Jay-Z's critically acclaimed, platinum-selling album "4:44" is now available on Apple Music, iTunes, and Amazon after a week-long stint as a Tidal exclusive.Jay-Z, who owns a large stake in Tidal, has noticeably kept the album off Spotify so far.
"4:44" was expected to see a wide release on other streaming platforms after the one-week exclusivity period of Tidal's deal with Sprint ended.
Sprint invested $200 million in Tidal early this year, and the phone company helped the album go instantly platinum by purchasing a million copies of "4:44," which fans could download for free (up until midnight on Thursday).
A physical version of the LP is also expected to be released in the near future, featuring three bonus tracks.
"4:44" is still absent, however, from the market leader in streaming services, Spotify. Jay-Z pulled all of his albums from Spotify in April, while leaving some of his work on Apple Music.
On the "4:44" track "Smile," Jay took a shot at Apple Music executive Jimmy Iovine, rapping, "Respect Jimmy Iovine / But he gotta respect the Elohim / It's a whole new regime / And n----- playin' for power, huh / 'Til our music is ours." Tidal has struggled to grow in recent years, and Apple was rumored to buy Tidal last year, though Iovine denied the rumor at the time.
As of this posting, all of Jay's albums are available for purchase on iTunes, but only "4:44" can be streamed on Apple Music. None of the rapper's work is currently available on Spotify.
Spotify was not immediately available for comment.