jigga what??

g, you are fasho on point. there is no doubt that while andre may be the forerunner in this new fashion era of hip hop, jay z brought it to the streets and the stores. andre's just a little to eccentric to really build the bridge from his art and culture to the g, not you but the proverbial g, on the corner.
i'm glad that jay has created a brand out of himself in some ways. he has more consumer power than any man in hip hop history, he's pretty much the modern day frank sinatra. he could shit in a box, lable it 'jays hot shit' and it would fly off the stores all over america. hell, he's even got the nascar crowd going which can't be a small task.
however, before answering your question, i wanna take it one step further... why is no one viewing jay's recent worldwide exploits as selling out?? i mean, has this not been the achilles heel of successful musicians and artists since the endorsment began? doesn't bowing down and taking huge checks from THE MAN, aka Anheuser Busch, while waving his hands ("now wave, wave...") still punch a couple layers out from under the tower of cultural capital that he worked so hard to build? is it the fact that he now has the unique stature of being a business man/ musician? is it the fact that money and hiphop inextricably connected? god knows a indie punk band probably couldn't get away with such, not that they'd even be in the running to do one of these commercials. i guess, what do you guys think of jay-z as a sellout? i can't see tupac or biggie being caught dead waving for a bud select.