“I got 99 problems, but a lady ain’t one.”
Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it but…Jay-Z is retiring his usage of the b-word. In a gift to his newborn daughter, Jay wrote a poem explaining to her why he would never use the word again, declaring “degradation has passed.” Check out the full poem below.
Before I got in the game, made a change, and got rich
I didn’t think hard about using the word b—-
I rapped, I flipped it, I sold it, I lived it
Now with my daughter in this world
I curse those that give it
I never realized while on the fast track
That I’d give riddance to the word b—-, to leave her innocence in tact
No man will degrade her, or call her out her name
The women won’t despise her and call her the same
I know it’s gonna miss me
Cuz we been together like Nike Airs and crisp tees
When we all used to hang out front
Singing 99 problems but a lady ain’t one
Excuse me miss, can I be your mister
Cuz I can tell the difference from a little girl and a sister
She never grew up, her father left her alone
I promise not to talk like we used to until Kingdom Come
I’m so focused on your future
The degradation has passed
I wish you wealth, health, and insight
Forever young you may pass
Blue Ivy Carter, my angel
Good for Jay.
