6) Names, Pseudonyms And Alter-Egos Are A Big Deal For Beyonce And Jay Z
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Beyonce And Jay Z: 10 Mind Blowing Music Facts

6. 6) Names, Pseudonyms And Alter-Egos Are A Big Deal For Beyonce And Jay Z
Jay Z's stage name (his real name is Shawn Corey Carter) has several layers of significance. As a child regularly waking up his siblings by playing a beat box he was nicknamed 'Jazzy'. However Jay Z is also a nod to early mentor Jay-O and also to the J/Z subway services which run through the Brooklyn area where Shawn Carter grew up in a housing project – an experience which features heavily in his lyrics. Beyonce too plays with pseudonyms, revealing even before the release of her 2008 album 'I Am… Sasha Fierce' that she uses the alter ego Sasha Fierce while on stage as a way to shake off her inhibitions.