Jay-Z and Kanye West: The Stats

Born

Jay-Z: Shawn Carter; Dec. 4, 1969 (41), in Brooklyn.

Kayne: June 8, 1977 (34), in Atlanta.

Education

Jay-Z: Dropped out of high school. Started at Eli Whitney High School, then George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School in Downtown Brooklyn (with The Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes) and ultimately dropped out of Trenton Central High School New Jersey.

Kanye: Graduated from West Aurora High School in Oak Lawn, Ill., took painting classes at American Academy of Art in Chicago, before transferring to Chicago State University, where he dropped out.

Nicknames

Jay-Z: "Jazzy," his nickname in the neighborhood, evolved into Jay-Z (in honor of mentor Jaz-O and the J/Z subway train in Brooklyn). Also, Jigga and Hova (take on Jehovah, meaning God).

Kanye: Ye; Yeezy; Louis Vuitton Don.

First jobs

Jay-Z: Hustling drugs (claims to have never had an actual job).

Kanye: Working at the GAP, where he returned in 2009 to work as an intern in fashion design.

Musical influences:

Jay-Z: "I used to listen to old music like Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye and things like that" (VH-1 interview), in addition to rappers like Notorious B.I.G.

Kanye: R&B/soul singers like Stevie Wonder and rap artists ranging from A Tribe Called Quest to Wu Tang Clan.

First rumblings

Jay-Z: Appeared on Jaz-O's early stuff in late '80s and made his name in Brooklyn rap battles.

Kanye: Did first production work on Chicago rapper Grav's 1996 debut, "Down to Earth," before moving on to such artists as Jermaine Dupri, Foxy Brown and Goodie Mob from 1998-99. In 2000, produced the song "This Can't Be Life" on Jay-Z's "The Dynasty: Roc La Familia! ."

First charting single

Jay-Z: 1996's "Ain't No N----," with Foxy Brown (#50)

Kanye: 2003's "Through the Wire" (#15).

Debut album

Jay-Z: 1996's "Reasonable Doubt," which went to No. 23 on the Billboard Top 200, sold 1.5 million copies and is ranked at 248 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Kanye: 2004's "The College Dropout," which debuted at No. 2, sold more than 3 million copies, topped the Village Voice Pazz and Jop Poll critics poll and ranked No. 464 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums.

Musical crossovers

Jay-Z: Recording with rockers like Linkin Park, Phish.

Kanye: A huge fan of Radiohead and has been collaborating with Bon Iver's Justin Vernon.

Label work

Jay-Z: Co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records in 1996, which became home to Jay-Z, Kanye West, Memphis Bleak, Beanie Sigel and more. In 2004, became CEO of Def Jam, which purchased Roc-A-Fella. Signed Rihanna and Ne-Yo. Stepped down in late 2007.

Kanye: In 2004, founded GOOD Music, whose roster includes John Legend, Common, Kid Cudi and Big Sean.

Fashion

Jay-Z: Created the successful Rocawear brand with Damon Dash in 1999. Annual sales estimated at $700 million.

Kanye: Has women's fashion line called DW Kanye West and teamed with Nike for Air Yeezy, among other things.

Sports

Jay-Z: Part owner of New Jersey Nets. Roots for the Yankees.

Kanye: Big fan of Chicago Bulls.

Big screen

Jay-Z: Runs a criminal crew in "State Property."

Kanye West: Appeared as himself in "State Property 2" and "The Love Guru."

Most telling lyric

Jay-Z: "I'm not a businessman/I'm a! busines s, man."

Kanye: "I feel the pressure, under more scrutiny/And what I do?/Act more stupidly/Bought more jewelry, more Louis V, my momma couldn't get through to me/The drama, people suing me/I'm on TV talking like it's just you and me."

Personal life

Jay-Z: Married Beyonce in 2008 and expecting first child.

Kanye: Last big relationship was with Amber Rose, who is now with Wiz Khalifa.

First published on November 24, 2011 at 12:00 am