Jay-Z Mentions Freddie Gray in Freestyle

Rapper Jay-Z references Freddie Gray, the Baltimore man who recently died in police custody, during a freestyle riff broadcast this week on his streaming music service, Tidal.

“You know when I work, I ain’t your slave, right? ... You know this ain’t back in the days, right? Well I can’t tell how the way they killed Freddie Gray, right? Shot down Mike Brown how they did Tray, right?” —Jay-Z

Gray is the 25-year-old Baltimore man who died in police custody April 19.

Six officers were indicted Thursday in his death, with charges ranging from misconduct in office to second-degree murder.

Jay-Z made an overture in Baltimore in early May, when he and wife Beyoncé came to Charm City for Prince’s “Rally 4 Peace” concert, where they took photos with the Gray family.

Jay-Z then made Prince’s song “Baltimore” available on his subscription-based music service Tidal and is donating proceeds to the Baltimore Justice Fund, according to Fox 45. The fund has received $800,000 in the past month, a chunk of it from Jay-Z, the news station reported.

In addition, a source close to the celebrity couple told the New York Daily News that Jay-Z and Beyoncé have contributed thousands of dollars to help bail out protesters in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo.

One scholar has spoken out against the name-dropping of Freddie Gray as “disingenuous,” saying Jay-Z was “pulling out the race card” to make a case for why people should pay for his music service, according to The Wrap.

Screenshot from YouTube.