Jay Z gave his Tidal supporters a special treat over the weekend in New York, playing two intimate shows to an audience of his streaming service subscribers. The rapper performed a two-hour set of his rare songs on Saturday night at Terminal 5 in the first of his Tidal X: B-Sides show.
Besides performing a handful of fan favorites, including “Young, Gifted and Black,” "Never Change," "Party Life," “A Million & One Questions” and “Dead Presidents Pt. 1," Hov also took some time to stand up for Tidal. The streaming service has received loads of criticism from both critics and other artists since Jay Z launched it back in March alongside Madonna, Beyoncé and Rihanna, among others.
During a freestyle on Saturday, the rapper attacked YouTube, Google and Apple. "Google dangled around a crazy check / I feel like YouTube was the biggest culprit," Jay Z rapped. "Them ni--as pay you a tenth of what you’re supposed to get / You know ni--as die for equal pay right? / You know when I work I ain't ya slave right?"
Jay Z also threw some shots at Tidal competitor Spotify, telling his fans how much the company is "bamboozl[ing]" them. "Spotify is nine million, they ain’t say sh-t / Lucy you got some esplainin’ to do / The only one they hatin’ on looks the same as you / That’s cool, I know they tryin’ to bamboozle you / Spendin’ millions on me to try to confuse you."
The "Glory" rapper also brought up the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Freddie Gray and Michael Brown in his freestyle. Later in the night, Jay Z also took a moment to pay tribute to B.B. King, who died last Thursday after a series of mini strokes.