Jay-Z turned down the beats to 3 of hip-hop's most famous hits of the '90s and '00s, according to a former collaborator

• Jay-Z turned down beats that became huge hits with other artists, according to a former collaborator.
• Joshua "Hip Hop" Kyambo, who worked with Jay-Z, made the comments on a recent podcast episode.

Jay-Z has enjoyed more than his fair share of hit songs, but according to music industry veteran Joshua "Hip Hop" Kyambo, he could have had a bunch more.

During an appearance on the podcast "ROAD (Reflections of a DJ)" on January 18, Kyambo, who worked as an A&R choosing beats on Jay's studio albums recorded under the label Roc-A-Fella, said the rapper turned down the beats to three of the most famous hip-hop songs of the late '90s and early '00s: Big Pun's "Still Not a Player," Black Rob's "Whoa!" and Mr Cheeks' "Lights, Camera, Action!"

"Still Not a Player" ended up the lead single on Big Pun's platinum-selling 1998 debut album "Capital Punishment" and the biggest hit of the late rapper's career.

Black Rob's 2000 song "Whoa!" peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100 and helped his debut album "Life Story" reach No.3 on the Billboard 200.

"Lights, Camera, Action!" by Mr Cheeks reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the R&B charts for one week.

Kyambo said Jay-Z heard the beat eventually used in "Lights, Camera, Action" but said it was too slow. "I was like 'What do you mean it's too slow?!'" Kyambo said.

Asked by the podcast's hosts if he was disappointed Jay-Z turned down the beat, Kyambo said: "Nah, it's like whatever is best for the record. I know that a record just got to motivate."

To date, Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, has sold over 140 million records worldwide, scored 14 number 1 albums, and won 24 Grammy Awards. He co-founded Roc-A-Fella in 1994 and released 11 albums under the record label.

In 2019, Forbes named him as hip-hop's first-ever billionaire. Jay-Z's representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.