# Do you know who Beyoncé is married to? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 18, 2013, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671 "2013-05-18T12:11:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/161 "2013-05-20T17:56:04Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > To be fair, that kind of depends on whether or not they live in the US…I doubt Beyonce is as ubiquitous in semi-rural Britain or rural Ireland or, really, any non-urban, non-American region as she is in the US. She’s enormous in rural and urban Ireland. Huge star, married to Jay Z of course. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/162 "2013-05-20T19:18:30Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Jay-Z was my thought, but I have zero idea who he is other than a music person. A rapper, maybe? > > I still think it is odd she dropped “Knowles” from her name and goes by one name. It’s not so odd. Think about it- Prince sold a LOT more albums after he dropped the “Charles” from his name. 😃 Yeah, I knew that Jay-Z is married to Beyoncé Knowles. I’m with **Biggirl** on this one. Their names are out there enough on a week to week basis that one requires a very specific kind of media exposure NOT to have heard both of their names. I’m not sayin’ I don’t believe those who don’t know who this couple is. I’m just sayin’ that it’s fairly common knowledge. I’m just sayin’. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/163 "2013-05-20T19:41:24Z")
Wait. his first name is Jay, like Jay North, the wonderful actor who brought Dennis the Menace to life on the small screen, okay, that’s legitimate; but his last name is . . . Z? Does the “Z” stand for something, or is he just trying to piss me off? And their baby is named Blue Ivy Z? WTF? Shoulda named her _Ellen_ Ivy. Then her name could be on a really small charm bracelet . . . L N I V Z. Maybe if they have a boy next, they can name _him_ WTF. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/164 "2013-05-20T19:48:53Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Jay Z, the asshole who inflicted “Hard Knock Life” on us when I was still in college. > [@Gyrate](#): > > Yeah, this. “Hard Knock Life” sucked schweddy balls. I also know their daughter’s name. Again, wait. I _know_ this one. “Hard Knock Life” was a song in _Annie_, sung by the orphanage kids. Did it get covered by a rapper? Good heavens, _why_? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/165 "2013-05-20T20:02:14Z")
By the way, what does ONTD stand for? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/166 "2013-05-20T20:10:47Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > By the way, what does ONTD stand for? [Oh, No, They Didn’t!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh_No_They_Didn't) ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/167 "2013-05-20T20:23:23Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > This is old timey thinking. Segmentation and obliviousness are the new norms. you might have been half joking, but I agree with your statement that pop culture is culture is a creaky late 20th century concept. It might have been true when Andy Warhol was still relevant, but now we can each construct our own sub-subculture, blissfully unaware of anything we find tedious. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/168 "2013-05-20T20:45:30Z")
I didn’t know she was married, and I am a fan of her music, in the sense of being reduced to a little puddle of drool when she appears on the screen. I have heard of Jay-Z, but I don’t think I could name any song he performed. (Or whatever the correct term is for rap.) Male, 57, FWIW, but I don’t watch a lot of TV. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/169 "2013-05-20T21:10:02Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > Answer/reply to this without reading the other replies. > Do you know who Beyoncé Knowles husband is? > > I’m asking this because I didn’t…and my girlfriend found this very surprising and weird that I didn’t know. She asked me where I’ve been the last few years. > I wasn’t aware that knowing Beyoncé’s husband was such common knowledge apparently. > > Anyway, after you’ve replied, the answer is: > > Jay-Z. > > A few other questions: > Do you think this is common knowledge (I.E. most people would/should know this)? > Do you think it’s weird or surprising to find someone who didn’t know this? > > I just don’t follow celebrities lives very much, I guess. I did not know whom Beyonce was married to before reading your spoiler. Nor can it be truly said that I know who she is married to now, as I do not know who Jay Z is. A rapper or singer, I assume, given the silly name. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/170 "2013-05-20T21:20:22Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Wait. his first name is Jay, like Jay North, the wonderful actor who brought Dennis the Menace to life on the small screen, okay, that’s legitimate; but his last name is . . . Z? > > Does the “Z” stand for something, or is he just trying to piss me off? Are you for real? Is this a whoosh or do you honestly not understand the concept of a stage name? And if it is a whoosh, I don’t think you got the desired response. Your reply just comes across as crazy old man rantings. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/171 "2013-05-20T21:30:46Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Are you for real? Is this a whoosh or do you honestly not understand the concept of a stage name? > > And if it is a whoosh, I don’t think you got the desired response. Your reply just comes across as crazy old man rantings. I’m pretty sure **kayaker** was just mocking the stage name as stupid. Hence the remark about the Z pissing him off. I feel the same way about Will.I.Am (whom, admittedly, I only know from one of the X-Men movies. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/172 "2013-05-20T21:39:56Z")
I know who Beyonce is, though I don’t follow her music. I’m sure I’ve heard it. Seen her on TV and commercials and that movie. I’ve heard the name Jay-Z before, and am aware he’s some kind of musician. Couldn’t name a song or know lyrics or anything. I’m sure I’ve heard they’re married, but I filed that under “things I don’t have to remember because I don’t care”. So you ask me the question, I don’t know until I read the thread and then realize I think I heard that before. > [@Yookeroo](#): > > People seem to take such a perverse pride in their ignorance sometimes. There really isn’t some sort of moral superiority because you don’t know pop culture. Not that I think anyone should take an interest, but you’d have to almost actively avoid news on Beyoncé or Prince to be that ignorant of pop culture. > [@jayjay](#): > > This. This, this, this, this, this. Pop culture IS culture. It’s contemporary culture. It’s the sea that you swim through if you live in the USA. It’s not mandatory and it’s not some shocking sin if you mostly tune it out, but avoiding it isn’t really some kind of virtue. You’re not living a purified life if you don’t own a TV or radio or don’t read magazines or don’t listen to people talk about what happened last night on the Office. There aren’t any brownie points to be distributed. Meh, you’re the ones lecturing us about how better you are for knowing who’s doing who. Do I see tabloids on the news stands? Sure. Do I hear more than I care to about Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, the Kardashians, Honey Boo Boo? Sure, but I tend to tune most of it out, or not bother committing it to memory. I don’t care what Beyonce’s kid’s name is. I don’t care if Jay-Z is the greatest hip-hop artist of all time or some 2 bit hack. I think Beyonce might be pregnant again, but it’s not something I’m tracking, it was on the news last night. I’m not claiming moral superiority, I’m just claiming that I don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/173 "2013-05-20T21:56:20Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Are you for real? Is this a whoosh or do you honestly not understand the concept of a stage name? > > And if it is a whoosh, I don’t think you got the desired response. Your reply just comes across as crazy old man rantings. To be fair, he’s not the first to question Jay Z’s stage name. The first I heard do that would be his former arch nemesis…the one who came thisclose to ending his whole career with just one dis track, the incomparable Nas. In hip hop, it is common to change your name to something that has some kind of meaning to you, or is clever or describes your personality or is kind of like the name that you already have. Jay Z seems kind of random, because it wasn’t really a clever pun on anything, it is nothing like the name Sean Carter and it doesn’t really say anything about a personality. Back when Jay was first coming up the ranks, an artist by the name of Jaz-O used to get a lot of respect. Jay looked up to him and Nas accused him of kind of stealing the name. “Sean Carter to Jay Z; damn, you on Jaz dick!” I know this crap because I love Nas, not Jay. Never been a fan of Jay, but respect his longevity and blah blah blah. > [@Irishman](#): > > Meh, you’re the ones lecturing us about how better you are for knowing who’s doing who. Do I see tabloids on the news stands? Sure. Do I hear more than I care to about Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, the Kardashians, Honey Boo Boo? Sure, but I tend to tune most of it out, or not bother committing it to memory. I don’t care what Beyonce’s kid’s name is. I don’t care if Jay-Z is the greatest hip-hop artist of all time or some 2 bit hack. I think Beyonce might be pregnant again, but it’s not something I’m tracking, it was on the news last night. > > I’m not claiming moral superiority, I’m just claiming that I don’t care. Just for clarity…I haven’t noticed anyone condemning anyone for not knowing that Beyonce was married to Jay Z. I didn’t know that myself. I knew that had a baby (yes, Blue Ivy, I know her name) but I didn’t realize they were married, or I knew it but it didn’t register maybe. No, I think people are just pointing out that not knowing is nothing to brag on or be proud of. Some people sound as if they think knowing pop culture and classic literature and physics is mutually exclusive. And then there are those who are saying they don’t even think their coworker have heard of friggin PRINCE!! Those are the things that people are posting in amazement about. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/174 "2013-05-20T22:03:44Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#): > > Sure. I don’t find this hard to believe. But for someone like Beyoncé or Prince to be completely off the radar, that would take some doing. But… > > …I missed this. If he’s in Panama, that’s a bit more plausible. I’m in Panama (and I know who Beyonce and Prince are), but my friends live in the US. They don’t own a television (I don’t think they’ve ever owned one.) I don’t know if they get their news from newspapers or the internet, but I’m sure that they don’t read the entertainment news. They don’t listen to pop music. I’m sure they hear it in passing in airports or stores, but they don’t know who the artists are. (Although I know who Beyonce is, offhand I couldn’t name a single one of her songs or albums either. I might recognize her songs if I heard them, but not who performed them.) They see an occasional movie, but none that Beyonce would be likely to appear in. They don’t watch the Superbowl or other sports. (Their major exposure to sports is when they stay at my house and I have a baseball game on. Their interest in it seems to be more as an anthropological phenomenon than anything else.:)) For recreation they go hiking or white-water rafting. Otherwise they prefer conversation to more passive entertainment like TV or movies. But most of their time is spent in doing scientific research, writing and reading journal articles, or teaching. They don’t “shun” popular culture, they simply have no interest in it. Whatever exposure they get to it in their daily lives is not absorbed because it’s of no importance to them. While they are somewhat on the extreme end, I think there are a fair number of my other colleagues who might not know who either Beyonce or Prince are (incredible as that seems to be to some people). > [@](#): > > But they would know that there was a Super Bowl and what it was about. They know pop music exists, and that there are various celebrities involved in it. They just don’t know their names. [QUOTE=Nzinga, Seated] And then there are those who are saying they don’t even think their coworker have heard of friggin PRINCE!! Those are the things that people are posting in amazement about. [/QUOTE] Your cultural world is not everyone’s world, even within the US. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/175 "2013-05-20T22:09:53Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Your cultural world is not everyone’s world, even within the US. Yes, I see that. But once you hit my Prince hot button, it is on and poppin’ with me, no matter where you’re from, jive turkey. ETA: I know I may catch a warning for the “jive turkey” but I did it for you, Prince! ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/176 "2013-05-20T22:29:22Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > In hip hop, it is common to change your name to something that has some kind of meaning to you, or is clever or describes your personality or is kind of like the name that you already have. Jay Z seems kind of random, because it wasn’t really a clever pun on anything, it is nothing like the name Sean Carter and it doesn’t really say anything about a personality. I have always wondered if the name was a pun on the J/Z subway line that connects lower Manhattan to Brooklyn and Queens. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/177 "2013-05-20T22:34:46Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Yes, I see that. But once you hit my Prince hot button, it is on and poppin’ with me, no matter where you’re from, jive turkey. > > ETA: I know I may catch a warning for the “jive turkey” but I did it for you, Prince! At the risk of sending you completely around the bend;), I have to say that I am aware of Prince mainly because of the incessant playing of “1999” in the run up to Y2K, and the whole “Artist formerly known as…” business. Maybe “Purple Rain.” That’s all I got.😛 My tastes run more to [Venezuelan ska,](http://www.desordenpublico.net/)[Finnish folk-punk](http://varttina.com/), Manu Chao, [Sundanese fusion](http://images.rakuten.com/PI/0/500/60430827.jpg), and[jit.](http://991.com/newGallery/The-Bhundu-Boys-True-Jit---Fully-517818.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/178 "2013-05-20T22:50:36Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > I have always wondered if the name was a pun on the J/Z subway line that connects lower Manhattan to Brooklyn and Queens. You could be his ghost writer. Send him that post, and if he uses it as an excuse for his name, you may start getting royalties! > [@Colibri](#): > > At the risk of sending you completely around the bend;), I have to say that I am aware of Prince mainly because of the incessant playing of “1999” in the run up to Y2K, and the whole “Artist formerly known as…” business. Maybe “Purple Rain.” That’s all I got.😛 > > My tastes run more to [Venezuelan ska,](http://www.desordenpublico.net/)[Finnish folk-punk](http://varttina.com/), Manu Chao, [Sundanese fusion](http://images.rakuten.com/PI/0/500/60430827.jpg), and[jit.](http://991.com/newGallery/The-Bhundu-Boys-True-Jit---Fully-517818.jpg) I have always prided myself on being very open minded about music. I was almost snobbish with it, delighting in the fact that I could love and appreciate all genres whilst my closed minded friends just couldn’t deal. I felt, well read, well traveled…I thought I had broad horizons… Then, I just googled Sudanese Jazz Fusion and tried to listen to more than 30 seconds of it and I feel like an uncouth, uncultured street urchin slob. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/179 "2013-05-20T23:24:12Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I’m in Panama (and I know who Beyonce and Prince are), but my friends live in the US. They don’t own a television (I don’t think they’ve ever owned one.) I don’t know if they get their news from newspapers or the internet, but I’m sure that they don’t read the entertainment news. Beyonce’s name was all over the news – not the entertainment news, but the “news news” – last month because of her trip to Cuba. The [New York Times](http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/k/beyonce_knowles/index.html) ran several stories about it. There was also a brief piece about how ubiquitous she is on NPR’s “[Morning Edition](http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/05/03/180635294/the-beyonce-experiment-how-far-can-she-go)” just a couple of weeks ago. If your friends keep up with current events as reported by respectable mainstream news sources in the US, they know Beyonce is a famous pop singer. They may not know her songs, they may not know what she looks like, they may think her name is pronounced “Bay Once” or “Fiancee”, but if they are totally unaware that such a person exists then they’re not actually very well-informed about recent US news. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671/180 "2013-05-20T23:26:16Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Then, I just googled Sudanese Jazz Fusion and tried to listen to more than 30 seconds of it and I feel like an uncouth, uncultured street urchin slob. What I linked to was [Su_n_danese fusion](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvAOiKAELiU), from Sunda province in western Java. That [Sudan Jazz Fusion](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUMCdr-6XgE) didn’t sound that different than regular jazz. (Was that the one?) For Sudanese music, I much prefer[Ali Hassan Kuban](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-972gJ7p3rU&list=PL65A47A0C482526D0) ([Walk Like A Nubian](http://www.allmusic.com/album/walk-like-a-nubian-mw0000060870)). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-who-beyonce-is-married-to/658671.md?page=10)