The XX Factor

Just kidding, everyone. In a New York Daily News interview, Jay-Z squashed rumors that he would never again use the word “bitch” in his song lyrics. Yesterday the British music site NME released a poem, purportedly Jay’s, in which the rapper swore following the birth of his daughter Blue Ivy that “the degradation is over.” But no worries, it’s not. “That story and poem are fake,” said Jay-Z, who will celebrate the re-launching of his 40/40 club in Manhattan tonight (open to the peons, if you’re wondering, but you and your ho can reserve a private room for a grand).

The A.V. Club points out that the initial source for the fake verse, an entertainment mag called Rolling Out, has vanished from the blogosphere, leaving in its wake this trail of database errors. Jay-Z’s terse dismissal of the whole affair—“That poem and story are fake”—also seems designed to invite our collective amnesia. So basically, rap music is not about to lead society at large into a glorious new world in which women don’t get compared to dogs.

On the other hand, it does take some chutzpah to call the media’s bluff and actually pledge your continued allegiance to a demeaning swear word.