Beach volleyball

Today Brazil is the ruling country, with six of his players in the first six positions of FIVB ranking: these include Emanuel Rego, Ricardo Santos, Marcio Araujo and others. and Big L among others) and prominent hip hop pioneers (i.e. Surveys from the University of Klagenfurt have shown that the majority of male spectators at women's beach volleyball events enjoy looking at the attractive and scantily-clad players far more than the sporting action in itself, another observation that critics like to frequently point out. Some people, however, see this simply as quotations paying homage to deceased rappers (including The Notorious B.I.G. In any case, beach volleyball at the Athens Olympics was a massive success, and some critics point out that the controversy may have even helped the sport become more popular. Jay-Z has also been accused of stealing the idea for the song "99 Problems" from Ice-T, who had a very similar song. This and the requirement that women players wear more revealing clothing than the men led to accusations that the sport was less respectful than other Olympic events, with some columnists comparing it to a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue spread rather than pure athleticism. Jay-Z has been accused of "biting", or stealing, lyrics from other artists.*[[2]] In the song Ether, for instance, Nas accuses Jay-Z of stealing lyrics from the Notorious B.I.G., who he cites as a rap legend and Jay-Z's apparent friend.

The controversy of the sport hit a new high at the 2004 Olympics, when a DJ would play music clips between sets while female dancers in skimpy orange bikinis performed for the crowds. He redirected the hip hop culture from hooded sweatshirts and baggy jeans to buttons ups and crisp jeans, and received GQ's International Man of the Year award. However, these claims do not account for the baggy shorts or sleeveless t-shirts worn by male players, and the fact that males are not required to go bare-chested or wear speedos. Jay-Z is at heart a true entrepreneur, like his fellow hip-hop-moguls-turned-friends Russell Simmons and Sean "Diddy" Combs, who also have business holdings such as record companies and clothing lines. There are also claims that the bikini attire is actually practical to the sport, since more loose clothing would hinder playing ability and professional tournaments often take place during the high heat of Summer. In the spring of 2005, he introduced his collaboration with Swiss luxury-watch maker Audemars Piguet. Furthermore, they argue that the female attire of the women's pole vault and other track and field events at the Olympics is barely any more skin covering, and that only beach volleyball is unfairly singled out for criticism. Carter also has a line of Reebok sneakers called The S.Carter Collection, which hold the record for fastest selling Reebok shoe in history and made him the first non-athlete to have a signature line of sneakers.

In return, some people counter-argue that the sex appeal of beach volleyball is not entirely one-sided, as women also enjoy beach volleyball in order to watch fit and bare-chested men. He also co-owns The 40/40 Club, an upscale sports bar which started in New York, NY and has since expanded to Atlantic City, NJ, with plans for locations in Miami and Atlanta. People have pointed out that professional beach volleyball is one of the few sports where female athletes are mandated to wear a uniform which does not exceed a certain size, essentially encouraging a "less is best" approach towards female attire, and argue that it is simply a ploy to market the game for viewership and sponsors. In September 2005, he was reported in English media as considering a takeover of Arsenal F.C., an English football team. Many of these people argue that beach volleyball, and particularly the female aspect of the game, is too sexualized to be considered a truly respectable sport. Jay-Z is a part owner of the New Jersey Nets NBA team, and is rumored to be one of the franchise owners interested in relocating the team to Brooklyn. Since its introduction as an Olympic sport in 1996, beach volleyball has been the target of a reasonable degree of criticism from some conservative groups as well as the governments of certain countries, particularly Islamic nations of the Middle East and South-East Asia. Roc-A-Fella also distributes "Armadale," a Scottish vodka, in the U.S.

Most of the players representing the United States in the indoor Olympic Games were coming from the beaches of Southern California. Carter high-end clothing line. In 1996, beach volleyball became a separate Olympic event. Just recently Jay-Z bought out co-founder Damon Dash for an estimated $30 million in the Rocawear clothing line, in addition to developing his own S. Other countries such as Greece, Germany, and even China have developed a large and competitive following. Apart from being President and CEO of Def Jam Recordings, Jay-Z is also one of the owners and founders of the Roc-A-Fella empire, which includes Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc-La-Familia, Roc-A-Fella Films and Rocawear, a clothing brand established in 1999. Specifically in the case of the more popular Women's event, each country has won once each, the Brazilians in 1996, the Australians in 2000, and the United States in 2004. Jay-Z declared in USA Today that Cam'ron is using the record as a "ploy" to sell records and that the song is "trash." As of January 25, 2006, Jay-Z stated that he was torn about whether he will officially respond with a track of his own.

Furthermore, these are the only countries which have won a gold medal in an Olympic beach volleyball event since its debut at the 1996 Games. The allegations claim that beef arose when Damon Dash wanted to appoint Cam'ron as Roc-A-Fella's vice-president in Jay's absence. Recently, Australia has emerged as a distant third superpower, and all three of these nations have a reasonably well developed national touring system which typically takes place during the summer months. Cam'ron also suggests Jay-Z stole Kanye West, Roc-A-Fella and the Rocawear clothing line from Damon Dash's new entertainment company. For decades, the two nations which have dominated international beach volleyball are Brazil and the United States. He claims incorrectly that Jay-Z was born in 1968, making him 37 years old as of 2006, and he insulted Jay-Z's fashion faux-paus of wearing open-toe sandals with jeans. While the history of beach volleyball is relatively lengthy, the sport (at the professional level) remained fairly obscure until the late 1990s and 2000s when beach volleyball experienced a great surge in popularity thanks to greater media exposure and the development of bonafide stars such as Kerri Walsh and Misty May, who are now well known throughout the world. In January 2006, rapper Cam'ron released a song titled "You Got to Love It", attacking Jay-Z.

In the 1970s, a few professional tournaments in Santa Monica were sponsored by beer and cigarette companies. However, this is only speculation as nothing has been confirmed or denied, though Kanye West 'let it slip' that he is producing for Jay-Z in '06 on MTV's New Years show. It failed, but a professional tournament was held in France for 30,000 French Francs. There is also heavy speculation that he may come out his "retirement" to record & release a new album in 2006, 10 years after his 1st album was released. In the 1960s, an attempt to start a professional volleyball league was made in Santa Monica. Currently Jay-Z is working on his new label Roc-A-Fella West (the west coast branch of Roc-A-Fella records) and his new artist Immense. By the 1940s, two-man doubles tournaments were being played on the beaches of Santa Monica for trophies. In December 2005, it was reported that wrestler Diamond Dallas Page filed a lawsuit against Jay-Z for illegally adopting the "Diamond Cutter" symbol as his own.

A decade later, beach volleyball began to appear in Europe. Jay-Z also performed for Philadelphia radio station Power 99 on October 28, at the Wachovia Center. Beach volleyball started in Santa Monica, California in the 1920s. The last time Jay-Z declared war, he went at Nas and Prodigy of Mobb Deep on the song "Takeover" at Hot 97's annual concert Summer Jam. . Rappers Freeway and Beanie Sigel jumped on stage as well, along with Kanye West, Sauce Money, Paul Wall, Teairra Mari, Young Jeezy, T.I., Peedi Crack, and Memphis Bleek. The standard attire of female competitors makes beach volleyball events popular with editors of tabloid newspapers, as well as TV. Diddy and The Lox, who had a simmering beef relating to The Lox departure from Bad Boy Records.

Generally, a closed fist means the player will not attempt a block, one finger means the player will attempt to block an opponent's spike down the line, and two fingers means the player will attempt to block an opponent's spike into the angle. Also present on stage was P. These signals are made behind the back, to avoid the opposition seeing the signals. Surprisingly, he ended his famous beef with Nas, bringing him on stage to do the chorus to Jay-Z's song, "Dead Presidents." Nas also performed songs of his own. One of the facets of beach volleyball is the use of hand signals by players to indicate to their partner what sort of play they intend to make. He had previously announced that he would "declare war" on other rappers taking subliminal shots at him. Instead of a team of six, each team consists of only two players, but otherwise the rules are almost identical with some exceptions including:. On October 27, 2005, Jay-Z performed at New York's Power 105.1 annual concert, Powerhouse.

This version, rather than being played on indoor hard courts, is played on sand courts, which are either formed naturally or built specifically for the purpose. On July 2, 2005, Jay-Z made an appearance at Live 8 with Linkin Park performing songs from Collision Course and the song "Public Service Announcement". Beach volleyball has evolved from the popular social games of volleyball played on many beaches around the world. Damon Dash had left Roc-a-Fella Records in late 2004 to pursue other ventures; the label will be retained as a Def Jam imprint. Sinjin Smith (now retired). On January 3, 2005, Jay-Z was appointed the new President and CEO of Def Jam Recordings. Mike Lambert. The lead single "Numb/Encore" debuted at #14 in the UK, and remained on the charts for nearly six months.

Adam Johnson. It debuted at #1 in the US Billboard Album Charts, #12 in Australia and #38 in the UK. Tim Hovland. It features remixes of songs from the rock band's two studio albums, Meteora and Hybrid Theory; and also several from the rapper's albums including his latest, The Black Album. Brent Frohoff. On November 30, 2004, Jay-Z released Collision Course, a collaboration with Linkin Park. Karch Kiraly (still active in his mid-forties). On June 18, 2004, Jay-Z appeared live with the legendary rock band Phish as part of their farewell tour at KeySpan Park in Brooklyn, performing two songs with the band while the audience sang along - a defining moment of Jay-Z's popularity.

Looser rules on serve return. Blige, T.I., Busta Rhymes, and fellow members of the ROC accompanying Jay-Z. Stricter rules around double-contacts during hand setting. Diddy, Mary J. The disallowance of the dink play where a player uses their finger tips to redirect the ball into the opponent's court instead of a hard spike. The tour was then changed to "Jay-Z and Friends" and completed its run with artists such as P. The block always counts as the first contact. Kelly was booted off the tour in November 2004 after his unpredictable and unprofessional behavior.

The standards of double hits when using overhand finger passes is much stricter than in normal volleyball. This release was timed to coincide with the Best of Both Worlds Tour, which played half of its dates before R. Exceptions are receiving a hard smash or when attacking and the trajectory of the ball (both before and after the pass) is perpendicular to the passing player's shoulders. Kelly released a follow up to their Best of Both Worlds album in October 2004 entitled Unfinished Business (debuted #1), which includes 11 previously unreleased tracks by the duo. Overhand finger passes are not allowed when receiving or attacking. Jay-Z and R. The court is 8 by 8 meter, not 9 by 9 as in indoor volleyball. The concert was viewed the culmination of one of the greatest rap careers of all time and was the first all rap concert that Madison Square Garden allowed in years.

and Tupac Shakur. Kelly with special appearances by Voletta Wallace and Afeni Shakur, the mothers of Notorious B.I.G. Blige, Beyonce, Twista, Ghostface Killah, Foxy Brown, Pharrell and R. Other performers included The Roots, Missy Elliott, Memphis Bleek, Beanie Siegel, Freeway, Mary J.

This concert was his "retirement party." All proceeds went to charity.
On November 25, 2003, Jay-Z held a legendary concert at Madison Square Garden, which would later be the focus of his film Fade to Black. And for those still displeased with the gimmickry, there were plenty of fabulous all-new creations on remix albums like 9th Wonder’s The Black Remixes, Kevin Brown’s The Brown Album and Kardinal Offishall and Hugh "MC Son" Ryan’s The Black Jays Album. As a result, many copies were destroyed and an original is now a rare find.

DJ Danger Mouse was sent a cease and desist order from EMI, The Beatles' record company, due to illegal sampling. The most controversial of the ensuing remixes was by DJ Danger Mouse, entitled "The Grey Album." It combined the a capella version with instrumental samples of The Beatles' White Album. In 2004, an a capella special edition of The Black Album (which sported a red CD cover) was released with the intention of allowing others to create remixes. The Black Album was an autobiographic album which took Jay-Z "from Marcy to Madison Square.".

The Black Album featured many respected producers including Rick Rubin and Kanye West who has now distinguished himself as a popular (although sometimes criticized) rapper in his own right. The album featured the Top 10 singles "Change Clothes" and "Dirt Off Your Shoulder," one of a number of Jay-Z singles produced by Timbaland. In 2003, Jay-Z toured with 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes and Sean Paul while finishing work on what was announced as his final album, The Black Album (debuted #1). The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse was later reissued in a single-disc version, The Blueprint 2.1, which retained half of the tracks from the double-album.

Jay-Z's next solo album was 2002's The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse (debuted #1), a sprawling double-album which included the Top 10 single "'03 Bonnie & Clyde," a duet with girlfriend, Beyoncé Knowles of Destiny's Child. Kelly, The Best of Both Worlds (debuted #1), in 2002. Two side projects followed The Blueprint: a late 2001 MTV Unplugged album called Jay-Z: Unplugged (debuted #6) (featuring The Roots as Jay-Z's backing band), and a collaborative album with R. The feud between Jay-Z and Nas escalated, with Jay-Z even challenging Nas to a one-time $1,000,000 MC battle that never took place, but the two MCs ended their rivalry peacefully in 2005 in Jay-Z's "I Declare War" concert, in which they both performed hit songs from their respective careers.

Stillmatic was seen as another classic album, recieving the coveted 5 mic rating from The Source, and the pair's resulting rivalry became one of the most talked-about subjects in the hip hop community. The latter responded to Jay-Z with both an underground single entitled "Stillmatic" and a track, "Ether," on his 2001 LP "Stillmatic". Eminem was the only guest artist on the album, producing and rapping on the track "Renegade." The Blueprint also includes "Izzo (HOVA)," a top ten hit, and "Takeover," a song which puts on blast rivals Prodigy of Mobb Deep and Nas. Although it never surpassed Reasonable Doubt's status in the hip hop community, The Blueprint contained a balanced blend of soulful samples that had both street credibility and mainstream appeal, recieving recognition from both audiences.

Released on September 11, 2001, the album managed to debut at #1, selling more than 450,000 albums in its first week despite being overshadowed by the September 11 attacks. 2001's The Blueprint (debuted #1) is considered by many to be one of hip hop's classic albums. Kelly, Kanye West, The Neptunes and Snoop Dogg. His next album, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (debuted #1), was originally intended as a collaboration album with many guests from Roc-a-Fella's roster, including Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek and Amil, as well as Scarface, Just Blaze, R.

Vol. Dre, Mariah Carey and Jadakiss) and "Money Ain't a Thang" (with Jermaine Dupri). It included several huge singles, including "Can I Get A..." (featuring Ja Rule and Roc-a-Fella artist Amil), "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)," "Nigga What, Nigga Who (Originators '99)" (featuring Big Jaz and Amil), "It's Alright", Produced by Mahogany (Dr. Hard Knock Life debuted at #1 on the Billboard Charts and stayed there for five weeks on its way to selling over 5 million records.

After several unsuccessful attempts to launch a career--first with Jaz-O, and then as part of a group called Original Flavor--Jay-Z co-founded Roc-a-Fella Records with partners Damon Dash and Kareem “Biggs” Burke. It was said that his involvement in dealing drugs ended after he was shot at three times (he was not hit) in a dispute with another dealer, after which he became more serious about music as a profession. He dropped out, but is still remembered there for his rhyming. He briefly attended high school in Trenton, New Jersey.

The battle caught the eye of many record labels, as Jay-Z was able to hold his own against Zai. His career had a jump start when he battled a rapper by the name of Zai. Jay-Z can be heard on several of The Jaz's early recordings including The Originators and Hawaiian Sophie. He was known as "Jazzy" in his neighborhood, a nickname which eventually became his stage name, "Jay-Z." The name Jay-Z is also a homage to his musical partner Jaz-O (a.k.a., the Jaz) as well as to the J-Z subway lines that go from Manhattan to Brooklyn.

As a young man, he claims to have been caught up in selling drugs on the streets of New York in the Marcy Projects. Originally from the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, New York, Carter was abandoned by his father Adnis Reeves when he was twelve years old and he was consequently raised by his mother Gloria. . As of 2005, he is estimated to be worth around $320 million ^[1].

Jay-Z was later appointed the president and CEO of Def Jam Recordings, after Roc-a-Fella was sold to the company. Known for his metaphoric lines, freestyling abilities, crafty word play, and blending of street and popular hip hop, Jay-Z became one of the most respected rappers in the music industry before announcing his retirement from recording in 2004. He was one of the most popular and successful rappers of the late 1990s and early 2000s and one of the founders of Roc-a-Fella Records, a successful hip-hop label which also launched the careers of Beanie Sigel, Kanye West, Memphis Bleek, Young Gunz, Freeway, and others. Shawn Corey Carter, also known as Jay-Z, Jigga, and Jay-Hova (a play on Jehovah later shortened to Hova, or Young Hov) (born December 4, 1969, Brooklyn, New York) is a rap/hip hop performer and record label executive.

ROC. God MC. Young Hov'. Shawn Carter.

S Dot. Carter. S. President Carter.

Jigga Man. Jigga. Jazzy. Jay.

Iceberg Slim. Hovito. Hov. H.O.V.A.

2005: Moment Of Clarity [Single] [Remix] By Dave Jonsen. Carter. 2004: The Remix As S. 2004: The Black Album (Pete Rock Remix) blended by Quo.

2004: Black Is Back By 9th Wonder. 2004: The Silver Album Rjd2 Mash-up Remix By Bazooka Joe. 2004: The White Album By Kno of Cunninlynguists. 2004: The Grey Album By DJ Danger Mouse.

2004: The Brown Album By Kev Brown. 2004: Collision Course (with Linkin Park) #1 US ( Platinum), #15 UK. Kelly) #1 US, #61 UK (Gold). 2004: Unfinished Business (with R.

2003: The Black Album #1 US (3x Platinum), #34 UK. 2002: The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse (halved and reissued as The Blueprint 2.1 in 2003) #1 US (3x Platinum), #23 UK (The Blueprint 2); #17 US (The Blueprint 2.1) (Gold). Kelly) #1 US (Platinum), #37 UK. 2002: The Best of Both Worlds (with R.

2004: "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" #5 US. Pharrell Williams) #10 US, #32 UK. 2003: "Change Clothes" (feat. Jay-Z) #5 US, #6 UK.

2003: "Frontin'" (Pharrell Williams feat. Jay-Z) #33 US, #5 UK. 2003: "Beware of the Boys (Mundian to Bach Ke)" (Panjabi MC feat. Jay-Z) #1 US, #1 UK.

2003: "Crazy in Love" (Beyoncé Knowles feat. Pharrell Williams) #8 US, #17 UK. 2003: "Excuse Me Miss" (feat. Beyoncé Knowles) #1 US, #2 UK.

2002: "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" (feat. 2001: "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" #8 US, #21 UK. Jay-Z) #6 US, #23 UK. Kelly feat.

2001: "Fiesta" (R. Pharrell Williams) #11 US. 2000: "I Just Wanna Luv U (Give It 2 Me) (feat. UGK) #1 US, #3 UK.

2000: "Big Pimpin'" (feat. Jay-Z) #1 US, #5 UK. 1999: "Heartbreaker" (Mariah Carey feat. 1998: "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" #11 US, #2 UK.

Jay-Z) #7 US, #9 UK. 1997: "I'll Be" (Foxy Brown feat.