Happy Birthday Jay-Z: Our Absolute Favorite Photos Of The Carters

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Even if Jay-Z never took the job as President of Def Jam. Pretend he never became top dog at Tidal. Imagine a world where he and Beyonce were not a couple – even if all those things never happened he’d still be one of the greatest of all times based simply off his discography.

Fortunately, Hov gave us classic albums in addition to all the aforementioned achievements and so much more.

For the rappers that came after him, he raised the bar for what could be achieved as an artist. For those who inspired him, he represented the sharper, more business savvy musician: One who could juggle tour dates and studio sessions as well as boardroom meetings and corporate galas.

Today (Dec 4) Jay-Z adds another candle to the cake. In the digital space, he staged a Vevo Takeover as part of the birthday festivities.

Vevo, Jay-Z and Roc Nation gift fans on the rap icon’s 52nd birthday with the official release of his music videos for the first time across Vevo’s network. Smash hits like “Empire State of Mind,” “Run This Town,” and “Hard Knock Life” are now available in high-quality resolution on Jay-Z’s Vevo channel and via connected TV devices. To celebrate being added to the world’s largest music video platform, the network has dedicated a 24-hour block of programming on their hip-hop channel along with 1-hour programming blocks on their 90’s channel and 2000’s channel today.

The rap legend flipped his street hustle into a billion-dollar empire. Today we take a look at Jigga and The Carter Family through photos.

Check out the gallery below.