Jay-Z 'lost album on eve of label deal'

Jay-Z has admitted that he risked paying Def Jam Records $5 million (£3.3 million) when he agreed to buy the rights to his new album The Blueprint 3.

According to WENN, the 'Run This Town' hitmaker has revealed that he lost his iPod, which contained all of his new songs from his eleventh studio album, on the eve of a meeting with the label.

Jay-Z said: "The night before I went to the Def Jam office, I was on the plane. I was coming in from overseas and I lost my iPod.

"It has the whole album on it as it was. A kid could have downloaded this from the iPod, copied it onto a CD and put it everywhere the next day."

The 39-year-old rapper added: "So, on the way to the office the next day, I knew that potentially I could be buying nothing! I don't know if it was smart or just ballsy, or fate, I don't know. I just went in there, did it strong and walked out."