Continuing a media blitz that started on Saturday night (June 6) with the release of his new single “D.O.A. (Death of Autotune),” Jay-Z appeared on New York’s Hot 97 for a candid conversation with longtime host Angie Martinez.
During the chat, Jay confirmed that his eleventh solo album, The Blueprint 3 will be released on September 11 as rumored.
“It’s the date the first one came out and it was a horrible date in our history,” he stated. “I have a wonderful idea for a show, proceeds are gonna go to charity. You know, just bring it full circle. I have a historic venue in mind, I’m gonna bring some artists out. It’s gonna be big.”
The multi-platinum rapper, who ranked #32 on the latest Forbes list of top earning celebrities, also took time to address the controversy created by “D.O.A,” which was co-produced by autotune user Kanye West.
Jay clarified that his gripe about the recording tool is simply with those artists who “use it as a crutch,” adding that autotune can be a great tool, when you have melodies behind it.
During the show, a fan texted Martinez, asking if the song was a jab at Ron Browz and DJ Webstar for their collaborations with Jim Jones.
Jay-Z dismissed the rumors and replied “so far away from my thought process. Really far away.”
“It’s not me, the people are sick of it,” Jay-Z continued, before closing out the interview to the sound of his live performance at Hot 97’s Summer Jam 2009 on Sunday night (June 7).
As for T-Pain’s appearance on stage during the impromptu performance, Jay said that it was not planned as many believed.
Jay-Z took advantage of the interview to share his thoughts on the current state of Hip-Hop, speaking on his likes and dislikes and co-signing both newcomer Drake and Soulja Boy, who often comes under fire from Hip-Hop purists.
One of the most poignant statements he made during this most recent interview, however, spoke to the quality of music itself.
“We can’t complain about the state of rap and where it’s going and the decline every year,” he concluded. “We have to look at ourselves first. I can understand why a lot of people get turned off of rap. You can talk about the machine, but you gotta be willing to clean yourself up first.”
