Jay-Z: Encyclopedia II - Jay-Z - Early career

Jay-Z - Early career

Originally from the Marcy Projects in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, Carter was abandoned by his father when he was twelve years old and he was consequently raised by his mother Gloria. As a young man, he claims to have been caught up in selling crack cocaine on the streets of New York in the Marcy Projects. He was known as "Jazzy" in his neighborhood, a nickname which eventually became his stage name, "Jay-Z." The name Jay-Z is also a homage to his musical partner Jaz-O (a.k.a., the Jaz) as well as to the J-Z subway lines that go from Manhattan to Brooklyn. Jay-Z can be heard on several of The Jaz's early recordings including The Originators and Hawaiian Sophie. His career had a jump start when he battled a rapper by the name of Zai. The battle caught the eye of many record labels, as Jay-Z was able to hold his own against Zai.

He briefly attended high school in Trenton, New Jersey. He dropped out, but is still remembered there for his rhyming. It was said that his involvement in dealing drugs ended after he was shot at three times (he was not hit) in a dispute with another dealer, after which he became more serious about music as a profession. After several unsuccessful attempts to launch a career--first with Jaz-O, and then as part of a group called Original Flavor--Jay-Z co-founded Roc-a-Fella Records with partners Damon Dash and Kareem “Biggs” Burke. His debut album Reasonable Doubt was released in 1996 to considerable acclaim within the hip hop community, and included four charting singles: "Ain't No Nigga" (with Foxy Brown), "Can't Knock the Hustle" (with Mary J. Blige), "Dead Presidents" and "Feelin' It."

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Early career", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki