Five Guests We Want JAŸ-Z To Bring Out During His Yankee Stadium Shows

It’s finally the time that every hip-hop head has been anticipating this year–JAŸ-Z’s three-night takeover of Yankee Stadium to celebrate two key albums in his catalog: Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint. Tonight, he’ll be kicking off the evening with a performance of Reasonable Doubt from front to back to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of his debut album. Tomorrow will see him deliver The Blueprint in its entirety to commemorate 25 years since its release. Sunday has been billed as the “Extra Inning,” though it’s unclear what exactly that will entail. Will he be coming through with a setlist of hits, one that merges highlights from both albums, or could this be another one of his B-Sides? There are so many possibilities.

But the one thing that we’re truly curious about is who will be joining JAŸ-Z on stage, if he does bring out any special guests. The reality is that Hov can take command of the stage all on his own, especially if the setlists consist of playing his albums in their entirety. However, it does present a unique opportunity to rally friends and collaborators from the past to commemorate such milestones in his career. But, if the Roots Picnic concert saw JAŸ bring out Meek Mill, Jazmine Sullivan, and Bilal, with the Roots as his backing band, then it doesn't seem too far-fetched to think that he'll have other guests coming out in his hometown

Below is a list of five special guests that we hope he’ll bring out on stage (excluding Beyoncé because that was a little too obvious).

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Earlier this year, Jaz-O sat down with Memphis Bleek on the ROC Solid podcast and dove into his history with JAŸ-Z and coming up in New York. Jaz-O mentored JAŸ-Z, gave him his first taste of life as a musician, and helped create the foundation that eventually led to the release of Reasonable Doubt. While the two fell out, they patched things up in recent years, leading to Jaz-O inking a deal with Roc Nation, and after his induction into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, Jay made sure to give his mentor a shout-out on X.

Considering their history and Jaz-O’s role on Reasonable Doubt, including his appearance on “Bring It On” alongside Sauce Money and production on “Aint No N***a,” it feels like it would be only appropriate to see him join Jay on stage tonight for night 1. Maybe, if Sauce Money and Jay squash whatever tension between them, we’ll see him join them on stage, too.

JAŸ-Z and Mary J. Blige have a relationship that dates back to Hov’s origin story. Since then, they’ve continued to remain in each other’s orbit in one way or another. She appeared at the Super Bowl with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg–a move that aligned with Roc Nation’s takeover of the Halftime Show, along with her creative partnership with Dr. Dre. But more importantly, her voice is among the first that we hear on Reasonable Doubt, laying down the iconic hook on “Can’t Knock The Hustle.” What’s interesting is that when they co-headlined the Heart Of The City tour in 2008, she opened her set with that song. But with Hov celebrating Reasonable Doubt’s 30th anniversary, it only feels appropriate that he brings her out on stage for hook duties.

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Although this one seems particularly random compared to the other two, the relationship JAŸ-Z shares with Kendrick Lamar seems significantly different compared to Dot’s contemporaries. Kendrick has constantly placed JAŸ as one of his biggest influences, and the mutual respect has been documented over time. Sure, it’s been slightly contentious in the grand scheme of things due to Kendrick’s Super Bowl Halftime Show performance, but this would probably be a great opportunity to see someone like JAY actually pass the torch to someone that he feels is deserving of carrying it. Frankly, this seems like something that could happen during the Extra Inning rather than on the first two nights. And while it does seem unlikely, it would be amazing to witness.

The debate of all debates is whether Eminem truly washed JAŸ-Z on “Renegade.” And maybe that’s because Nas cemented that notion on “Ether” when he rapped, “Eminem murdered you on your own sh*t.” Regardless if anybody believes that’s true, the reality is that Em was the only feature on The Blueprint, and he undoubtedly came correct with a verse that is still talked about today. 

The two performed the song on David Letterman’s show as they geared up for The Home & Home tour that took place at Detroit’s Comerica Park and New York’s Yankee Stadium. With that said, it feels like a missed opportunity if JAŸ-Z doesn’t bring Em out on stage to perform their iconic collaboration this weekend.

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Lastly, we have to include Nas on this list, only for the sake of uniting two of New York City’s finest MCs together on stage to celebrate such a historic moment. Earlier this week, Nas shared a playlist on TIDAL titled “Curated By God’s Son: Hov” highlighting his favorite JAŸ-Z songs of all time, which made us wonder whether he’d come on stage. After all, Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint still play a major role in his career since the former catalyzed their feud due to the "The World Is Yours" sample and the latter boasted “Takeover.” 

When the two rappers squashed their beef at the I Declare War tour in 2005, they performed “Dead Presidents II” and “The World Is Yours” together. It doesn’t seem too far-fetched to think that Nas comes out on stage during the Reasonable Doubt show to do something similar.