JAY-Z weighs in on “$500,000 in cash or lunch with JAY-Z” debate: “You’ve gotta take the money

Would it be smarter to take $500,000 in cash or share a meal with JAY-Z? The rapper and business mogul himself weighs in on the longstanding online debate in a two-part interview with Gayle King, airing later this week on “CBS Mornings.”

“You’ve gotta take the money,” JAY-Z said, noting that all the wisdom anyone might glean from talking to him over lunch is already available in his lyrics. “You’ve got all that in the music for $10.99.”

“I wouldn’t tell you to cut a bad deal. Like, take the $500,000, go buy some albums, and listen to the albums,” he said. “It’s all there. If you piece it together and really listen to the music for the words, well, what it is, it’s all there.”

“Everything that I said was gonna happen, happened. Everything that I said I wanted to do, I’ve done,” he said.

JAY-Z sat down with King for a rare interview and exclusive tour of “The Book of HOV” exhibit at the Brooklyn Public Library, which explores the artist’s body of work — from his original master recordings to his business ventures and efforts to help reform the criminal justice system.