Jay-Z collaborated with his wife Beyonce for her hit single "Drunk in Love" from her fifth self-titled studio album. However, the couple's hit song that has soared through the Billboard 200 charts was denied to be played in its original form by a U.K. radio station, Huffington Post reports.
According to the British station, called Bang Radio, the song contained offensive lyrics, particularly in Jay-Z's verse. In the song, Jay-Z raps, "I am Ike Turner...Baby know I don't play. Now eat the cake Anna Mae. Said eat the cake, Anna Mae."
An article on Mirror reports that this particular line is in reference to the relationship between the 80's pop star Tina Turner and her former husband, Ike Turner. A scene from the 1993 biopic film about the singer "What's Love Got To Do With It", shows Tina, who was born Anna Mae Bullock, eating dinner with Ike.
In the film, Ike forces her to eat a piece of cake but when she refuses, he shoves it to her face and beats her. The scene highlights the domestic abuse and humiliation that the singer went through during her marriage with Ike.
Due to the song's direct reference to this scene in the film, Bang Media CEO Jennifer Ogole has decided to edit out the controversial line from Jay-Z's verse.
Here is a portion of Ogole's statement posted on Vibe Vixen:
"The lyrics derive from the film 'What's Love Got To Do With It' - a biopic of Tina Turner and her abusive relationship with her husband Ike Turner. The lyrics controversially imitate a scene of severe domestic violence within the film, displaying promotion of domestic violence against women; in this light Bang refuse to play the song lyrics from henceforth on our station. We believe in the unity of women and music and in no way condone violence, domestic or otherwise, especially not through the power of music...therefore the decision has been made to wipe the stated lyrics from the song."
Click here to watch the explicit version of "Drunk In Love" video on Youtube.