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By Abby Hassler
It’s official. Not only has JAY-Z brought the iconic hyphen back (and in all caps), but the rapper announced he will be releasing his 13th studio album, 4:44, June 30 with an accompanying film starring Mahershala Ali, Lupita Nyong’o, and Danny Glover.
Related: JAY-Z’s Hyphen Returns!
Not much is known about this upcoming project yet aside from it is entirely produced by his frequent collaborator No I.D. While fans eagerly wait until the end of the month, here are our top five guest collaborations we would love to see on 4:44.
Beyoncé
This guest feature is a no brainer. Despite having twins and managing her own illustrious musical career, don’t put it past the Queen to collaborate on her husband’s upcoming album.
Not only has JAY-Z not yet had a significant follow-up to Yonce’s Lemonade, but fans can’t help but notice the album’s title is entirely made of the number four, which happens to be the couple’s special number. For fans who forgot, their wedding anniversary is April 4, JAY-Z’s birthday is Dec. 4 and her birthday is Sept. 4. The two also have their wedding date tattooed as the Roman numeral IV.
Kendrick Lamar
Who can forget JAY-Z’s remix of “B—- Don’t Kill My Vibe”? We need more of that.
When JAY-Z was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame Thursday (June 15), he took to Twitter in a series of nine tweets to thank dozens of artists who inspired him, one of which was Lamar.
Yesterday (June 19), Lamar took to social media to praise JAY-Z for his success. Maybe these tweets also mean a collaboration is on its way? Fans can only hope.
Chance the Rapper
What fan could forget the many times Chance referred to Queen Bey as Auntie Yonce and JAY-Z as Uncle? As one of the most sought-after young rappers in the game right now, it would only make sense for Chance to make an appearance on 4:44.
Nicki Minaj
Minaj was on the list of names JAY-Z tweeted out earlier this week and for good reason. The rapper has been killing it this year, releasing or collaborating on hit after hit, from “No Frauds” to “Light My Body Up.” After being praised by JAY-Z online, the “Swalla” artist reposted the tweet with the caption “Go so hard, that one day, you’ll inspire your inspiration.” I think it’s about time fans had another fantastic Minaj-JAY-Z collaboration to listen to.
Kanye West
Watch the Throne round two, anyone? While the two have gone back and forth between best friends and fierce rivals, it seems like their friendship might be on the mend for the moment, which means it is past time for a West-JAY-Z collaboration. West was even one of the rapper’s JAY-Z mentioned in his Twitter list recently, meaning that the two might be cooking up something amazing for their fans. We can only hope and wait eagerly until June 30.
