Oprah Winfrey Once Told Gayle King That She Loved Jay-Z

6 hours ago

<p id=”par-1_39″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/oprah-winfrey/”>Oprah Winfrey</a> and Jay-Z are so close that she’s even given his wife, Beyoncé, advice <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/oprahs-wise-advice-to-beyonce-might-have-saved-her-relationship-with-jay-z.html/”>that might’ve helped save their relationship</a>. The media mogul had a list of reasons why she found Jay-Z to be one of a kind.</p>

<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-how-jay-z-impressed-oprah-winfrey”>How Jay-Z impressed Oprah Winfrey</h2>

<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Oprah-Winfrey-Jay-Z.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Oprah Winfrey posing at the premiere of ‘Six Triple Eight’ in a black suit.” class=”wp-image-3765736″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Oprah Winfrey | Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>

<p id=”par-2_76″>Oprah and Jay-Z became well-acquainted with each other when she first interviewed him in 2009. Jay-Z opened up to the former talk show host in a way he rarely did, taking her on a tour of his own neighborhood. The interview touched on both Jay-Z’s career and his personal life. Despite her candid feelings <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/ludacris-once-said-he-didnt-feel-welcome-as-a-guest-on-oprahs-talk-show-called-the-situation-uncomfortable.html/”>about rappers like Ludacris</a> back then, Oprah found Jay-Z exceptional. So much so that she was a bit smitten by the artist.</p>

<p id=”par-3_49″>“I have some disagreements with the music. But I love him,” she once told colleague Gayle King according to <a href=”https://allhiphop.com/news/oprah-on-jay-z-i-love-him/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>All Hip Hop</a>. “He was so charming and delightful and he smelled so good. It’s that kinda thing where you hug a guy and his scent is buried in him.”</p>

<p id=”par-4_13″> Jay-Z’s scent might’ve been the most unforgettable part of speaking with him.</p>

<p id=”par-5_71″>“Jay-Z is my new best friend. He was so graceful and he smelled so good when I had him on the show. It’s like when you hug a guy and the scent is kind of stuck on them. Even when I went to another country, I could still smell it on me. It made me say, ‘Oh my God, this is so wonderful,’” she further gushed on <em>O Radio </em>(via <a href=”https://telegrafi.com/en/oprah-winfrey-cmendet-pas-eres-se-jay-z/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Telegrafi</a>).</p>

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<p id=”par-6_13″>However, in addition to Jay-Z’s charm and scent, his intelligence further impressed Oprah.</p>

<p id=”par-7_26″>“Everyone says how smart he is. He’s really gifted and talented,” she added. “At the end of the day, I felt that I made a friend.”</p>

<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-jay-z-opened-up-oprah-s-mind-to-hip-hop”>Jay-Z opened up Oprah’s mind to Hip Hop</h2>

<p id=”par-8_42″> Oprah has had a very tumultuous relationship with the hip-hop community over the years. However, the genre didn’t completely disagree with her. According to <a href=”https://www.xxlmag.com/history-oprah-winfreys-hot-cold-relationship-hip-hop/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>XXL</a>, she even listed some of the rappers she had on her playlist back in the day.</p>

<p id=”par-9_52″>“I listen to some hip-hop,” she said. “You know, I’ve been accused of not liking hip-hop and that’s just not true. I got a little 50 [Cent] on my iPod. I really do. Love ‘In Da Club.’ … Love that, and you know, love Jay-Z, love Kanye [West], love Mary J. [Blige].”</p>

<p id=”par-10_46″>She interviewed all of the artists she mentioned. Even 50 Cent, with whom she had a long feud <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/50-cent-reveals-origins-of-years-long-feud-with-oprah-winfrey.html/”>in the past</a>. But Jay-Z might’ve made the most impression on her. Oprah confided that the Brooklyn emcee had a very positive effect on her feelings towards hip-hop.</p>

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<p id=”par-11_73″>“He hasn’t changed my mind about rap; he has opened my mind,” Oprah once told <em>EurWeb </em>(via <a href=”https://www.essence.com/news/oprah-winfrey-talks-jay-z-and-hip-hop/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Essence</a>). “What we did on our show was agree to disagree. I still have my opinion about the N-word, and he still has his; I can see his point of view and he can see mine. I mean, I would say he’s become a really good friend of mine because of that. We agree to disagree.”</p>

<p id=”par-12_64″>Jay-Z’s book, <em>Decoded</em>, also played a huge role in Oprah’s shifting opinion towards hip hop. The book was a memoir and autobiography that he <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/jay-z-refused-read-release-completed-autobiography.html/”>refused to release</a> for the longest time. However, after he did, <em>Decoded </em>dove further into Jay-Z’s backstory and his rise to stardom. Oprah plugged his book while interviewing him and shared some of the interesting insights she read in <em>Decoded</em>.</p>

<p id=”par-13_53″>“His book is fantastic,” she said. “There’s a thing in his book where he talks about rappers trying to tell stories that the rest of the world doesn’t want to hear. And I realized that I was close to wanting to hear it. So the difference is I’m now open to hearing it.”</p>

<p id=”par-14_34″>She seems to have grown more receptive to hip-hop music as of late. She even gave her seal of approval to the <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/oprah-bank-account-lil-yachty-drake-dababy-what-she-thinks.html/?swcfpc=1″>Lil’ Yachty record “Oprah’s Bank Account,”</a> which was partially inspired by her.</p>