there's a difference in talking about it for the sake of response and for the sake of honesty and the truth. The truth needs to explain why you are the way you are, why you did what you did. We know what happened. We got it. But what were the circumstances that led to this and how do you feel about it?"

In an interview with *Rap Radar*, Jay-Z revealed that because of a mold problem in an LA home he rented, it affected his vocals during the recording of "Smile" and "Moonlight," which he believed added vulnerability. He added, "This album has a lot of topics that's why it had to be so short, it's so condensed. It's so dense with subject matters and all these other things that if it was longer, you wouldn't be able to take it; it would wear you out. It had to get to a point really quickly."

## Tour

On July 10, Jay-Z announced the 32-date North American 4:44 Tour beginning on October 27 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The tour concluded on December 21 at The Forum in Inglewood, and grossed $48,698,354.

## Critical reception

*4:44* received universal acclaim from music critics and ended in many year-end lists, generally praised for its vulnerability and production. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 82, based on 29 reviews. On the aggregator AnyDecentMusic? it scored 7.8.

Andy Kellman of AllMusic wrote, "From any other artist, 36 minutes of repentance, self-satisfaction, and wisdom regarding issues such as faithfulness, vast wealth, ethical consumption, and the deficiencies of a younger rap generation would likely fall flat, but Jay-Z continues to write at a Hall of Fame level and raps with high levels of conviction, contrition, and wit." Sheldon Pearce of *Pitchfork* praised the production work, "it's No I.D. who does much of the heavy lifting. As the producer of all 10 beats on *4:44*, the Chicago beat-maker builds a dusty soul feel that suits Jay [...] The samples aren't just aesthetically beautiful but profound in context." Adding in his concluding paragraph, "neatly packs his baggage and then makes a mess unpacking his legacy. It's true, Jay's wordplay and legendary pith don't sound dated when they're peppered on top of his personal failings and potent ruminations on black financial liberation. He surveys ideas on wealth and success with a confidence that makes even his most clumsy boasts about not going ham on the 'Gram seem sophisticated." *Rolling Stone* noted the significance of "4:44," where Jay-Z apologizes to his wife, and said, "If you know anything about Jay-Z's illustrious and groundbreaking career as a rapper, label owner, entrepreneur and 'business, man,' it's that the Brooklyn native rarely has had time for apologies. [...] So it's unnerving to hear him apologize to his wife, Beyoncé Knowles, on the title track..." *The Guardian* was less impressed, remarking, "But what is on offer for the rap fans who simply don't care about Jay-Z's personal life? Truthfully, not much. It's a likable headphone album for the backpack-rap crowd, deliberately avoiding the sort of club anthem that might spoil the vibe."

*HipHopDX* applauded the rapper's emotionality, where "The No I.D.-scored project reveals itself to be a package of apologies, damaged goods and self-humility. It's a 10-track manifesto that barely breaches 30 minutes, its layers exposing a side of the notoriously private Shawn Carter that the world has never before seen." In similar sentiments, NPR observed, "But "Kill Jay Z" sets the stage for what becomes his most personal, vulnerable album yet—and arguably one of his best." Jon Caramanica, writing for *The New York Times*, opined that the record is "a long-simmering, eyes-downcast confession; a relaxing of muscles that have been tense for decades; the return of a rule-rewriting mastermind as a moralist and occasional scold; a marketing ploy intended to bolster two second-tier businesses, the streaming service Tidal and the phone company Sprint." They added that it could be seen as a "companion piece" to his wife's album, *Lemonade*. *Vulture* appraised, "it is the best new Jay-Z album anyone could hope for in 2017. We shouldn't need proof that rappers nearing 50 can still push the dial in mainstream hip-hop, but if you were losing faith, the God MC is back." *Spin* commended the album: "This is the beating heart of *4:44*: honesty not as an exposed wound, but a well of strength, and a way to see the arc of your life in full," while *Complex* observed the change in subject matter, where he "doesn't waste time self-mythologizing over the gangster-to-GOAT success story we've heard before." The latter added, "For as much as it is a soul-baring confessional, *4:44* is, of equal import, the best marriage of focused Jay bars and elite production in ten years." *The Line of Best Fit* similarly stated, "*4:44* offers renewed hope for fans who, since *Kingdom Come*, have felt increasingly disenfranchised by Jay-Z's loss of touch with his roots and apparent marginalisation of his rap career..."

*The A.V. Club* said, "The thorny thing is that this is part of the album's appeal, too. You always know you're a little too close to an artwork when you think its flaws are its virtues. [...] *4:44* is captivating because it both upholds that version of himself *and* buckles beneath its weight. As with our other preeminent long-form storytelling medium, television, the appeal here is in seeing a man of immense power and likability broken, weakened, and oh-so-relatable." *Exclaim!* believed that with the album, "[Fans] finally see him mature" and continued, "is Jay's existential crisis of sorts, but also a celebration of his growth." *Drowned in Sound* felt that *4:44* "arguably exhibits JAY-Z's most ingenious poetics to date."

## Track listing

* James Blake
* Wilson
* No I.D.
* Wilson
* Sonia Bazanta
* Ron Gilmore Jr.
* Jay-Z
* Wilson
* Blake
* Dominic Maker
* Sylvia Robinson
* Michael Burton
* Dwight T. Ross
* Jerry Peters
* Anita Poree
* Beyoncé
* Justin Timberlake
* Terius Nash
* Timothy Mosley
* Mike Dean
* Jerome Harmon
* Dwane Weir
* Maker
* No I.D.

**Notes**

* "4:44" features background vocals by Kim Burrell
* "Family Feud" originally didn't feature credited vocals by Beyoncé
* "Marcy Me" features additional vocals by The-Dream
* "Legacy" features intro vocals by Blue Ivy Carter and background vocals by James Fauntleroy
* "ManyFacedGod" is stylized as "MaNyfaCedGod"

**Sample credits**

* "Kill Jay Z" contains a sample and portions from "Don't Let It Show", written by Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson, and performed by The Alan Parsons Project.
* "The Story of O.J." contains elements and excerpts from "Four Women", written and performed by Nina Simone; elements from "Kool is Back", as performed by Funk, Inc.; and excerpts from "Kool Back Again", written by Gene Redd and Jimmy Crosby, and performed by Kool & the Gang.
* "Smile" contains elements and excerpts from "Love's in Need of Love Today", written and performed by Stevie Wonder.
* "Caught Their Eyes" contains a sample and excerpts from "Baltimore", written by Randy Newman, and performed by Nina Simone; and an excerpt from the Army–McCarthy hearings.
* "4:44" contains samples of "Late Nights and Heartbreak", written by Kanan Keeney, and performed by Hannah Williams and The Affirmations; and an interpolation of "(At Your Best) You Are Love" written by Ernie Isley, Marvin Isley, Chris Jasper, Rudolph Isley, O'Kelly Isley, Jr. and Ronald Isley, and performed by The Isley Brothers.
* "Family Feud" contains portions of "Ha Ya (Eternal Life)", written by Elbernita Clark, and performed by The Clark Sisters.
* "Bam" contains elements from "Bam Bam", written by Winston Riley and Ophlin Russell, and performed by Sister Nancy; and elements from "Tenement Yard", written by Roger Lewis, and performed by Jacob Miller. R. Henry Gordon, N. N. McCarthy and Frederick "Toots" Hibbert hold the copyright to the original version of the song "Bam Bam" (of which the Sister Nancy version is a cover). The original songwriters were not credited or issued royalties for use of the song by Sister Nancy or Jay-Z.
* "Moonlight" contains a sample of "Fu-Gee-La", as performed by The Fugees.
* "Marcy Me" contains elements from "Todo o Mundo e Ninguém", written by José Cid and Tozé Brito, and performed by Quarteto 1111; and an interpolation of "Unbelievable", as performed by The Notorious B.I.G., from the album Ready to Die.
* "Legacy" contains a sample and excerpts from the recording "Someday We'll All Be Free", written by Edward Howard, and performed by Donny Hathaway; and an interpolation of "Glaciers of Ice", written by Corey Woods, Dennis Coles, Robert Diggs, and Elgin Turner, and performed by Raekwon.
* "Blue's Freestyle / We Family" contains elements and portions of "La Verdolaga", written by Sonia Bazanta, and performed by Totó la Momposina.
* "ManyFacedGod" embodies portions of "Pillow Talk", written by Michael Burton, and performed by Sylvia Robinson; a sample of "Going in Circles", written by Jerry Peters and Anita Poree, and performed by Dwight T. Ross; and an interpolation of "Partition", written by Terius Nash, Dimitri Jay, Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Timothy Mosley, Jerome Harmon, Dwane Weir and Mike Dean, and performed by Beyoncé.

## Personnel

Musicians
* Steve Wyreman – guitar (tracks 2, 7, 9, 12), bass (tracks 2, 7, 12), celeste (track 2), CS-80 (tracks 2, 12), electric piano (tracks 2, 7, 12), synths (tracks 7, 9), Hammond organ (track 9)
* Jonah Levine – trombone (track 7)
* Crystal Rovél Torres – trumpet and flugelhorn (track 7)
* Kenneth Whalum – tenor sax (track 7)
* Nathan Mercereau – French horn (track 7), guitar (track 9), piano (track 9), Moog (tracks 9, 12), ARP String Ensemble (track 12), celeste (track 12)
* Ron Gilmore Jr. – vocoder (track 9)
* James Blake – piano (tracks 11, 13)

Technical
* Gimel "Young Guru" Keaton – recording
* Jimmy Douglass – mixing
* Dave Kutch – mastering
* James Fauntleroy – vocal production (Kim Burrell on track 5)
* Stuart White – vocal recording (Beyoncé on track 6)
* Mike Miller – vocal recording (The-Dream on track 9)
* Michael Law Thomas – additional recording engineering (track 7)
* Casey Cuayo – assistant engineering (track 7)

Artwork
* Willo Perron – creative direction
* Brian Roettinger – art direction

## References

1. ↑ "Jay-Z's New Album 4:44 No Longer Exclusive to Tidal". *CBC*. July 7, 2017.
2. ↑ Coscarelli, Joe (July 1, 2017). "The Man Behind the Music for Jay-Z's Intimate '4:44'". *The New York Times*.
3. ↑ Kreps, Daniel (August 19, 2017). "Watch Jay-Z Talk Kanye West Feud, Recording '4:44' in Candid Interview". *Rolling Stone*.
4. ↑ Brooks, Dave (January 11, 2018). "Slow Ticketing Helps Jay-Z Net $48.7M on 2017 Tour". *Billboard*.
5. ↑ "*4:44* by Jay-Z critic reviews". *Metacritic*.
6. ↑ Kellman, Andy. "4:44 Review by Andy Kellman". *AllMusic*.
7. ↑ Pearce, Sheldon (July 5, 2017). "*4:44* by JAY-Z". *Pitchfork*.
8. ↑ Reeves, Mosi (July 5, 2017). "Review: Jay-Z Is Vulnerable, Apologetic and Still Dazzling on '4:44'". *Rolling Stone*.
9. ↑ Emery, Andrew (June 30, 2017). "Jay-Z: 4:44 Review – A Bracingly Honest but Conservative Confessional". *The Guardian*.
10. ↑ Clark, Trent (July 6, 2017). "Review: With "4:44," Shawn Carter Sacrifices Jay-Z's Invincibility for Soul-Baring Excellence". *HipHopDX*.
11. ↑ Carmichael, Rodney (June 30, 2017). "JAY-Z Bares His Soul on '4:44'". *NPR*.
12. ↑ Caramanica, Jon (July 2, 2017). "Jay-Z Revels in the Catharsis of Confession on '4:44'". *The New York Times*.
13. ↑ Jenkins, Craig (July 1, 2017). "Review: The Business of Being Jay-Z Gets Complicated on *4:44*". *Vulture*.
14. ↑ Josephs, Brian (July 3, 2017). "Review: JAY-Z Reclaims His Greatness on the Honest, *Sharp 4:44*". *Spin*.
15. ↑ Tharpe, Frazier (July 3, 2017). "On '4:44,' Jay-Z Successfully Confronts His Failures in Order to Start Over". *Complex*.
16. ↑ Goggins, Joe (July 2, 2017). "With 4:44, Jay-Z Reaches the Halfway Point on the Road to Redemption". *The Line of Best Fit*.
17. ↑ Purdom, Clayton (July 6, 2017). "JAY-Z Finds His Third Act on *4:44*". *The A.V. Club*.
18. ↑ "JAY-Z - 4:44". *Exclaim!*. July 4, 2017.
19. ↑ Miller, Kellan (July 10, 2017). "JAY-Z - 4:44". *Drowned in Sound*.

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