White Tuxedo (Lyrics)

White Tuxedo

and now Miguel

0:00 / 0:00

−15 ▶ +15

Movie poster of the 1951 British film The Man in the White Suit,

Artist: A.R. Thomson, S. John Woods

Prolog

The physical altercation between Solange Knowles and Jay-Z took place on May 5, 2014, following the Met Gala after-party at The Standard Hotel in New York City.

I think Solange’s “Almeda” (2019) might have been a response to Jay-Z’s “Oceans” (2013).

I have no leads besides the event and those two songs. I may be wrong. Not a hill I’d die on. But a vantage point I’d rap from.

Lyrics

The god M.C. made me, an atheist, a communist maybe just?¹

Reasonably I doubted I’d turn 30 but²

51 rotations around the sun and Hip-Hop still sounds dirty bra³

Jahova got caught calling Colin Kaepernick a Capitalist without re-wording shit⁴

I guess in god we trust repackaging, bricks⁵

Yup they still Target folks put us at the butt of their jokes

All in a scope, Chucklin’ while we cross our arms at our roast⁶

No Hart⁷ in their art they sold what’s below The Vail⁸ like D-Boys⁹ or Du Bois

He had once said “All art is Propaganda” I don’t give a god damn¹⁰

Save your whole glitz and glamour

Cause Hell, Ida B. Wells would wail

All in the news derails,

Red coded scales¹¹, too heavy set

With calls from the moans and ails

May Ma’at prevail¹²

We holds the weight of those profits they sold and sail¹³

Yachtin’!! couldn’t wash the dirt off them white suits they got in¹⁴

But Black kin remines pure never rotten¹⁵

Even if cut with raw(hide) or that old cotton¹⁶

“I remain” rooted in Black Thoth before Tariq Trotter¹⁷

Or European land squatters

I am and now Miguel, check how it’s spelled¹⁸

The right hand of the Goddess is how I’m held

FOOTNOTES

1. 1. My use of, “the god M.C.” here is not a reference to Rakim. I am explicitly referring to Jay-Z and his “Take Over” (2001) verse, “No God in the sky, just me, Jay-Hova.” While researching for this verse I learned about his use of the title in another track, “Jay-Z and Sauce Money takin’ over Change the face of rap, give it a makeover God MC, me, Jay-Hova” from Sauce Money’s “Luv Is Love” (Feat. Jay-Z) [un]released 1998, per Discogs. ↩
2. 2. Jay-Z’s first studio album, Reasonable Doubt (1996) turned 30 in June 2026. He released a special version of the album exclusively at Target stores after many Black Women and POC decided to boycott Target. Ps. Regarding the line, it’s sorta a trope of his to start with a lot of logos, numbers and figures, so I started with numbers too—but I admit, I suck at numbers! Also, Funny enough, in this K-Shaped economy, many retailers and brands are marketing towards more “premium” customers. Keep the K and the K-Shape in mind for later. ↩
3. 3. Rhetorical question as in still sounds dirty? As if it is something that Jay-Z would want to distance himself from, huh? Continue reading as this relates to the “Oceans” (2013) song reference below. ↩
4. 4. During a performance (Friday, July 10, 2026, Yankee Statum—The Bronx, Birthplace of Hip-Hop) Jay-Z rapped about critics of his business moves (most recently with Target) and mentions Kaepernick's 2019 settlement with the NFL. Jay-Z claimed, "Buddy took a check, I ain't even mad at him, but along with that check you have to sign a non-disparagement [agreement]." Colin Kaepernick responded in September 2026, stating that the rapper's remarks came from a "guilty conscience" regarding his corporate partnerships with the NFL and Target, see: Colin Kaepernick Believes Jay-Z Has a ‘Guilty Conscience’ Over Deals With NFL,” NBC News, November 9, 2022. All this started when Jay-Z joined/partnered with the NFL and quickly silence Colin Kaepernick by saying “I think we, passed kneeing… I think everyone knows what the issue is. We done with that … We all know what the issue is. Okay next.” In the same NBC News report, journalist Craig Melvin ended the segment saying: “Jay-Z also went on to reveal that when he passed on the Super Bowl [in Sept 2016, see “Apeshit” quote below] it was not because of he was in solidarity with those protesting on the field, he did not, according to him yesterday, like the selection process was what he went on to say. We should also point out that we do not know the financial details of the arrangement between Roc Nation and the NFL … Jay-Z is saying that this is [the partnership between Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, and the NFL] is an extension of the on field protest … he sees this as an attempt to fix things on the inside.” See NBC News "Jay-Z Talks NFL Partnership: 'We've Moved Past Kneeling,'" video, NBC News, August 14, 2019. Mind you the deal that silenced Kaepernick came after Jay-Z said, "I said no to the super bowl you need me I don't need you" on the 20XX track song "Apeshit” (2018). See photo of Jay-Z in 2017 (when he turned down the Super Bowl and was “protesting” prior to his deal with the NFL that silenced Colin).