Colin Kaepernick is addressing his relationship with JAY-Z.
In connection with the release of his memoir, The Perilous Fight, Colin Kaepernick revisited his feelings about Jay-Z’s NFL partnership. The deal signed despite backlash over the league’s response to players kneeling against systemic racism.
On the MeidasTouch podcast, for instance, Kaepernick said the deal Jay-Z’s Roc Nation signed with the NFL in 2019 was evidently a move the league made to avoid continued criticism.
Appearing on Dateline NBC, he claimed Jay-Z name-dropped him at Yankee Stadium out of guilt over the situation.
“The backlash that [Jay-Z] received for partnering with the NFL and going counter to people’s interests in 2019 was a major problem for him. So much so that he’s still bringing it up in 2026,” he said, according to Billboard. “People are now realizing, ‘Why are you so comfortable stepping into these positions that are counter to the positions that people on the ground actually want?’ And to me, I view that as speaking to a guilty conscience and trying to reposition or reframe the conversation.
JAY-Z ONCE SUPPORTED KAEPERNICK
Prior to his 2019 partnership with the NFL, Jay-Z publicly backed Kaepernick’s movement. He even performing on Saturday Night Live in 2017 while wearing the quarterback’s jersey.
Speaking with Jemele Hill in Detroit at the National Black Footwear Forum, Kaepernick said he was “very surprised” that Jay-Z mentioned him in a freestyle at Yankee Stadium.
“I’m living rent-free there,” Kaepernick joked. “We are seven years post-him doing that deal. … While you’re doing the anniversary tour to celebrate your best work, that’s the thing that’s most top-of-mind for you. That’s pretty remarkable, how bothered he is by that.”
Jay rapped during the freestyle, “They run out of characters, had to bring back up Kap again / Buddy took a check, I ain’t even mad at him / But along with that check, you gotta sign a non-disparagement / I’m the one they can’t control, y’all better be glad it’s him.”