Jay-Z Praises President Obama, Says Opposing Gay Marriage is Discrimination

Jay-Z says he strongly agrees with President Obama's support of same-sex marriage, equating opposition to gay equality with discrimination.

In a recent interview with CNN, the rapper said he believed supporting gay marriage, as Obama did last week, was "the right thing to do."

“I’ve always thought it as something that was still holding the country back,” Jay-Z said, referencing the fact that it's not recognized nationwide.

“What people do in their own homes is their business and you love whoever you love. That’s their business. It's no different than discriminating against blacks."

"It’s discrimination plain and simple.”

Jay-Z on Gay Marriage

In Philadelphia to announce a two-day music festival in early September, Jay-Z sat down with CNN's Poppy Harlow to chat about broader issues.

Asked if he felt Obama, dubbed the first gay president by Newsweek, could be hurt politically by this, the music mogul and new father shrugged.

"It's really not about votes," he said. "It's about people."

Jay also said he sees America's moribund economy as an opportunity: "You know, for a long time, you know, we had it pretty good in America," he said.

"We were floating on this high. Well, we were hiding some of the troubles that we were going through. So, I just see this as a test of our character."

"I think we'll get there and we test the resolve of Americans. Just to remind us that we have that fight. We haven't had such a fight since the Great Depression."