Rape allegation against Jay-Z won’t impact NFL’s relationship with music mogul, AP sources say

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IRVING, Texas (AP) — A rape allegation against rapper Jay-Z, whose company Roc Nation has produced some of the NFL’s entertainment presentations including the Super Bowl halftime show, won’t impact the league’s relationship with the music mogul, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

“With the ongoing legal process, there’s no change to the relationship with Roc Nation and that includes the Super Bowl,” one of the people told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity because it’s a legal matter.

A woman who previously sued Sean “Diddy” Combs, alleging she was raped at an awards show after-party in 2000 when she was 13 years old, amended the lawsuit Sunday to include a new allegation that Jay-Z was also at the party and participated in the sexual assault.

Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, said the rape allegation made against him is part of an extortion attempt. The 24-time Grammy Award winner called the allegations “idiotic” and “heinous in nature” in a statement released by Roc Nation, one of his companies.

The NFL teamed up with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation in 2019 for events and social activism. The league and the entertainment company extended their partnership a few months ago.

Kendrick Lamar will perform the Super Bowl halftime show at The Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Feb. 9. Roc Nation and Emmy-winning producer Jesse Collins will serve as co-executive producers of the halftime show.