Oprah Presents Master Class with JayZ--Recap and Commentary

One of the first few shows debuted on Oprah Winfrey Network, OWN, was a segment of Master Class. Master Class is a series that explores a variety of successful people talking about their life journeys, careers and what they believe contributed to their levels of excellence and success.

Master Class is apparently conducted with someone off camera asking questions and the person being interviewed that week responds to the questions. The viewers see and hear only the person being interviewed and have no sense of an interviewer's presence at all on Master Class.

JayZ's Appearance on Oprah Winfrey's Master Class

Just in case you have been living in a cave over the last 10 years or so, JayZ is a rather famous hip-hop, rap musician who, quite frankly, is more than a bit of a poet. He grew up in the Marcy Houses, an impoverished neighborhood in the Bronx, New York. Raised by his mother, JayZ describes in Master Class how his character and integrity formed when he was a youngster left to roam free by his mother who knew him and trusted him to return home when it was necessary.

JayZ spoke of having to run inside the house whenever men came through the neighborhood occasionally in the evening, shooting automatic weapons. He added that after 15 minutes or so, he and his friends and neighbors sensed it was safe and returned outdoors to resume their activities.

On Master Class on OWN, JayZ spoke of his internal thought process of believing he would be a millionaire before the age of 30, even though he had no plan or idea about how this event would occur. He seemed to always have hope and faith and did not speak of ever feeling "down" or as if he was destined for prison or to die in the streets as so many he had grown up with.

JayZ described writing down words at a young age, not realizing how good he was at poetry. Also, he mentioned he would go through stages where he was enamored by different words and word rhythms. Samples of his music were played throughout the show, Master Class.

Commentary on Master Class Featuring JayZ

Watching the JayZ episode of Master Class will whet your appetite for more episodes in the Master Class series. Future interviewees include Diane Sawyer, Sidney Poitier, and Condoleezza Rice.

Although this reviewer did not know much about JayZ before watching the first episode of Master Class, she was impressed with his honesty and sense of integrity as he told much about his life story. He seemed humble yet confident, sure of himself yet unsure and incredibly open in his responses.

It is impossible to watch this episode of Master Class without thinking about the impact JayZ's interview could have on young people-in their teens and early 20s. He serves as a wonderful example that people can be successful no matter what their childhood was like, where they lived, or how many parents they had. His story as told on Master Class is inspiring because it is so encouraging and comes from JayZ, who is admired by many for his music talent.

The most profound part of his Master Class interview was when JayZ talked about how he "always" believed in himself and knew that he should not be anything other than who he was. JayZ's story is a powerful one and should be required viewing by everyone in 8^th grade and again yearly for the next 5 or so years.

Note to JayZ, you have at least one more fan after sharing your story on Oprah's Master Class.

Source

Oprah Winfrey Presents Master Class with JayZ, January 1, 2011. OWN television show.