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A Jay-Z Documentary About His Music, Life & More Directed by Rick Rubin Is Coming: Watch the Trailer

The eight-part series JAŸ-Z in 8 is set to debut this fall.

JAŸ-Z and Rick Rubin in 'JAŸ-Z in 8.'

JAŸ-Z and Rick Rubin in 'JAŸ-Z in 8.'

YouTube/HBO

Can’t knock the hustle. On Thursday (June 25), HBO announced plans for a Jay-Z docuseries, with project, titled JAŸ-Z in 8, set to arrive this fall.

The streaming platform also released a trailer for the eight-part series, which is directed by Rick Rubin. The black-and-white clip finds Hov in conversation with Rubin inside what appears to be an art museum featuring ancient Greek architecture.


“Everyone had this same experience, except I was the one who could stand on the soapbox and articulate what we were going through,” Jay says in the teaser.

The Def Jam cofounder replies: “Without the pain, you wouldn’t have done the work.”

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While the pain isn’t necessary, Hov believes it can be used for good. “So the pain, you don’t say it’s necessary, you don’t say you need it, but if it’s there, use it,” Jay responds.

JAŸ-Z in 8 appears to be a docuseries in a similar mold to 2021’s McCartney 3, 2, 1, which also starred Rick Rubin in conversation with the Beatles icon.

According to a synopsis, the HBO docuseries will feature Jay-Z and Rick Rubin sitting down to discuss the Brooklyn dignitary’s “music, lyrics, life experiences and creative process.”

Jay-Z is on board as an executive producer alongside actor Daniel Kaluuya and Rubin, who will direct.

Fittingly, Thursday’s announcement arrives on the 30th anniversary of when Jay-Z released his debut album, Reasonable Doubt, in 1996. The project arrived on June 25, 1996, and peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard 200; it spent 18 weeks on the chart.

In celebration of Jay’s debut album, Roc Nation also launched a series of pop-ups and activations across Brooklyn and Manhattan, featuring exclusive merchandise and a cultural archive surrounding Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint.

Watch the JAŸ-Z in 8 trailer below.

This article was first published on Billboard U.S.
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Beck at 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Peacock Theater on November 8, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
Gilbert Flores/Billboard

Beck at 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Peacock Theater on November 8, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.

Rock

Beck Announces First Album in Seven Years, ‘Ride Lonesome,’ Drops Meditative Video For ‘In the Night’ Single

The follow-up to Hyperspace is due out on Sept. 18.

Beck is returning from Hyperspace after seven long years. The “Saw Lightning” singer announced the long-awaited follow-up to that 2019 Grammy-winning LP on Wednesday (July 15), when he revealed that his 16th studio album, Ride Lonesome, is due out on Sept. 18 via Capitol Records.

“My new album Ride Lonesome is coming out this fall. The musicians from my original touring and recording band that I recorded Sea Change, Morning Phase and Mutations with — Smokey Hormel [guitar], Joey Waronker [drums], Justin Meldal-Johnsen [bass], Roger Joseph Manning Jr. [keyboards], and Jason Falkner [guitar] — reconvened with me at my favorite studio (Room B at United Studios in Hollywood),” said Beck in a statement about reuniting his crack band from those classic albums.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.
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