Jay-Z will release a new album July 4.
If you are an owner of a Samsung Galaxy S III, Galaxy S4 or Galaxy Note II smartphone and are eagerly anticipating Jay-Z’s upcoming Magna Carta Holy Grail, you’re in luck.
The New York Times reports that the Grammy-winning rapper has signed a deal with Samsung to give away one million free copies of the album to subscribers of the cellphone company three days before its official release date. The album will be available to Samsung users Thursday, July 4 through a special customized mobile app from the Google Play Store. While the album will not be accessible until 12:01 a.m. on Independence Day, the app can be downloaded on Monday, June 24, according to the album’s website. Those that receive the free downloadable album will not be able to share it until the album is officially released.
Jay-Z’s deal with Samsung was alluded to in a three-minute commercial that aired during halftime of the NBA finals Sunday night. The commercial provides a glimpse into the making of the rapper’s 12th album and makes a reference to the promotion towards the end with the phrase “The Next Big Thing is Here” and a link to the album’s website.
In the commercial the hip-hop star describes his new release saying, “Pretty much what the album is about is this duality, how do you navigate your way through this whole thing, through success, through failures, through all this, and remain yourself.”
As indicated by Wired magazine, Jay-Z also talks about new ways of promoting music in the age of the Internet.
“We don’t have any rules, everyone is trying to figure it out,” he said in the television advertisement. “That’s why the internet is like the Wild West, the Wild Wild West. We need to write the new rules. The idea is to really finish the album and drop it. Giving it to the world at one time and then letting them share it, and it goes out.”
According to The Wall Street Journal, the promotion with Samsung will not only benefit fans of the singer. Jay-Z will reportedly be paid $5 for each album given away, providing him with $5 million in sales even before the album is released to the public. Moreover, the deal will give Samsung a step up as a competitor against Apple’s newly launched iTunes Radio, an online radio service that offers users access to certain tracks before they’re available in other places.
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