Jay-Z (Left), Freeway (Middle), Cam’Ron (Right)
Cam’ron recently shared some amusing anecdotes about the creation of his 2002 hit single, “Oh Boy,” during a recent episode of the sports talk show, It Is What It Is, which he co-hosts with Ma$e. This trip down memory lane highlighted a surprising reaction from Jay-Z and some friction with producer Just Blaze.
In the show, Cam’ron disclosed that he, in a sense, “stole” the beat for “Oh Boy” from Just Blaze after it had languished unused by the Roc-A-Fella Records roster for several months. This decision, however, didn’t sit well with Just Blaze or Jay-Z.
Just Blaze
While recounting Just Blaze’s grievances, Cam’ron playfully impersonated the producer, referring to him as an “Ivy League” type. He likened their relationship and personalities to the strained dynamic between Russell Wilson and Marshawn Lynch when they were teammates on the Seattle Seahawks.
“Just Blaze is not a n***a n***a. He’s a Black man and he’ll say ‘n***a,’” Cam’ron began. “The ‘Oh Boy’ beat is sitting in the f**king studio for two months. Nobody uses it. Juelz convinced me to steal the song. We do the f**king song, whatever.”
Cam’ron continued, “After we put it out, he comes up to me, and he’s like, ‘You, know, um, Cam, we’re gonna absolutely get killed on the publishing. We didn’t clear the sample before we put it out, and we’re gonna lose bad.'”
“I’m like, ‘Aiight, whatever, man! Shit’s been sitting there for two months.’ Just Blaze says, ‘And by the way, Jay was mad at me behind that because he didn’t understand why I gave you that beat and I didn’t give him the beat.”
Cam’ron recalled, “So I say, ‘Yo Just, f**k it, it’s a hit. Sometimes you gotta give up the publishing.’ Jay-Z gave up 100 percent of the publishing for ‘Hard Knock Life,’ which made him who he is today.”
“‘I get your point, Cam, but if we had done things differently, we could have multiplied our earnings,'” Cam’ron mimicked Just Blaze’s response. According to Cam’ron, he then asked Just if he aspired to be a “hit producer,” to which Just Blaze purportedly replied, “Not really. My dream is Wall Street, and I also want to own restaurants.”
Cam’ron concluded his story by asserting that he had contributed to boosting Just Blaze’s profile, mentioning that he had given him a shoutout in his lyrics long before Jay-Z mentioned “Just Blaze and The Blazettes” on The Blueprint 2.
This insightful trip down memory lane offers a glimpse into the dynamic world of music production and the personalities that shape the industry.
