Jay-Z confronts 'sellout' accusers in 'Flux Capacitor' lyrics after NFL partnership: 'I'm already rich'
American business mogul and rapper Jay-Z has addressed accusations of being labeled a sellout after signing a partnership deal with the NFL. Not long after the 50-year-old entrepreneur sealed his new partnership, he faced heavy backlash for it but responded with the song, 'Flux Capacitor'.
In the song, he addresses his accusers with the lyrics, "Why would I sell out? I'm already rich, don’t make no sense / Got more money than Goodell, a whole NFL bench / Did it one-handed like Odell, handcuffed to a jail / I would've stayed on the sideline if they could’ve tackled that s**t themselves."
The song comes off his new album 'A Written Testimony' that was released late last week.
Jay-Z's label and the NFL announced a multiyear partnership last year, and according to Face2Face Africa, an NFL statement said the billionaire rapper's imprint will assist with the league's live game experience and help enhance its social justice efforts.
Under the partnership, Jay-Z's label will advise on the artiste selection for the performances at the league events which includes the Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Jay-Z had previously harshly criticized the NFL over its treatment of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The quarterback drew controversy when he symbolically kneeled during the National Anthem to protest racial inequality in the US which essentially saw him taken out of the league.
At a press conference with commissioner Roger Goodell last August, Jay-Z was defensive about the partnership. He'd said that Kaepernick and him had spoken but didn't reveal details.
He said, "I think that we forget that Colin's whole thing was to bring attention to social injustice so in that case, this is a success — this is the next thing. There are two parts of protest: the protest, and then there's a company or individual saying 'I hear you, what do we do next?' For me it's about actionable items, what are we gonna do about it? We get stuck on Colin not having a job, you know what I’m saying? And this is more than that."
He continued, "I support any protest that’s effective. I'm into action, I'm into real work — I'm not into how it looks from the outside. If protesting on the field is the most effective way, then protest on the field. But if you have a vehicle that can inspire change and speak to the masses at the same time, it’s hard to steal the narrative away."