Following a sexual assault allegation against Jay-Z, the internet’s attention has flipped to his relationship with Beyoncé Knowles.
An anonymous accuser alleged in a civil lawsuit filed this weekend that she was assaulted by Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs at a house party in 2000, following the Video Music Awards (VMAs). The accuser was 13 years old at the time.
Diddy currently faces dozens of lawsuits in the wake of his arrest on sex trafficking charges.
Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, dismissed the allegations as “blackmail.”
In a statement, Jay-Z expressed concerns about how the allegations would affect his family. “My only heartbreak is for my family. My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people.”
Following the allegations, though, speculation focused on the origins of his relationship with singer-songwriter, Beyoncé Knowles.
The couple has been together for over two decades and they married in 2008.
But the murky timeline of their relationship, as well as the gap in age between the two, is raising eyebrows in the wake of the underage assault allegation.
In a thread on X, user @missfacto pointed out inconsistencies in the ages given by the couple when asked about the relationship’s origins.
In a 2007 interview with Charlie Rose, Jay-Z said he met Beyonce in 1997, which would have been when she was 16, and they started dating in 1999.
In this same interview, Jay-Z said he first noticed Beyoncé while she was recording Destiny’s Child’s debut album. At the time, Beyoncé was 15.
If Beyoncé was 16 at the time of the two meeting, Jay-Z would have been 28.
In an interview with Seventeen magazine, Beyoncé gave a different age, stating that she was 19 when the couple started dating. At the time, Jay-Z would have been 31.
In a 2013 interview with Oprah, Beyoncé claimed the couple were “friends” for a year-and-a-half before they started dating.
Users have also pointed to Jay-Z's alleged relationship with Aaliyah. While Jay-Z was rumored to be dating the singer in 1999, when she was 20 and he was 29, some fans claim the relationship started earlier.
The two popular musicians have had a very public and very tumultuous relationship. In 2014, Beyoncé’s sister, Solange Knowles, and Jay-Z were shown arguing in an elevator following a Met Gala afterparty.
The footage, from video surveillance footage, showed Solange hitting and kicking Jay-Z, as she appeared to be restrained by a security guard. At one point, Beyoncé stood between her husband and sister during the altercation.
After the incident, it was speculated that Solange was provoked following a run-in with Rachel Roy. The fashion designer was rumored to be having an affair with Jay-Z.
Shortly after the altercation, the couple made a statement to the Associated Press. The statement dismissed claims that Solange was intoxicated or erratic, and stated that they had “moved forward as a united family.”
In the years since the elevator incident, Beyoncé hinted at cheating rumors across her albums.
In her 2016 album Lemonade, Beyoncé's song “Sorry” references a woman known as “Becky with the good hair,” and two lovers “sneaking out the back door.” Fans speculated that this references Rachel Roy’s relationship with Jay-Z.
In an interview with the New York Times, Jay-Z reflected on the rumors, “The hardest thing is seeing pain on someone’s face that you caused, and then have to deal with yourself,” he said. “You have to survive. So you go into survival mode, and when you go into survival mode, what happens? You shut down all emotions.”
Since Lemonade, Beyoncé fans, known as the Beyhive, have regularly speculated on cracks within the relationship.
In her 2023 album Cowboy Carter, fans pointed to the songs “Jolene” and “Bodyguard” as highlighting further problems.
With news of Jay-Z’s assault allegations, speculation on the potential demise of the relationship has only heightened.
Eagle-eyed fans spotted an Instagram account linked to Tina Knowles, Beyoncé’s mother, liking posts related to the allegations against Jay-Z.
One X user, reacting to Tina Knowles’ alleged engagement with the posts, said “I want to be this messy.”
As news spread, fans rallied behind Beyoncé, calling on her to leave Jay-Z.
Others have speculated on how much Beyoncé knows regarding both this allegation and previous claims against Diddy, who is currently incarcerated awaiting trial.
Some have cited photos of Diddy, Beyoncé, and Jay-Z together at previous events, including the Billboard Music Awards.
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