Jay-Z Explores His Past Lyrics in HBO’s “Jay-Z in 8” Docuseries

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Sep 18, 2026 8:30am PT

Jay-Z Revisits the Ghosts of Lyrics Past in the Illuminating (and Possibly Too Thorough) ‘Jay-Z in 8’: TV Review

By Steven J. Horowitz

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Steven J. Horowitz

Senior Music Writer

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On “Renegade,” his 2001 collaboration with Eminem, Jay-Z asks , “Do you fools listen to music or just skim through it?” It’s a line he references while retracing the contours of his decades-long career during “ Jay-Z in 8,” HBO’s eight-part docuseries in which he sits down with producer and industry legend Rick Rubin to dissect both hits and deep cuts from his discography. People think, he says, that “this music is just all about glorifying the lifestyle or all about money and cars. It’s like, you’re not listening.”

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_Originally reported by [Variety Music](https://variety.com/2026/music/news/jay-z-in-8-review-hbo-1236866371/)._