From The Vault: My Run in with Jay-Z's Panthere de Cartier

It was hour 8 or 9 of a 12 hour shoot day for Justin Timberlake’s Suit and Tie video, we were shooting at a famous old-Hollywood jazz club, and Justin and Jay were performing the song for camera on stage. My position was to wait in the wings to remove, then replace Justin’s Tom Ford tuxedo jacket between takes, flanked by my then-boss who never hesitated to remind me to stay out of the celebrities’ way.

There I stood in the dark, stage left- on and off with the jacket. I took a step backwards, accidentally onto someone’s foot, and quickly cradled their arm as I turned around to apologize… (as you would if this happened in the grocery store) and then I realized it was Jay-Z’s arm I was holding. And his Tom Ford-clad foot I had squished.

An extremely polite and cordial man, Jay naturally said something along the lines of

“No problem honey!” (*Legal Notice: not a direct quote please don’t sue me for libel if you’re reading, Jay-Z)

A few takes later, fatigued by the long hours and heat- I took a step backwards in the dark again- and again bumped into the King of Hip Hop. By now we were basically BFF’s so we laughed it off as I excused myself again for scuffing his patent leather tux shoe. This time he jokingly put up his dukes and said

“Two times! Two times! Watch out!”

and I was blinded by his massive Cartier Panther ring, covered in diamonds and the size of a golf ball. I replied

“It would hurt with that thing on your finger!”

To which Jay laughed and said

“Nah! That’s to distract ya! Then I get you with the left hook!”

“And it would work! I’m distracted now!”

I bantered back. So yes, I had a laugh with Jay-Z regarding his $180k Panthère de Cartier, much to by then-boss’ chagrin. A few months later, while backstage at SNL, we also had a moment as I snuck into the under-bleacher area in front of the tiny SNL stage to watch Justin and Jay-Z perform. I slipped into the stage door and found myself once again standing next to Jay-Z, and funnily enough also flanked by Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson. Jay was getting hyped for his entrance as Justin began, he turned to me and asked how he looked, and if I liked the “IGNANT” number of diamond chains he wore layered around his neck. Of course I did.