JAY-Z went there. As part of the emotionally raw lyrics to his brand-new 13th album, 4:44, Hov lays bare his mistakes, regrets and guilty conscience over 10 songs. In one of the most revealing lyrics, Jay appears to admit what anyone who listened to wife Beyoncé’s Lemonade already knew: he almost torpedoed their marriage.
But it’s the way he says it that caught the attention of a 1990s soul crooner best known for failing to stay on the straight and narrow while married to one of the most high-profile, acclaimed female entertainers in the game. “You almost went Eric Benét/ Let the baddest girl in the world get away/ I don’t even know what else to say/ N—a, never go Eric Benét,” Jay raps on “Kill Jay Z.” Ouch.
In case you forgot who Benét is, he’s a neo-soul singer who had hits with songs like 2000’s “Spend My Life With You.” But he’s perhaps more well-known for his brief, two-year marriage to Oscar-winner Halle Berry, which ended after he admitted to infidelities and checked into a sex-addiction rehab program.
“Just so ya know, I got the baddest girl in the world as my wife… like right now,” Benét informed Jigga on Friday (June 30) morning, just hours after 4:44 dropped.
Hey yo #Jayz! Just so ya know, I got the baddest girl in the world as my wife….like right now! ?–
— Eric Benét (@ebenet) June 30, 2017
?Benét married Prince’s ex-wife, Manuela Testolini, in 2011.