Jay-Z’s Rumored Girlfriends in the 2000s Included Rosario Dawson & Aaliyah—See His Full Dating History

Beyoncé (2002-Present)

Jay-Z and Beyoncé reportedly met around 1999-2000 and started dating somewhere around 2001-2002. The two would go on to get married in 2008 in a private ceremony, and would not confirm their marriage until months later. They have three children together, daughter Blue Ivy Carter and twins Rumi and Sir.

Their marriage has gone through rocky times, including infidelity, which Jay-Z himself confirmed in an interview with The New York Times Magazine, “So even with women, you gonna shut down emotionally, so you can’t connect…. In my case, like, it’s deep,” he told the outlet. “And then all the things happen from there: infidelity. We were using our art almost like a therapy session.”

Both Beyoncé’s Lemonade and Jay-Z’s 4:44 are about his infidelity. The two later went on to release a joint album titled Everything is Love.

Rachel Roy (Rumored)

American fashion designer Rachel Roy has often been thought of as the number one candidate to be the woman Jay-Z had an affair with. Roy has a long history with Jay-Z’s business enterprise Roc-A-Wear, so the timing and opportunity would align. Roy also seemingly threw fire at the flames after the release of Beyoncé’s Lemonade—which referred to the woman Jay-Z had an affair with as “Becky with the good hair,” posting on Instagram.

Her post read: “Good hair don’t care, but we will take good lighting, for selfies, or self truths, always. Live in the light #nodramaqueens,” she wrote in a now-deleted post.

Blu Cantrell (2001)

The rapper briefly dated R&B and soul singer-songwriter Cantrell in 2001, though their relationship was brief and ended quite abruptly.

Rosario Dawson (Rumored)

Jay-Z and Dawson were reportedly dating for a little bit during the year 2000, though the two weren’t together for long.

Karrine Steffans (2000)

Karrine Steffans, known as “Superhead,” discussed having a short fling with Jay-Z in the year 2000. She is an author and actress, who wrote a best-selling book called Confessions of a Video Vixen in which she detailed her encounters with various celebrities.

Aaliyah (Rumored)

One of Jay-Z’s most controversial rumored relationships because of Aaliyah’s young age, the two were reportedly not together for long. The singer died in a plane crash in the Bahamas in August 2001.

Lil’ Kim (Rumored)

Jay-Z reportedly dated Lil’ Kim in the late 90s. The two have known each other for a long time, with Lil’ Kim telling Black Voices, “I love Jay-Z. We’ve been friends since 15 years old.”

Charli Baltimore (Late 90s)

There are reports that Jay-Z dated Charli Baltimore for over a year, but not much is known about their relationship.

Carmen Bryant (1997-1999)

Better known for her long-term relationship with Jay-Z, Bryant also made headlines for her supposed involvement in the rapper’s feud with another rapper—Nas. She went on to write a tell-all book about their relationship, titled It’s No Secret, which detailed their life together.