Jay-Z records album inspired by new film

Rapper Jay-Z has returned from retirement for the second time to release a new album based on the forthcoming Ridley Scott movie American Gangster.

The 37-year-old had said that 2003's The Black Album would be his last, but decided to write new material after he was inspired by the film.

The crime drama, which stars Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, tells the story of '70s heroin dealer Frank Lucas.

Jay-Z revealed that he "immediately clicked" with the movie, saying: "Like Scarface, or any one of those films, you take the good out of it, and you can see it as an inspiring film. It was like I was watching [it] and putting it on pause, and giving a back story to the story."

He told the New York Times that he has completed nine songs for the album, which he described as a return to his street roots. "Watching that film, it brought back all these memories,” he said. “It took me back to those emotions.”