Kim Kardashian and Kanye West vs Jay Z and Beyoncé - their feud explained

05 September 2023 , 22:41

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The two couples were at loggerheads for several years

Kanye West and Jay Z were very famously firm friends for a while with the hip-hop titans collaborating on many a hit before things went sideways in their friendship.

While the feud between the men raged on, it appeared that their significant others at the time also had a part to play in the rift with Kim Kardashian and Beyoncé also failing to get along. However, the pair appeared to put the past behind them in 2021 when Jay Z appeared on the track list for Kanye's 10th studio album, Donda.

Here we take a look at the history of the feud and just what went down between the pair.

How did they meet?

Kanye was signed to Jay Z's label after working for him as a producer (AFP via Getty Images)

Jay Z was Kanye's mentor for several years (Getty Images for BFI)

Kanye was actually discovered by Jay Z who became his mentor and helped to guide his path through the music business for several years. The move didn't just help Kanye but also helped to reboot Jay's career in the 90's.

Kanye originally worked as a producer for Jay's label Roc-A-Fella Records but later signed as an artist in his own right. The pair then recorded several songs together including the global hit Run This Town, before releasing the iconic joint album Watch The Throne in 2011.

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Singles from the LP including N***** In Paris and Made In America became instant worldwide hits making the pair a force to be reckoned with around the globe. They dominated radio play and the charts for months with the release.

Why did they fall out?

Kanye and Kim were snubbed when Jay Z and Bey didn't attend their wedding (Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)

Jay Z and Beyoncé failed to offer their friends support over the robbery (Getty Images for Sean Combs)

While they were still working on music together the beef between the pair began in 2009 when Kanye invaded the stage at the VMA's causing upset not only to Taylor Swift but also to Jay's wife Beyoncé. Jay and Beyoncé then snubbed Kim and Kanye's wedding and didn't attend causing major speculation that their friendship had fallen to the wayside.

Things got worse between the former friends when Kim was robbed at gunpoint while in Paris and Jay didn't offer any support o Kanye in his "hour of need". Kanye escalated things further in November 2016 when he gave the crowd at the Saint Pablo Tour concert in Sacramento, California a 17 minute speech that included praise for Donald Trump.

The speech also saw Kanye asking Jay not to have him assassinated. Jay's 2017 album 4.44 then contained several negative references to Kanye. Kanye bit back by removing all of his music from Jay's music streaming service Tidal declaring himself "done with streaming".

Kanye's rant at the Grammy's caused friction (Getty Images for NARAS)

Jay Z called his feuding with Kanye a "brotherly rivalry" in July 2017 - the same month that Channel 4 aired a documentary titled Public Enemies: Jay-Z vs Kanye. The programme was slated as charting the meteoric rise and colossal falling out of two of the world's most iconic popstars."

By May 2018 Kanye confirmed in an iHeartRadio interview that he had felt "hurt" by Jay Z and Beyoncé failing to attend his and Kim's wedding. However, by September Ye had referred to Jay and Bey as family, with Beyoncé seen wearing YEEZY shoes on Instagram.

Have they reconciled?

In December 2019 fans were sent into a frenzy when Kanye and Jay were seen chatting and taking photos together at P Diddy's 50th birthday party. Jay Z then featured on a track on Kanye's album Donda - named as a tribute to his late mother who died in 2007 - on the title track and final song on the album.

Ayeesha Walsh