He’s SO back! Jay-Z kicked off the JAŸ-Z 30 celebration in Yankee Stadium with a return to his low-cut Cécred Ceasar and epic appearances by Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Nas, Alicia Keys, and more! The three-night series honors the music mogul’s incredible career for the 30th anniversary of his debut album.
On Friday, June 10, the opening of the three-night concert series concert series exceeded expectations with the heartfelt help of two Carter queens and a reunion from one of the most brutal beefs in rap history. The intro showed the transformation from the viral cloud bob spotted at Jay’s Roots Picnic performance to his Reasonable Doubt era waves, sparking speculation he will umlaut unload a new album soon.
Jay greeted his hometown crowd in a New York Yankees and a matching fitted. As Hip-Hop Wired reported, he opened with “Can’t Knock the Hustle,” and Beyoncé took the stage to make the Mary J. Blige collaboration her own.
In a sparkling pinstripe suit and flowing blonde hair that looked like it was curled by Big Sandals personally, Bey even hit some of Mary’s signature dance moves.
We always love to see the “Crazy In Love” duo share the stage!
Jay-Z performed classics like “Made In America” and “Brooklyn’s Finest” before he hit the crowd with another surprise. He brought out former rap rival Nas for a long-anticipated link-up for “Dead Presidents,” “World Is Yours,” “NY State of Mind,” and “Where I’m From.”
We truly love to see it!
If that wasn’t enough to get fans in their feelings, Blue Ivy came out to flawlessly accompany her iconic dad on “Feeling It.”
Jay and Bey’s first baby is growing up so fast! We’re not crying, you’re crying!
Hit the flip for more JAY-Z 30 deets and the star-studded crowd!
Jay-Z Celebrates His OG And 30 Years Of Hits At Yankee Stadium
The night continued with more of Jay-Z’s hits that span three decades in the game. In addition to some of 1996’s finest like “Can I Live” and “D’evils,” he delivered fan favorites from other eras including “No Church In the Wild” and “Excuse Me Miss.”
Jay-Z also celebrated two artists near and dear to his heart. His ride-or-die Roc alum Memphis Bleek popped out to perform “Coming Of Age.” Hov also brought out Jaz-O to give the Marcy OG his flowers.
“Let me go off script real quick. So the young man standing here is Jaz-O, he’s from Marcy Projects…his house is where we’d go practice our routines, do all our little writing, sharpen our skills. If you gonna give anybody credit for me being with me on the stage tonight give it to the man JAZ-O. Let’s rap!” he said.
Of course, this homecoming moment wouldn’t be complete without performing the anthem “Empire State of Mind” with Alicia Keys!
Hopefully, Lil Mama can get an invite to hop onstage again to recreate the iconic stage-crashing VMAs moment for night two or three!
Check out the celebs who showed out in the A-list audience after the jump!
Jay-Z Is Still Your Fave’s Fave And The A-List Audience At JAY-Z 30 Proves It!
It was like the Knicks won all over again the way celebrities flocked to see Jay-Z’s historic JAY-Z 30 concert. Destiny’s Child sister Kelly Rowland got her entire life in the crowd with LaLa Anthony.
Megan Thee Stallion showed off her endless inches.
The star-studded fans didn’t stop there! From one king to another, LeBron James threw up the Roc to support and got a shoutout onstage.
He was also spotted chopping it up with DJ Khaled.
Pusha T and Pharrell also popped out to witness HOV history in the making.
Vanessa Bryant and daughter Natalia caught a photo op with Big Boy.
Jadakiss had to put on for the home team.
Style icon June Ambrose, who designed Jay’s custom CROC baseball jacket and carpenter pants throughout the night, attended with her daughter Summer.
Kevin Hart, Leonardo Di Caprio, Rudy, Gay, Fabolous, and Swizz Beatz were also in the building.
With an opening night like that, fans can’t wait to see what the legend has planned for night two of JAY-Z 30!
