These 25 Rappers Have the Most Jay-Z Guest Verses
Rappers who have received a guest verse from Jay-Z should consider themselves blessed. Hov is inarguably one of hip-hop’s G.O.A.T.s, has spent the last three decades giving hip-hop some of the greatest bars the genre has seen in a career that includes 14 No. 1 albums, dozens of hit songs and countless hip-hop quoteables. While the 53-year-old rapper-billionaire has hopped on dozens of records in his career, he’s never spread himself too thin. There are some major rap stars who have never gotten a verse from Jigga and even more who have only been able to get one 16 from the god-level Brooklyn bar layer including Eminem and Nas.
There have long-been rumors that a Jay-Z verse could cost a rapper their entire budget. Another number that has been floating out there is $250,000. In July of 2022, Jigga claimed he no longer charges artists to appear on their tracks.
"It's mostly relationships," Jay-Z told Kevin Hart on the comedian’s Hart to Heart show on Peacock. "It's actually always been mostly relationships. Sometimes it's talent and sometimes someone asks me to be on something. Pretty much every song that I'm on I'm asked to be on. I don't ask people to be on their songs. I never charge."
"Way more nos than yeses," Jay confirmed about the ratio of requests he actually obliges.
Over the years, some rappers have been more highly favored than others when it comes to being able to obtain a coveted guest verse from Jay-Z, with the number slimming down even more as of recent—Jay only appeared on three songs in 2022.
XXL highlights the rappers (and one DJ) who have tapped into the Jay-Z cheat code on a minimum of two occasions to find out which MC has been able get the most guest appearances from Mr. Carter over the years. Take a look at these 25 artists along with DJ Khaled to see who comes out on top below.