S. Samuel
Rap mogul Jay-Z recently opened up on his admiration toward Roc Nation protege Rita Ora and why the United Kingdom-bred singer should dream big with Hov as her mentor.
In Jay’s perspective, there is no limit to how far up she can reach in the entertainment business.
“She’s one of the people that, if you were in the position, you say, ‘I’m gonna help her get her dream out and then we’ll see what happens,’ ” Jay-Z told MTV News about the Kosovo-born, West London-bred singer when we caught up with him in Philadelphia on Monday. “I think her energy is infectious, because out the gate, two #1s in London and she’ll just continue to grow from there.” (MTV)
A few weeks ago, the London beauty talked about Jay envisioning her reaching mainstream success.
“I don’t think there will be a next Rihanna,” Rita told The Guardian this week. “But I think [Jay-Z] definitely sees me as someone who could be as big as Rihanna. “She’s a superstar now, but they first knew her as a small-island girl – and they want to repeat that success,” Rita added. The 21 year-old singer-songwriter was signed to a record deal with Roc Nation back in 2009 and is currently preparing to launch her debut album ‘Albi’ later this year. (Capital FM)
Recently, Ora revealed what industry lessons she learned from Young Hov.
Ever since being plucked from a night club in London in 2009 by Roc Nation, Rita Ora has been in the studio crafting her untitled debut album, which has been a learning experience in itself. “When I signed to Roc Nation, I was 18. At 18, I was basically singing anything [and] talking about something that I didn’t really know. When we recorded a few songs… the good thing about having a musician who is also your boss, is [having him] say, ‘Are you happy with it?’ Rita Ora said of Jay-Z and recording,”I was like, ‘I don’t know.’ He taught me about patience and they [Roc Nation] taught me how to find myself. i came back one day, and I swear, and I was like, ‘You know what? We need to do something else. And we flipped it.” Three years later, her full-length opus, featuring Ester Dean, The-Dream, Tinie Tempah, Drake and more, “is nearly done,” and Rita Ora is charming the media all the while marking her name in red on the Billboard charts. (Billboard)
Back in February, Jay was spotted alongside the British crooner on a New York City radio run.
“I have Miss Rita Ora,” Jay said prior to the premiere. “[laughs] This is all very un-spontaneous for us. We just came to see, you know, some great friends over here and play some music and you know, they liked what they heard and said, ‘Let’s just throw it on the air,’ which is great. … I love that. That’s what radio is all about. It’s about a feeling, an emotion. It’s not about scheduling and planning. Let’s do it right now.” Rita then added, “Hi, what’s up — I’m from London but I love America so I’m usually here. I’m so excited.” (Z100)
