12 of JAY-Z’s funniest moments

JAY-Z might be one of the most calculated figures in music, but he’s definitely not above a timely clapback or hilariously shady moment. In fact, throughout his decadeslong career — whether in his lyrics, on Grammy stages, or through random viral clips — the “Renegade” rapper has kept a straight face while delivering some of the funniest one-liners and reactions in Hip Hop.

Some of us might remember JAY-Z throwing a little shade at the Recording Academy during the 2024 Grammys following Beyoncé being consistently snubbed for Album of the Year. He also humorously implied that some nominees may feel robbed by the end of the night and others “don’t belong in the category” in the first place. Another all-timer was his response to the viral “$500,000 or dinner with JAY-Z” debate. He advised fans to definitely take the cash, then hilariously suggested they spend some of it on his music.

Those examples are far from the only times Hov has been unintentionally, or perhaps intentionally, hilarious. To prove it, REVOLT compiled a list of JAY-Z’s 12 funniest moments from over the years. Check them out below!

1. Jigga responding to someone asking, “Who is he?” in Paris

In the video above, JAY-Z and Beyonce were taking a private tour in Europe when someone off-camera asked, “Who is he?” You could immediately tell from the way Hov sized him up that he had a response coming. “Who are you?” he asked, to which the man replied, “Me, Paul.” Sorry, JAY, but Paul might’ve won this round.

2. Snatching a phone from someone who was apparently recording Beyoncé

Hov was not — let’s say it again, NOT — happy about being filmed without permission, especially while Beyoncé was busy dancing with Saweetie and Kelly Rowland nearby. Naturally, he grabbed the guy’s phone and gave him a quick but firm talking-to. Ironically enough, someone else was filming the whole exchange, which made things even funnier when their camera quickly turned away after realizing what was happening.

3. His response to Jonathan Ross’ freestyle offer

Jonathan Ross can proudly say he has more than one funny interview with JAY-Z. In the clip above, the host enthusiastically offered to freestyle, only for Hov to start tapping his wrist like he was running late. “I would love that, but I gotta go on stage,” the 4:44 rapper said.

4. Interjecting during Rihanna’s acceptance speech at the Grammys

Rihanna winning her first Grammy was iconic for more than a few reasons. In 2008, she and Hov won Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Umbrella.” During the singer’s acceptance speech, she began, “Dad, I know I promised you I said I’m going to give you my first Grammy, but we might have to fight for this one.” JAY-Z humorously interjected, “She said… she wants to thank everybody for her first Grammy.”

Maybe he was trying to help her get through things quickly because, moments later, Rihanna paused and said, “Please wrap up,” apparently reading a teleprompter cue off-camera.

5. Revealing his kids don’t always see him as the “cool dad”

JAY-Z may be one of rap’s all-time greats and an entrepreneur extraordinaire, but he wasn’t necessarily always the “cool dad” in his kids’ eyes. When Gayle King asked him during a CBS Mornings interview, “Do your kids think you’re cool?” Hov admitted, “Blue, she be frontin’ on me a little bit. I catch her.”

He continued, “She’s come back, but it was a time when she was like, ‘Dad!’ I was like, ‘I’m cool. I don’t know what you’re saying.’” Honestly, tons of kids go through a phase where they think their parents are a bit out of the loop at some point, but luckily for JAY, Blue came back around.

6. When JAY-Z told the story behind his government name

We’re pretty sure David Letterman was hoping for the classic Jazz-O backstory behind JAY-Z’s rap moniker, but instead, Hov gave a perfectly amusing account of how his birth name came to be. “Take me through your name, the origin of the name, where it started, and what it is today,” the late-night host asked. Hov responded, “Well, my mother named me Shawn because when I was born to her, it was her right,” which sent the crowd into laughter.

“Then, what happened?” Letterman followed up. From there, JAY-Z gave yet another hilarious and matter-of-fact answer: “People started calling me it.”

7. Hov ending the $500,000 or lunch with JAY-Z debate once and for all

One of the internet’s favorite hypothetical debates among JAY-Z fans has long been: Would you rather take $500,000 or have dinner with Hov himself? Well, the “Holy Grail” rapper answered the question during his chat with Gayle King on CBS Mornings, and no shocker here, he advised fans very clearly: “You gotta take the money.”

What made it even funnier was Hov jokingly encouraging fans to take the half-million and “go buy some albums” of his for the same knowledge. If JAY-Z says take the $500,000, you should definitely take it.

8. Hov correcting Charlie Rose for mispronouncing Tupac’s name

“If it was Two-Pack, it would have a ‘K,’” was JAY-Z’s exact reaction after Charlie Rose mispronounced Tupac’s name. The crowd erupted in laughter as JAY paused for a second, then said, “I hope y’all clap because I’m about to say exactly what y’all are thinking: White people always — and I can say this because I’m so not a racist — white people call Tupac…’Two-Pack.’” You could hear the exact moment Rose realized his mistake.

“You’re not the first,” Hov joked before breaking into his infamous laugh. “Hopefully, after tonight, you will be the last.”

9. Jigga’s response to being asked if Beyoncé’s backside is insured

Plenty of celebs insure their body parts, so you can’t entirely fault Ross for bringing up the bizarre topic, but asking JAY-Z if Beyoncé’s “bootay is insured” was definitely pushing it. “That’s just out of line,” the Reasonable Doubt artist said. Then, perhaps in an attempt to break the very brief awkwardness, the icon joked, “You know how people start talking Black on you, right? You out of bounds, brother.”

10. Calling out the Recording Academy for snubbing Beyoncé

If there’s one thing we know about JAY-Z, it’s that he does not play games about his wife or kids! Exhibit A: The Brooklyn business mogul sending one subliminal shot after another at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards while accepting the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. “I don’t want to embarrass this young lady,” he said, referring directly to Beyoncé, who at that moment still hadn’t received her long-overdue Album of the Year win (the Grammys corrected themselves the next year, thankfully).

“Some of you are gonna go home tonight and feel like you’ve been robbed. Some of you may get robbed. Some of you don’t belong in the category… When I get nervous, I tell the truth,” he added, as Blue Ivy stood right beside him. JAY-Z might’ve been dead serious, but the audience couldn’t help but laugh at his unexpected but timely candor.

JAY-Z definitely second-guessed himself after encouraging the audience at Pharrell’s Louis Vuitton debut show in Paris to clap. “Y’all clap. Y’all got to do something,” he urged. “On beat, though!” and, moments later, he hilariously scrapped the idea altogether. “Forget the clapping!” Hov declared before performing “F**kWithMeYouKnowIGotIt” from Magna Carta… Holy Grail.

12. JAY-Z allegedly telling Memphis Bleek he would’ve been a blogger

Okay, so technically this isn’t a moment featuring JAY-Z himself, but it’s too funny not to include. While looking back at the 20-year anniversary of Coming Of Age, Memphis Bleek revealed he reached out to thank Hov, and let’s just say the reply caught him completely off guard.

“I’m hitting him like, ‘Yo, my n**ga, I appreciate the opportunity. Who knows what life would’ve been? Just, thank you.’ I’m thinking he gon’ hit me back and be like, ‘Word, lil’ bro.’ You know?” Bleek explained. “That n**ga texted me back and said, ‘Nah, I know what you would’ve been. You would’ve been a blogger.’ Like… What? Yo, I told him I wanted to break my phone. I laughed so hard. Like, a blogger?”

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