Jay-Z slowed down for Beyonce

For years, Jay-Z has dominated the rap game from all sides. While he was still rising to the top, he released a song called "Big Pimpin'." On the song, he boasted of his multiple relationships with various women. In the song, Jay-Z raps of how no woman could ever make him change his ways. Forever, he was to remain a player.

Early in his career, Jay-Z was romantically involved with various women. When he first released Reasonable Doubt, he tried to portray a Mafioso image. The women helped to embrace the lifestyle. Long before he and Beyonce had ever met, he was often dating top models. However, none of these relationships would last.

From 1997 until 2000, Jay-Z was said to be dating Rosario Dawson and she was his first real love. But, their relationship soon fell apart and he recorded "I Just Wanna Love You (Give It 2 Me)." Soon, though, as Beyonce branched out from Destiny's Child, she began hanging around other stars. She became friends with Amil, an artist of Jay-Z's.

It was through Amil that Jay-Z and Beyonce officially met, around 1999. Perhaps due to her age, their relationship was kept quiet. Soon, each song Beyonce recorded would feature a subtle rap response from Jay when he worked with other artists. Jay-Z famously responded to the Destiny's Child hit "No No No." Rumors about Jay-Z and Beyonce hit a peak in 2001. At the time, Jay-Z was on top of the rap world and Beyonce was on top of her game. With all of his success, people wanted to know who he was sharing with.

However, one year later, Jay-Z and Beyonce began a string of collaborations and after they topped the Billboard Hot 100 during the summer of 2003, there was no question about their relationship. Soon, Jay-Z, the man who bragged about wearing baggy clothes to business meeting decided to button up. Now, most times when Jay-Z is spotted in the United States, he is wearing suits. Also, the man who bragged about sleeping with multiple women, now often talks about starting a family.

In 2008, Jay-Z did the unthinkable when he actually married Beyonce. Coming as a surprise to a lot of people, their marriage has been a success after two years. Jay-Z said the key to their success was the fact of their relationship being very private. Many other rappers have watched their relationships fail because the media got into it and broke them up. Some credit the downfall of Sean Combs and Jennifer Lopez on the constant media attention and the Shyne incident.