I guess desperate times call for desperate measures:
Damon Dash is telling more tales about his estranged business partner, Jay-Z. His latest: that Jigga set off a feud with Kanye West by refusing to bestow his bling on Kanye.
Dash claims the simmering beef dates back to a 2003 Chicago concert, where the then-up-and-coming Kanye expected ruling Roc-A-Fella artist Jay to “knight” him by presenting him with a gleaming chain.
But, according to Dash, Jay didn’t want to fork over the chain.
“This n- [Kanye ] was like, ‘Wow. [Jay-Z] ain’t going to give me the chain,’” Dash alleges in December’s Complex magazine. “I had to take off my chain and give it to him, and I was heated. I had the real canary diamonds. That s- cost $40,000! I told Kanye, ‘Yo, you got to give that back when we get off this stage!’”
Dash contends that after Jay-Z violated the code of hip-hop chivalry, “Kanye hated Jay-Z.”
But a rep for Kanye tells us the story is “ridiculous and totally false.”
Others suggested that Dash, whose business relationship with Jay ended badly, has trotted out the story to hype his latest protege, rapper Jim Jones.
“This is sad,” says one source. “Damon does this every time he’s promoting an artist. He just makes things up.”
Despite Dash’s feud claim, Kanye and Jay have performed several times together since the supposed bling diss.
“They’re both on [Def Jam],” says a source. “They’re friends and always have been.”
Another hip-hop insider added, “No one has ever said that Kanye hated Jay. [West, Jay-Z and Dash] were all together at one point every single day. To say he hated him back then is silly.”
“Damon wants to blow [Jim Jones] up,” the source agreed, noting that Dash is producing a documentary about Jones in which Dash introduces the rapper to influential acquaintances, like Vogue editor Anna Wintour. “We’ll see how this plays out.”
Reps for Jay-Z and Dash didn’t return calls. The full interview with Dash and Jones appears tomorrow on Complex.com.
It’s sad that a man who has had the financial success that Dash reached is now having to stoop to spreading rumors just to stay relevant. SMH.
