Who is Beanie Sigel and what did he do? Rapper Oschino accuses Jay-Z of betraying the artist during his murder trial 

On June 5, rapper Oschino, who is a former associate of Jay-Z, appeared on the Say Cheese podcast and shared his grievances against the Roc Foundation founder. Oschino claimed that Jay-Z turned his back on rapper Beanie Sigel (who was signed to his label) during the latter’s 2004 attempted murder trial.

“I came to court for Beanie when he allegedly shot somebody. JAY-Z got on the stand and they said, ‘Are you gonna be responsible for him if we let him go?’ JAY-Z said, ‘No.’ I was there. This ain’t hearsay; this was me in the courtroom,” Oschino recalled.

He went on to say how, at the time, he thought to himself why Jay-Z appeared in court at all if all he had to say was “no.”

“If I got a homie and all I gotta say is, ‘I’m responsible for him for him to get out,’ I’m saying it every time […] The judge was trying to give him an out. He said, ‘No,’” the Hood I Know rapper added.

Oschino explained how nobody “flinched” or said anything to the billionaire for his testimony and pretended like it was “normal.” He mentioned that he might be “too street in my thinking,” and perhaps The Blueprint rapper was right in his decision, but all he realized was that they both were “different.”

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Beanie Sigel was signed by Jay-Z’s music label Roc-A-Fella

Born Dwight Equan Grant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in March 1974, Beanie Sigel later acquired his stage name when he began his hip-hop career in the 1990s. He is best known as the associate of Jay-Z and for being the flagship artist of the former’s label, Roc-A-Fella, which he signed in 1998.

In July 2003, Beanie Sigel was arrested by the Philadelphia police after reportedly shooting six rounds from his automatic 9mm handgun at a man inside a bar, injuring him in the foot and the stomach.

He was charged with several felony counts, including attempted murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, and possession of a firearm. The following year, he was sent to trial. However, the first one ended in a mistrial after the jury reached a deadlock even after five days of deliberating.

Later, during the second trial in 2005, the new jury gave him a not-guilty verdict. As per Hip Hop DX, the former CEO and President of Def Jam appeared at the first trial. Notably, that same year, Beanie Sigel was convicted of 2002 federal weapons charges and sentenced to a year in federal prison.

In 2021, during an interview with the Drink Champs, the Feel It In The Air hitmaker reminisced about the trial and how Jay-Z’s testimony caused a rift in their relationship.

“I’ve never been crushed like that ever in my life. ‘Cause I’m like, ‘Damn, this is my man.’ That f*cked me up. That took away a lot of sh*t that I thought we had. Like, that’s big bro.”

However, he acknowledged that Jay-Z may have had his reasons and thought he was “unpredictable” and “bugging.” Sigel even confessed that, looking back, he realized that back then he was “out of pocket” and “unpredictable.”

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Beanie Sigel has released six studio albums

After signing with Jay-Z’s label, Beanie Sigel released his debut album, The Truth, in 2000, which charted at number 5 on the Billboard 200 list.

Later, he also unveiled the albums The Reason (2001), The B. Coming (2005), and The Solution (2007) under the label. His fifth and sixth albums, The Broad Street Bully (2009) and This Time (2012) were released independently after he left Roc-A-Fella.

Besides his solo career, Sigel was also part of the Grammy-nominated Philadelphia hip-hop collective named State Property and even released an eponymous film in 2002 with his bandmates, including Oschino, Peedi Crakk, Young Gunz, and Omillio Sparks.

In November 2021, Kanye West credited Beanie for giving his brand’s name "Yeezy,” which eventually became his trademark nickname.