JAY-Z carries himself in a way that leads many to believe he’s a no-nonsense type of person, but that may not always be the case. During a recent appearance on The Breakfast Club, comedian Affion Crockett shared a story about Hov showing his funny side during former President Obama’s 2008 inauguration.
Crockett, who’s known for his canny JAY-Z impression, recalled bumping into the Brooklyn rapper at the historic Washington, D.C. concert and preparing himself for an awkward encounter. However, Hov had a different reaction entirely.
“Hov loves the impression. The first time I met him, I thought I was going to get slapped, I ain’t going to lie,” he admitted. “I’m in the back … and then all of a sudden a wave of people come in down the stairs, and it’s Jay and his entourage, they about to go to the stage.
“He sees me and starts walking over to me. You know how in the movies when the camera’s coming towards you and you start to get smaller? That’s how I felt. I was like, ‘Aww shit.’ He walks up to me and he extends his hand, he’s like, ‘Yo, you be doing the Jigga man. I like that!'”
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Crockett said JAY-Z warmed to him so much he spent the rest of the night looking out for him and even recorded a video drop with him.
“That whole night, he kept walking up to me, making sure I was good,” he added. “Mary J. Blige was on stage and he was like, ‘I bet you can’t sing like that!’ He was really cool! And then we did a drop on video and he showed the love and he made me do the laugh in front of him. Nothing but respect, man.”
Meeting JAY-Z is just as rare as spotting him out in public. Some were lucky to bump into the Brooklyn billionaire at Michael Rubin’s Fourth of July white party in the Hamptons over the weekend, where he rubbed shoulders with Drake, Travis Scott, Lil Baby and more.
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Watch Affion Crockett recall his JAY-Z encounter below.