Did Jay Z Cause Pharrell’s Black Eye? Conflicting Reports Question Whether A Feud Between The Moguls Led Jay Z To Punch Pharrell [Photo]
Some rumors are just so outlandish that they’re nearly impossible to believe. The rumor that Jay Z not only punched, but also gave Pharell a black eye is one of those rumors.
And yet, Media Take Out says it could be true. According to a report released by the media outlet on Thursday, Jay Z “put his hands on Pharell” during a meeting in Los Angeles.
“Here’s what we know. Jay Z and Pharrell used to be close friends and business associates, and the two planned on pattering in Jay Z’s music streaming business Tidal. That is until Pharrell backed out of partnering with Tidal…and instead worked out a back deal with Apple… One industry insider told MediaTakeOut.com, ‘[Jay Z] took it as a slap in the face for Pharrell to do that. Especially since Pharrell was one of the main people who came up with the idea for [Tidal].'”
Tidal is a subscription-based streaming music service that offers both music tracks and music videos. Though the service is said to have more than one million subscribers, it’s largely been called a flop on social media. The streaming service costs $20 per month, which many have criticized as too expensive, and according to The Hollywood Gossip, Jay Z “is embarrassed by Tidal’s failure.”
Pharrell Williams — Jay Didn’t Give Me the Black Eye… I Got Spatula’d!!! https://t.co/dnNvf5oOZq via @TMZ
— Anthony Dominic (@tmzanthony) November 20, 2015
In their report, Media Take Out went on to write that a source for the website implied that the feud was at the heart of the reason why Jay Z allegedly punched Pharrell, causing Pharell’s black eye.
“Our inside source explained, ‘Jay definitely wanted to see Pharrell, and have a face to face. I don’t know if Jay still is about that street life…but Pharrell had a black eye last night.”
According to reps for both hip hop moguls, the idea that Jay Z punched Pharrell is absurd. In fact, reps for the Voice judge insist that Pharrell’s black eye is the result of an occurrence just as crazy. Pharrell’s reps told TMZ that his black eye is the result of his wife, Helen, accidentally hitting him in the eye with a spatula.
Pharrell Explains that Suspicious Black Eye is Not from Jay Z https://t.co/8DTugWzo3N via @Kingsmenmedia
— KINGSMEN MEDIA (@KingsmenMedia) November 21, 2015
Though the spatula story also seems a bit far fetched, at least one media outlet is willing to believe the story. As The Hollywood Gossip notes, the spatula story about Pharrell’s black eye must be true — otherwise, Pharrell and his people would have come up with something better.
“This may sound crazy, but we believe him. It’s one of those situations where if the man wanted to lie, he’d come up with a more believable story.”
Admittedly, The Hollywood Gossip isn’t the only outlet questioning Media Take Out’s report. Gossip Cop also slammed Media Take Out’s source, questioning both the validity of the report and the sensationalism used by the MTO reporter. Gossip Cop wrote:
“And with Jay Z and Pharrell supposedly having a ‘meeting’ in Los Angeles earlier this week, the webloid writes of The Voice coach’s bruised eye, ‘Now look at his face… Is it just a coincidence??… Uh, yeah, it is. Apparently the doctors at MediaFakeOut are unaware that there are countless ways one can obtain a black eye, and many of them don’t involve fists flying.”
What do you think of this story? Do you think Jay Z punched Pharrell, causing Pharrell’s black eye? Do you believe Pharrell’s spatula story? Why or why not?
Find out more about Jay Z’s Tidal in the video below.
[Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS]
