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Part 3: Kyambo Joshua: Jay-Z Wanted "Reasonable Doubt" to be His Only Album, He didn't Want to Rap
Part 1: Kyambo Joshua: Jay-Z & Nas Problems Started When Nas Didn't Show Up to Jay's Studio Session
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Kyambo “Hip Hop” Joshua sits down with Vlad to revisit a pivotal moment in hip-hop history: the back-to-back deaths of 2Pac in 1996 and The Notorious B.I.G. in 1997, and how they affected Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records. Joshua recalls speaking with Jay the night Biggie was killed, when Jay said he had just gotten off the phone with him, and explains why Big’s sudden death hit the team especially hard.
He also breaks down how that moment shaped Jay-Z’s push toward *In My Lifetime, Vol. 1*, with Nas, Puff Daddy, Bad Boy producers, Trackmasters, Ski Beatz, “Streets Is Watching,” and “Where I’m From” all factoring into the creative process. As Roc-A-Fella’s young A&R, Joshua describes helping pick beats, building Jay’s sound, and the feeling that Jay was stepping into the massive void left by Biggie and Tupac.
