American rap mogul, Jay-Z, has subtly admitted to cheating on his superstar wife, Beyoncé Knowles, on his new album, 4:44, released on Friday.
Beyoncé had aired details of his rumoured infidelity on her 2016 album, Lemonade, after her younger sister, Solange Knowles, attacked Jay-Z in a lift.
The 47-year-old has now apologised for “womanising”, claiming the birth of their first child, daughter Blue Ivy, five years ago made him see the error of his ways.
He also reveals that the couple’s new twins, whose names or date of births have yet to be confirmed, were naturally conceived.
“I apologise, often womanise / Took for my child to be born / See through a woman’s eyes / Took for these natural twins to believe in miracles / Took me too long for this song / I don’t deserve you,” he raps.
Another verse includes the lyrics: “And if my children knew, I don’t even know what I would do.
“If they ain’t look at me the same / I would probably die with all the shame / ‘You did what with who?’ / What good is a ménage à trois when you have a soulmate? / ‘You risked that for Blue?’” – interpreted by many to be over an infidelity.
Beyoncé addressed the lift incidence between her husband and sister in the 2014 Flawless Remix, singing: “Of course sometimes s**t goes down when there’s a billion dollars on an elevator.”
Jay-Z has now also addressed the moment, rapping: “You egged Solange on, knowing all along all you had to say you was wrong / You almost went Eric Benet, let the baddest girl in the world get away … I don’t even know what you woulda done, in the future, other niggas playing football with your son.” The Eric Benet reference pertains to the R&B singer and actor who was unfaithful to Halle Berry.
Jay-Z also says he would “probably die with all the shame” if he had let the episode break up his relationship with his daughter Blue Ivy Carter: “What good is a menage a trois when you have a soulmate / You risked that for Blue?”
He also references the most infamous song on Lemonade, ‘Sorry’, where Beyoncé sings: “Looking at my watch, he shoulda been home / Today I regret the night I put that ring on … He only want me when I’m not there / He better call Becky with the good hair.”
Jay-Z raps: “I’ll f**k up a good thing if you let me / Let me alone Becky! / A man who don’t take care of his family can’t be rich.”
The details of the supposed infidelity have never been fully aired, though they were extensively rumoured in the runup to Lemonade, which then made numerous references to it. “How did it come down to this? Going through your call list,” Beyoncé sings at one point, along with: “This is your final warning / You know I give you life / If you try this shit again / You gon’ lose your wife.”
