Jay-Z’s ‘Open Letter’ dismissed by the White House, but did it go too far?

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Jay-Z could be rap music’s biggest power broker, but his latest song “Open Letter,” directed at critics of his recent trip to Cuba, has some people interpreting his relationship with the White House as against protocol.

After critics questioned the validity of his fifth wedding anniversary vacation with wife Beyoncé to Havana, the 43-year-old rapper furthered the debate on Thursday with a provocative track suggesting he received special privileges from the government.

Jay-Z talked about turning “Havana to Atlanta,” described himself as a criminal-turned-millionaire with “White House clearance,” and rapped: “hear the freedom in my speech … Obama said, ‘chill you gonna get me impeached. You don’t need this sh*t anyway, chill with me on the beach.’”

Is it just ‘a song’?

The lyrics made it all the way to Washington later that day when they were read to White House Press Secretary Jay Carney during the daily press briefing, prompting Carney to offer the sarcastic retort: “It’s a song.”

True. But rapper Phonte of the hip-hop group Foreign Exchange feels Jay-Z pushed the envelope too far.

“Anyone who has a relationship with the president of any kind, I think you owe it to the president to be a lot more mindful of that relationship,” he explains to theGrio. “Regardless of how superficial the relationship may be, or regardless of how deep it may be, you just don’t want to do anything to mess that up. Particularly when you’re talking about the first black president, you don’t want to do anything that’s going to draw any negative light to him.”

Phonte previously tweeted his thoughts about the song, writing, “I’m all for black opulence done tastefully, but the Cuba trip and #OpenLetter feels like that Frank Lucas/fur coat moment.”

He says Jay-Z misjudged his place.

“The “Open Letter” just in that context, was like, if you do have a relationship with the president, I seriously doubt it’s going to be the same after this song,” Phonte adds.

Are Jay-Z and Obama really friends?

Already the rapport between Jay-Z and Obama has been a hot topic of discussion among reporters and members the public, who muse about their “high-profile” friendship, questioning the incorporation of hip-hop into national dialogue, and tracking their developing association.

For hip-hop fans, Jay-Z’s political connection seemed a sign of positive recognition and influence from a musical platform often perceived to be too rough for America’s taste.

“Obviously, Jay-Z’s background is an important part of his musical identity and his public persona that he grew up in the projects, shot his brother, and was a drug dealer, and he’s very upfront about that,” remarks David Graham, Editor of The Atlantic Politics Channel. “There’s still a lingering discomfort with hip-hop in some parts of America and that colors their reaction. Nobody raised an eyebrow when Jimmy Carter hung out with Willie Nelson, but Willie Nelson is a prodigious pot smoker. So, I think there’s a lingering double standard.”

As Phonte indicates, a line can be crossed no matter who’s involved, and in this case, Jay-Z tipped it. He compares the rapper’s statements in “Open Letter” to the 2008 scandal between Obama and former pastor Jeremiah Wright, as well as the character of Frank Lucas in American Gangster, who blew his stature when he got too comfortable.