Perhaps one of Jay Z‘s last performances before his crushing divorce with his well-meaning hyphen was the most significant, as a six hour long rendition of Picasso Baby at the Pace Gallery in New York solidified the rapper as an artiste, with no rogue punctuation desired to taint his pure, exquisite vision.
Inviting adoring fans, slew of celebrities and artists to bask in his effervescence, Jay Z performed the track from his recently released album Magna Carta Holy Grail for an entire afternoon. The performance art film has now been released featuring a lofty prologue by the film’s protagonist/auteur/biggest fan, saying “In a concert, all that energy comes to you, like what are you supposed to do with that energy? So there, it’s kind of an exchange…When art starts to become part of the galleries, what became a separation between culture and even in hip hop, you know it’s almost like it was artist to bourgeois…that’s what’s really exciting for me, bringing the worlds back together” In other words, the profound millionaire on his leather throne thinks that we’re all alike and artists should in no way believe in tiers of superiority. Keeping it real, no big.
The film is pretty refreshing as we see Jay Z interact with his fans up close, sharing the spotlight and partying in a celebration dedicated to him along with familiar faces like Michael K Williams, Judd Apatow, Adam Driver, Marina Ambramovic and a bear-hugging Jemima Kirke, with the special mention of the sassy Sandra Gering who “messes” with Jay Z’s “flow”, bless.
Enjoy the ten minute long, work of art below:
Via Pitchfork.
