Jay Z

When Jigga famously stated “I’m not a businessman, I’m a business, man,” fans and perhaps even Jay Z himself would not fully understand the truth in these words for years to come. With consideration to the release of Magna Carta... Holy Grail in 2013 with 1 million copies given away to Samsung Galaxy owners, it was arguably a bigger year for Jay’s entrepreneurial exploits than anything. His prominent involvement as a partner with NBA franchise the Brooklyn Nets led to the sale of his shares, in anticipation for the formation of a Jay Z-owned sports agency named Roc Nation Sports dealing in football, basketball and baseball. Headlines were also made by Jay Z’s collaborative collection with luxury retailer Barneys, which turned to brands including Balmain, En Noir and Stutterheim in creating a limited release that would see proceeds go directly to the Shawn Carter Foundation. However, this initiative was marred in controversy when Barneys was accused of racial profiling to which Jay Z issued a statement and subsequently elected to donate all proceeds to the Shawn Carter Foundation.