JAY-Z made a slick reference to Friday actor Faizon Love as part of Pusha T’s “Neck & Wrist” single that dropped earlier this month. Love had shed doubt on Hov’s drug dealing past in a 2020 interview with VladTV, and the billionaire Hip Hop mogul apparently didn’t forget about it.
“The phase I’m on, love, I wouldn’t believe it either,” he raps on the Pharrell-produced track. “I’d be like, ‘JAY-Z’s a cheater,’/I wouldn’t listen to reason either.”
During another sit-down with VladTV, Love was asked about the line and had a few comments for anyone thinking JAY-Z was dissing him.
“I didn’t get it at first, ’cause it’s some rap thing, and it’s not clear,” he said. “First of all I’m not a rapper. I have no bars, at all … I listened to it. He didn’t really diss me.”
He added, “Back at you, Love. We all love. It’s all love now, you know what I’m saying? I think I ruffled some feathers.”
Faizon Love has consistently questioned JAY-Z’s street credibility. Speaking to Vlad at the time, Love suggested he lied in his music and was never a “drug lord” like he described. He also referred to the Roc-A-Fella mogul as a “puppet” in the drug game.
“JAY-Z creates this drug dealing drug lord, I’ma drug dealer, I’ma drug lord,” he said at the time. “These kids are like, ‘We gotta do it, too.’ Not knowing that this is all made up shit … That’s why I was like, Ohh, this n-gga is a puppet. Can you imagine JAY-Z fighting somebody in the streets? Somebody slap him, taking his cocaine, what he gon’ do?”
Cam’ron came to Hov’s defense and essentially told Love to keep JAY-Z’s name out of his mouth with an Instagram post.
“I know me and Hov haven’t had the best relationship (publicly) but Faizon don’t know what the fuck he’s talking bout. whether legally or illegally n-ggas got to it,” he wrote in the caption. “Faizon #UwasntThere #iwasthere for some it #HusltersRespectHustlers #UwasSellingNicksOutTheIceCreamTruck.”