Jayz wanted his legacy linked to Nas, don’t get it twisted.
I think moreso Jay wanted to solidify himself as bigger than Pac and Big. He saw opportunity to seal that legacy by going after the "threats" and once again Nas found himself in the "alleged ring leader position" as he was Jay's #1 target. Jay didn't expect "Ether" though and ended up being humbled instead of taking the victory lap in what he thought was an easy win. All that was left for Jay was making people miss him like they miss Pac and Big. To accomplish that, he made
The Black Album as his swan song and told us why he should be #1 on everyone's list. I felt like Jay was wasting his breath, because by that point Nas simply displayed why he should be #1 when he told a story backwards, made "One Mic", "What Goes Around" and "2nd Childhood", that crazy "Stillmatic Intro" and then bodied Jay with "Ether". Then came back with "Made You Look" and more brilliance on
God's Son and
Lost Tapes. This isn't even counting pre 2001.