Eve Claims Jay-Z Warned Her About Female Rap Not Being Successful

Eve will release her memoir Who’s That Girl? tomorrow (Tuesday, September 17), and we just got a sneak peek at the tea within. Moreover, she recently spoke to The Times for an interview, reflecting on her experiences with misogyny in the industry. The femcee talks about much of this in the book, but she elaborated on some details. For example, the memoir reportedly recalled the day that her debut album Let There Be Eve… The Ruff Ryders First Lady in 1999, an album that sold 213K first week and over 2 million units since. The Philly native alleged that Jay-Z called her to congratulate her, but also told her to diminish her expectations because female rappers “don’t really do that well.”

This comes after another Jay-Z versus femcee conversation, as Nicki Minaj recently blasted the team behind the Super Bowl halftime show next year. She feels, like many fans, that it should’ve been Lil Wayne instead of Kendrick Lamar given its New Orleans stage. No matter where you fall on that debate, this opened up old wounds between Young Money and the Roc… Or at least, the few wounds in between their many associations and mutual praises. We wonder what Eve would say about all this.

We ask because she’s been nothing short of a star since her debut. Beyond the celebrity and career, though, the contributions run much deeper. Eve recently announced that she will be a Scholar-In-Residence at NYU this year. “We are thrilled to be hosting Eve as our 2024-25 Scholar in Residence,” the Steinhardt school’s Dean Jack H. Knott expressed. “She will share the expertise she’s gained as an award-winning artist in music, film, and television, as well as a philanthropist working with young people in the arts. I know our students and faculty will learn from her engagement and support of our efforts to advance equity, belonging, and innovation.”

“Ya’ll, I can’t believe I am saying this. But I am thrilled to announce I will be joining the 2024-25 Scholar-in-Residence at NYU’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development,” Eve stated on social media. “My year-long residency kicks off September 21 with a welcoming event at NYU. I want people to get an understanding of who I am as a person outside of music. I am looking forward to getting to know the NYU community.”