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Jay Z Shocks Fans On ‘4:44’ — Reveals Mother Gloria Carter Is A Lesbian Just In Time For End Of Pride Month

By Amanda Katherine
Published on: 04:49 PST, Jun 30, 2017

Jay Z dropped his new album, 4:44 on Friday at midnight exclusively on TIDAL. The rapper revealed that his mother, Gloria Carter, who is featured on the album, is a lesbian just in time for the end of pride month.

A shocking revelation

Jay Z released 4:44 on his streaming service TIDAL on Friday at 12 a.m. The rapper’s first album in four years was made available in its entirety on iHeartRadio stations across the United States on Friday at midnight as well.

Beyonce’s husband just welcomed twins with his superstar wife. The “Tom Ford” rapper gets deep on 4:44, discussing everything from infidelity, family struggles, and his children.

Perhaps one of the most shocking revelations to come from 4:44 was the fact that Jay Z said his mother, Gloria Carter, was a lesbian on the track “Smile.”

“Smile” featured vocals by Frank Ocean and ended with a spoken word performance by Gloria Carter.

The lyrics described his mother having “four kids” and hiding the fact that she was a “lesbian” for so long.

“Mama had four kids, but she’s a lesbian.

“Had to pretend so long that she’s a thespian.

“Had to hide in the closet, so she medicate.”

Jay mentioned the pressure she must have felt from society, but said that it didn’t matter to him one way or another, he would always love her.

“Society shame and the pain was too much to take.

“Cried tears of joy when you fell in love.

“UDon’t matter to me if it’s a him or her, I just wanna see you smile through all the hate.”

Jay Z grew up with three siblings—Andrea Carter, Eric Carter, and Michelle Carter— in a poor neighborhood in Brooklyn and was raised by the single mother.

After supporting her famous son for years throughout his wildly successful career, Gloria Carter finally got her own moment to shine on “Smile.”

Time to be free

The song’s outro features the lesbian mother-of-four and she says she felt like she was “living in a shadow” asking, “can you imagine what kind of life it is to live?”

“In the shadows people see you as happy and free, but that’s what you want them to see.”

Beyonce’s mother-in-law described feeling like she was “living two lives, happy, but not free.” Gloria was afraid to hurt her family, but that the “world is changing” so it was time for her to “be free.”

“But you live with the fear of just being me, living in the shadow feels like the safe place to be.

“No harm for them, no harm for me.”

Ms. Carter ended by saying that “life is short” and people should “love who you love” because “life isn’t guaranteed.”

“Smile.”

Since Jay Z’s release of 4:44, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis commended Gloria Carter for sharing her story and being brave enough to come out to the world telling E! News, “Lesbian women are all too often erased or excluded from narratives surrounding LGBTQ people.”

“By sharing her truth with the world, Gloria Carter is increasing visibility of lesbian women of color at a critical time and sending a powerful message of empowerment to the entire LGBTQ community that is perfectly timed with the end of Pride Month.”

Although some of Jay Z’s earlier rap song’s from the nineties include a few anti-gay slurs, his attitude towards the LGBTQ community has evolved over the years.Were you shocked to learn that Jay Z’s mother, Gloria Carter, is a lesbian on 4:44? Let us know what you think in the comments section below

[Featured Image by Theo Wargo / Staff / Getty Images]

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