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A lot more people than are willing to admit it now thought that Jay-Z was crazy when he purchased TIDAL back in 2015. Getting in on the streaming wave early paid off for the Brooklyn rapper turned mogul, who has finalized the sale of the streamer to Jack Dorsey of Square fame for $350 million.
TMZ reports that the deal was closed on Friday, May 30. Dorsey announced in March that he intended to give Jay-Z a bag for TIDAL, at least partially.
Jay-Z launched Tidal back in 2015—he purchased the Spotify rival for a healthy $56 million—with a celeb-filled announcement that included “partners” like Kanye West, Rihanna and Madonna. No word on whether or not they’ll be getting a check courtesy of the sale, if they’re still around. However, the deal reportedly includes Square getting an 80% ownership stake in Tidal along with the licensing deals with major record labels.
Word is that, besides Jay-Z himself who had been spotted kicking it with Jack Dorsey in the Hamptons, Roc Nation CEO Desiree Perez also helped broker the deal. This isn’t the first time Jay-Z got a healthy return on his investment. Back in 2017 he reportedly sold a one-third of the company to Sprint for an undisclosed amount.
Expect Jay-Z’s name to be at least a little bit higher on the next schedule Forbes list. He’s also keeping busy with his other gig. Jay-Z’s verse on “Sorry Not Sorry” with Nas off the DJ Khaled’s latest compilation album, Khaled Khaled, has been getting props across the Internets.
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