Amid the backlash, a few celebrities have spoken up in support of Jay’s NFL deal. Last week, Cardi B and Killer Mike voiced their support for Hov gaining at the seat at the table, expressing that they saw the move as an opportunity where he could possibly use his influence to create change from within the organization. 

TMZ briefly caught up with DJ Khaled, a close friend and frequent collaborator of Jay’s, in New York City on Sunday (August 18) to gauge his opinion on Hov’s dealings with the NFL. The super producer was quick to initially shoot down questions pertaining to the NFL, prefacing the interaction by telling the cameraman to speak to him with “love, positivity, and great energy” as his family was with him. The camera man asked if Jay has ever expressed an interest in buying the Miami Dolphins. 

“Nah, I haven’t talked to him about that, but shout out to Jay-Z and everything that he’s doing,” Khaled said. “He’s always showing love and always uplifting the people and always moving the culture forward. Shout out to Jigga. Shout out, you know what I’m saying, to everything he is doing.”

Freddie Gibbs also came to Hov’s defense — but his comments were considerably less diplomatic than Khaled’s. The rapper took to his Instagram Stories where he directly addressed the detractors giving Jay flak for collaborating with the NFL at the expense of Kaepernick. The Indiana native didn’t mince his thoughts on the outcry and dropped some barbed words. 

“I'm riding with Jay-Z, straight up. F*ck Colin Kaepernick. All y’all marched for Colin Kaepernick and he took a settlement and ain’t tell y’all what he got or nothing. You know what I’m saying?” Freddie said, referencing the agreement that Colin and professional football player Eric Reid reached with the league behind closed doors this past February.

“He settled. Let it go. Y’all hating on Jay-Z for trying to own something in the NFL. Man, y’all n**gas is some m*thaf*ckin’ crabs.”