Jay-Z and Eminem set to reunite on Rakim‘s upcoming new album – marking their first collaboration in 25 years.
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The two rap legends last appeared on the same track on 2001’s ‘Renegade’ from Jay-Z’s ‘The Blueprint’.
Now, they’re set to join forces once again on a currently untitled song, which will appear on a forthcoming collaborative album from Rakim, Kurupt and Masta Killa, due for release on August 28.
News of a reunion came on Sunday (June 7) when Matthew “M80” Markoff, JD, the A&R and executive producer of the album, shared a sneak peek at the track list in a post on Instagram – with one in particular listed with Eminem and Jay-Z’s names handwritten beside it.
“AOTY 2026,” he wrote in the caption of the post. “PUT SOME COT DAMN RESPEK ON MY NAME.”
He later confirmed that the song is an interlude on the album, and sees the two rappers playing homage to Rakim’s legacy and influence.
“Em and Jay do not have verses on the interlude,” Markoff said to Rolling Stone, adding that the record is comprised of new material. “The entire album with all its parts were recorded in the past two years.”
The album will also include features from Snoop Dogg, KRS-One, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Buckshot, Daz Dillinger, and more, as well as a posthumous executive production credit by Oliver “Power” Grant of Wu-Tang Clan, who died in February.
In other news, Jay-Z has announced huge shows in Paris and Los Angeles, taking place later this year and celebrating his “legacy”.
The new dates come following the rapper’s return to the stage for a rare solo performance last month, headlining Roots Picnic 2026 as his first festival date in seven years and breaking out some of his biggest hits.
That set also saw him take aim at Nicki Minaj, Drake, Kanye West and more in a freestyle, and came ahead of his upcoming anniversary shows planned for New York’s Yankee Stadium. Those three shows will celebrate 30 years of his debut album ‘Reasonable Doubt’ and 25 years of his sixth record ‘The Blueprint’.
There have been rumours that Jay-Z is working on a new album – which will be the follow-up to 2017’s ‘4:44’ – swirling for years now, although friend and collaborator Cash Cobain recently put a dampener on hopes for new material, saying that the rapper told him recently that he is “absolutely not dropping an album” anytime soon (via Variety).
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