Nipsey Hussle and JAY-Z Team Up for ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’ Collaboration

Nipsey Hussle and JAY-Z are coming together on a surprise collaboration.

Their song, entitled “What It Feels Like,” appears on the upcoming soundtrack for Judas and the Black Messiah, according to HipHop-N-More. It’s unclear when the song was recorded but it marks their first collaboration.

JAY-Z has shared his support for the late Crenshaw icon in the past. In 2013, he famously purchased 100 signed copies of Nipsey’s mixtape Crenshaw for $100 each. “I ain’t get the chance to holler at JAY, but through his people he made it clear that he respected everything, so I was just humbled by it,” Nip told MTV News that year.

Following his death in 2019, JAY-Z shouted out Nipsey on Beyoncé’s “MOOD 4 EVA”: “The marathon will be televised for N.I.P. / ‘Cause true kings don’t die, we multiply, peace.”

In addition to JAY-Z and Nipsey, the star-studded tracklist for Judas and the Black Messiah features other hip-hop heavyweights including Nas, Rakim, A$AP Rocky, Lil Durk, Black Thought, Polo G, G Herbo, and Hit-Boy, who executive produced the project. Also included is H.E.R.’s previously-released single “Fight for You,” which was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

The soundtrack arrives Friday (Feb. 12), the same day Judas and the Black Messiah will be released in theaters and on HBO Max. The Shaka King-directed film, based on the story of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, stars Daniel Kaluuya and LaKeith Stanfield.