“The Story of O.J.” was one of the standout tracks on Jay-Z’s 2017 studio LP 4:44. The song’s opening verse begins, “O.J. like, ‘I’m not black, I’m O.J.’… Okay. House n####, don’t f### with me. I’m a field n####, with shined cutlery.”
Jay-Z’s Grammy-nominated record referenced the time retired NFL player/accused murderer O.J. Simpson reportedly denounced his blackness and his connection to the Black community. Simpson has now responded to the Brooklyn emcee’s bars.
“Well, first of all, [Jay-Z] didn’t say it right,” stated O.J. Simpson in a clip posted on April 7 to the Rare Cloth Apparel Instagram page. “When [legendary attorney Johnnie Cochran] was talking to me about it, and all that was going on was ‘Black, Black, Black.’ I said, ‘Man, f### being Black, this is me. This is about O.J.’”
Johnnie Cochran and the so-called “Dream Team” of lawyers secured O.J. Simpson an acquittal in an infamous 1994 murder case in Los Angeles. Race played a huge factor in that trial. Especially after the defense presented audio of LAPD detective Mark Fuhrman using racist slurs about African-Americans.
Simpson also told Rare Cloth Apparel, “It wasn’t about Black or White. It was about, ‘These guys were after me.’ So that’s how that was expressed. It wasn’t about, ‘I’m not Black.’ It was about, ‘This ain’t about being Black, this is about me.’”
Jay-Z’s “The Story of O.J.” garnered nominations at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards for Record Of The Year, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video. The Recording Academy shut out “The Story of O.J.” and the entire 4:44 album that night in January 2018.