What city was Jay-Z born in?

Jay-Z was born in Brooklyn, New York. Born Shawn Corey Carter on December 4, 1969, he grew up in Marcy Houses, a public housing complex in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn.

His Brooklyn upbringing became a major part of his artistic identity. Jay-Z frequently draws on the borough’s streets, neighborhoods and subway culture in his lyrics, presenting Brooklyn as both the setting of his childhood and the foundation of his ambition. His song “Where I’m From,” for example, is closely associated with his memories of the Marcy Projects.

A common mix-up is confusing Brooklyn with Manhattan because Jay-Z later became one of New York City’s most prominent cultural figures and often represents New York as a whole. Brooklyn was an independent city until 1898, when it became one of New York City’s five boroughs.

Jay-Z attended George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School in Brooklyn, where he was reportedly a classmate of The Notorious B.I.G. He later helped reinforce Brooklyn’s place in hip-hop history through Roc-A-Fella Records and his own music.