Jay-Z want from rags to riches, from growing up in one of the worst neighborhoods in Brooklyn, to having a net worth of 810 million dollars. How did he do it, and would I describe his achievements as an American dream? Jay-Z, born Shawn Corey Carter, grew up in Brooklyn, NY. Shawn and his three siblings were raised by their mother Gloria. Their father left them when they were little, but they reconciled with him right before his death in 2003. Shawn would often wake his siblings up when he made music by drumming in the kitchen counters. Shawn did a lot of stupid things when he was younger. An example would be when he shot his drug-addicted brother in the shoulder when he was 12 years old because his brother stole his ring. Shawn thought his life was over and that he would end up in jail, luckily Shawn’s brother did not press …show more content…
Crack was everywhere back then, you could even smell it in the hallways at school. He sold crack to make ends meet and to afford to buy new clothes. No one wanted to go to school in dirty shoes or wear the same things repeatedly. Although he went to loads of different high schools he never graduated. His interest in music started when his mother, Gloria, bought him a boombox for his birthday. Shawn started to freestyle and write lyrics. He was known as “Jazzy” around the neighborhood, but later took the name Jay-Z. None of the major labels would give Jay-Z a record deal so he took matters in to his own hands and sold CDs from his car. Later he and two others created the independent record label “Rock-A-Fella Records” in 1995. In 1996 Jay-Z dropped his debut album “Reasonable Doubt”. The album got good critique and reached 23 on billboard 200. The album did also make “500 greatest albums of all time”-list. Jay-Z kept releasing new music over the years. In 1997 he released “In My Lifetime, Vol.1” which had a more personal touch than “Reasonable Doubt”. Jay-Z has since then released over 20