Shawn Corey Carter aka Jay-Z

Jay-Z’s net worth is close to a billion dollars, but even a guy like him comes from pretty humble roots. The rapper grew up in Brooklyn, New York. His interest in music has always been there, however. Online classes where you can learn just about anything weren’t as popular then, so Jay-Z had to teach himself the ropes. His skill at freestyling and lyricism didn’t go unnoticed for too long. Slowly but surely, he made his way to where he is now.

Jay-Z says his earliest exposure to music was through his parents’ record collection, which was mostly of soul artists such as Marvin Gaye and Donny Hathaway. He says “I grew up around music, listening to all types of people… I’m into music that has soul in it, whether it be rap, R&B, pop music, whatever. As long as I can feel their soul through the wax, that’s what I really listen to.”