Jay-Z is one of the most esteemed rappers in hip-hop history, but in recent years, he hasn’t exactly been prolific: His most recent album, 4:44, came out back in 2017. (Counting collaborative projects, he and Beyoncé released Everything Is Love as The Carters in 2018.) Naturally, fans have been wondering since then when Jay’s next album is going to drop. We don’t know that yet, but based on Jay’s CBS Mornings interview with Gayle King, we know what it’ll take for him to think about making another project.
In a new clip from the interview shared on social media yesterday (October 25), King asked what it would take for Jay-Z to get back in the studio. He answered, “I’ll say I want to make music, but it has to be something important. I don’t want to just make a bunch of tunes. That’s not gonna serve me. It won’t feed me, first of all.”
King asked what he meant by the “feed me” part of his response and he continued, “I have to be saying something important. It has to mean something, you know? It has to mean something to a larger society. Like 4:44, for example, was a personal story, but the amount of vulnerability in there allowed for a lot of people to explore the space.”
More from the interview is set to air on CBS Mornings today and tomorrow. In the meantime, check out the clip above.