Jay-Z cried out of sheer happiness when his mother told him she was a lesbian
Jay-Z couldn't be more proud of his mother Gloria Carter, who told him she was gay just eight months ago. The rapper opened up to David Letterman about the experience of hearing his mother talk about her sexual orientation for the first time and how it inspired his '4:44' track "Smile."
For Friday's episode of Netflix's 'My Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman', the hip hop star reflects back on his mom's decision to come out as gay later in life.
"Imagine having lived your life for someone else. And you think you're protecting your kids," Jay-Z told Letterman in the clip.
"And for my mother to have to live as someone that she wasn't and hide and, like, protect her kids — and didn't want to embarrass her kids, and you know, for all this time."
The musician goes on to say that he was unable to hold back tears as his mother finally detailed her attraction to another woman. "For her to sit in front of me and tell me, 'I think I love someone,' I mean, I really cried. That's a real story," he stated. "I cried because I was so happy for her that she was free."
This very conversation that happened eight months ago inspired his decision to include Carter on his song "Smile," from his 13th studio album, 4:44: "I made the song the next day."
On the latter half of the track, a poem is recited by Gloria; “Living in the shadow / Can you imagine what kind of life it is to live?”
The teaser also revealed that Gloria Carter was still hesitant about admitting her love for another woman.
"This was the first time we had the conversation," he revealed. "And the first time I heard her say she loved her partner. Like, 'I feel like I love somebody.' She said, 'I feel like.' She held that little bit back, still."
He added, "She didn't say. 'I'm in love.' She said, 'I feel like I love someone.' And I just, I cried. I don't even believe in crying because you're happy. I don't even know what that is. What is that?"
Jay-Z's episode of 'My Guest Needs No Introduction' streams globally this Friday on Netflix. He joins a list of guests starring for Letterman's six-episode monthly talk show that includes Barack Obama, Tina Fey, Howard Stern, George Clooney and Malala Yousafzai.