BeyoncéJay-Z and Beyoncé have been one of the most mysterious celebrity couples to date. During the early stages of their relationship, the couple tried to keep their romance out of the spotlight. Only years after they started dating, did Jay-Z and Beyoncé acknowledge that they had been dating for as long as they had been. What's especially interesting is that the two released love songs together before they officially went public as a couple. While they were recording together, the duo insisted that they were nothing more than friends, but nobody believed them.

Every relationship has its ups and downs, but Jay-Z and Beyoncé have been airing their dirty laundry for years through their music. They won't open up to the press, but every so often, one of them will release a song hinting that they aren't the happy couple living a life of paradise like their fans thought they were. Most recently, Beyoncé released her album "Lemonade" which revealed a number of problems that the couple was having. Without explicitly stating so, Beyoncé hinted that Jay-Z had been having an affair. A few months after the release of  "Lemonade," Jay-Z released his highly-praised album "4:44" where he reflects on his life and relationship with Beyoncé. They're the music industry's most secretive couple and the only things we know about them are what's expressed through their music. So, what are some of Jay-Z and Beyoncé's biggest secrets?

Why Jay-Z Cheated On Her

Beyoncé hinted that her husband Jay-Z had cheated on her album "Lemonade," but some felt that she was just writing from the perspective of someone who had been cheated on. However, on Jay-Z's album "4:44," he admits to having an affair with the woman Beyoncé called "Becky with the good hair."

In an interview after the release of his album, Jay-Z opened up to reporters saying that his past led him to cheat on his wife. He claims that in the past, he shut himself down emotionally which lead to his infidelity. And, if his lyrics are to be trusted, it happened more than once. On the song "4:44," Jay-Z raps, "Look, I apologize, often womanize. Took for my children to be born, see through a woman's eyes."

Their Massive Age Difference

Jay-Z and Beyoncé have known each other since at least 2002. When they first met, Beyoncé said she was 18, which means Jay-Z would have been pushing 30. It's quite the age difference, but as they say, age is just a number! Then again, if you actually look at where they were in their lives when they started dating, it's pretty alarming.

When Beyoncé was entering the spotlight, she would have been bumping a lot of the music that Jay-Z was putting out. When he was making some of the best albums of his career, Beyoncé was just starting to find her voice in Destiny's Child. It's a little weird when you think about it, too. When Jay-Z was selling crack on the street corner, Beyoncé would have still been in diapers! Their age became a problem around 2006, when Jay-Z was looking to start a family but Beyoncé wanted to focus on her career. He became a little jealous of how motivated she was by her career, but we'll get into that later!

How They Met

Due to wanting their lives to remain private, most people don't actually know when Jay-Z and Beyoncé first met. However, we do know how they met each other because they are two prominent figures in the music industry. According to Beyoncé, she was 18 years old when she met Jay-Z, and 19 when they first started dating. That means, that the two would have started seeing each other in early 2000.

That said, rumors only started popping up that the two were an item after they collaborated on the song "03 Bonnie and Clyde," which was Beyoncé's first solo project after leaving Destiny's Child. For years, the two denied being a couple even though Beyoncé would wear Jay-Z's famous Yankees cap in interviews, and they were constantly being spotted at events. They were being so obvious, and they somehow expected people to believe that they were just friends!

People Told Her To Stay Away

For the most part, Jay-Z has always rapped about his life. Whether he's detailing what it was like to sell drugs to survive or rapping about the mistakes he's made in his life, Jay-Z has always "kept it real," as the kids say. In 2003, Jay-Z appeared numerous times on Beyoncé's solo album "Dangerously in Love," but on the song "That's How You Like It," some of his lyrics talked about his secret relationship with Beyoncé.

In the song, he raps, "I know you've heard I'm a gangsta, they say 'Stay away from them gangstas.' They never change up, or pull they pants up. Well baby girl, put ya foot down, don't let 'em push you around, you know what you like." In a few words, Jay-Z is essentially saying that people close to Beyoncé warned her not to get involved with him, but she chose to anyway.

Jay-Z Struggled With Her Focusing On Her Career

Jay-Z and Beyoncé are the biggest artists in their respective genres. Beyoncé is often referred too as Queen Bey, and Jay-Z will forever be known as one of the greatest rappers of all time. Honestly, it's hard to imagine how they balance their careers and family life. Their schedules must be hectic, but so far, they've managed to make it work. But that wasn't always the case.

Back in 2006, Jay-Z released the album Kingdom Come. One of the songs on the album was titled "Lost One" and on it, he addressed some of the problems that him and Beyoncé were having. He raps, "I don't think it's meant to be, B. But she loves her work more than she does me. And honestly, at 23, I would probably love my work more than I did she."

Beyoncé's Miscarriages

Today, Beyoncé is the mother of three children. Though we may think that Beyoncé has had the perfect path to motherhood, it took her a very long time to give birth. The first time Beyoncé was pregnant was about two years before being pregnant with Blue Ivy, and unfortunately, she suffered a miscarriage.

In the 2013 documentary Life Is But A Dream, Beyoncé revealed that the miscarriage was the hardest thing she had ever experienced. She says she heard the heartbeat of the child inside her and said that it was the most beautiful music she ever heard. She also said she was feeling very maternal, and pictured what her child would look like. Sadly, the child was never born, and she miscarried in the early stages of her pregnancy.

Why They Took Off Their Wedding Rings

In 2016, tabloid magazines noticed Jay-Z and Beyoncé were spotted without wearing their wedding rings. While Beyoncé was flaunted her $5 million diamond ring, she was repeatedly caught not wearing it by photographers. This lead many to speculate that the couple was on the verge of divorce. And, because of their albums "Lemonade" and "4:44," it's believable that the couple was about to split.

However, many people have speculated that the couple ditched their rings to get something that would be with them forever — a tattoo. In 2008, the couple each got a matching "IV" tattoos to symbolize the date of their wedding and birthdays. In 2014, Beyoncé was spotted with a band-aid over her ring finger which lead people to believe she had gotten the tattoo touched up. In one of Jay-Z's songs, he mentions that the two were thinking of ditching their rings and that if they did, they'll still have the tattoo to remind each other of their love.

What Happened In The Delivery Room

In 2012, when Beyoncé was giving birth to Blue Ivy, the power couple apparently spent over $1 million to rent out bulletproof suites and hire an army of bodyguard personnel to keep the birth private. According to reports, the bodyguards limited the movement of other patients at the hospital so that Mr. and Mrs. Carter could get the medical care they needed in peace. One father told reporters that he was denied four times to visit his twin babies in the intensive care unit because of Beyoncé 's delivery.

In 2017, when Beyoncé was pregnant with twins, the couple decided they weren't going to invade another hospital. Instead, they decided to build a private maternity ward at their mansion in the Hollywood Hills. Besides a staff ready to take care of her needs, there was an ambulance on site that was ready to take Beyoncé to a nearby hospital should she or the babies need it. It's still very elitist of them, but at least they aren't locking down an entire hospital!

She Almost Dumped Him

In 2013, Beyoncé dropped her song titled "Mine." In the song, Beyoncé hinted at another sign that the couple was on the verge of splitting up. In it, she sang, "Been having conversations about breakups and separations. I'm not feeling like myself since the baby. Are we gonna even make it? 'Cause if we are, we're taking this a little too far."

Either Beyoncé and Jay-Z have one of the rockiest celebrity relationships ever, or maybe they've been staging drama over the years to boost their sales. It seems like most of the songs they write are about each other. And again, while artists often draw inspiration from their lives, for a couple that tries to keep their lives private, they sure like to air their dirty laundry. Are their relationship struggles just a money making scheme or is there actually trouble in paradise?

They Try To Be As Private As Possible

Many people are fascinated that the music industry's biggest couple is able to remain so private. In an era where Kim Kardashian is airing every detail of her life on national television, it's strange that Jay-Z and Beyoncé remain so closed off from the rest of the world. After all, Jay-Z and Kim's husband Kanye appear to be pretty good friends. For the most part, the only glimpse into their personal lives that we get is through their music and interviews where they're promoting their music.

There's a fine line between expressing yourself through your music and exploiting personal tragedy for your own gain. Maybe somewhere down the line, Jay-Z and Beyoncé will regret sharing so much about themselves through their music, much like Eminem does. On his recent albums, Eminem has talked about how he regrets rapping about his daughter so much and how he regrets every song he ever used to hate on his mother Debbie and also his wife, Kim.

There Aren't Any Photos Of Their Wedding

Jay-Z and Beyoncé were married back in 2008, and the press had absolutely no idea. The couple decided to tie the knot in a very private ceremony with few friends and family members being invited. Almost no photos of the ceremony were released to the public after the wedding, but the one you see above was recently posted by someone who had attended the wedding, which was held inside Jay-Z's 13,500-square-foot Manhattan penthouse.

Over the years, Beyoncé kept the details of her wedding on lock down. In 2011, she teased her wedding dress, which was designed by her mother. Earlier this year, Beyoncé posted a video on Instagram that highlighted some never-before-seen footage of her relationship with Jay-Z. In the video, the couple is cuddling, kissing, and doing exactly what you'd expect to see from a couple that is helplessly in love. It seems that as the wedding becomes a thing of the past, more photos will be shared online. Either with their permission or without it. According to those at the wedding, it was a very emotional ceremony and just about everyone was crying.

How Much Are They Really Worth

Jay-Z and Beyoncé are the biggest couple in the music industry. As the leaders in their respective genres, you can only imagine how much these two are worth. Let's take a look at the numbers so we can try to get an inside look at their finances. To start, Jay-Z has sold more than 55 million albums, whereas Beyoncé has sold more than 17.2 million albums. It's not as impressive, but most people will agree that Beyoncé's albums have been a lot more consistent than Jay-Z's.

Outside of music, Jay-Z has ran a number of business ventures, most notably the music streaming service Tidal. In total, Jay-Z is worth an estimated $810 million, whereas Beyoncé is worth approximately $350 million. Combined, the couple is worth $1.16 billion dollars. Although, if the pair were to completely sell out or turn their lives into a reality TV show, who knows how much they would be worth!

They Always Try To Support Each Other

As previously mentioned, Jay-Z and Beyoncé have hectic schedules. How they manage to find time to spend together is a mystery, but whenever they're in the same postal code, they make sure to see each other. Like, for example, when Beyoncé stopped by Coachella to watch her husband Jay-Z perform on the main stage. She wasn't performing, but she wanted to show her man that she supports him no matter what.

In an interview with Oprah, Beyoncé said she wouldn't be the woman she is today if she didn't get to go home to Jay-Z every night. It's a sweet thing to say, especially considering the problems the couple has had in the past. It seems that no matter what the two of them are doing, they always have each other's backs. Whether it's supporting Hilary Clinton, launching Tidal, or donating money to charity, Beyoncé and Jay-Z are the very definition of a power couple. They are relationship goals times a million.

Their Latest Albums Were Their Version Of Couple's Therapy

If you've listened to both "4:44" and "Lemonade," you'll realize that Jay-Z's album is almost a direct response to Beyoncé's. His album came out a few months after hers, but originally, the couple planned on releasing the albums around the same time. In fact, the couple was working on their albums at the exact same time. Before Jay-Z released "4:44," he played it for Beyonce to hear what she thought about what he had to say.

According to Jay-Z, the couple was using their art "almost like a therapy session." In an interview, he added that he was proud of the art that the two were able to create from their marital problems and that it helped their marriage. "We were sitting in the eye of that hurricane. The best place is right in the middle of the pain. And that's where we were sitting. And it was uncomfortable. And we had a lot of conversations. And, you know, at the end of the day, we really have a healthy respect for one another's craft. I think she's amazing."

Listening To Beyoncé's "Lemonade" Made Them Both Uncomfortable

Since of the songs on Beyoncé's album "Lemonade" is about the struggles she's been having with Jay-Z, we can only imagine how it must have felt for him to hear the songs on the album. Jay-Z said that listening to "Lemonade" was "very, very uncomfortable." And it makes sense why it was so uncomfortable, too. After all, he had to listen to her almost break down while singing about how he cheated on her and how she wanted to leave him.

Jay-Z elaborated on his feelings about "Lemonade" in an interview with The New York Times Style Magazine. In his own words, Jay-Z said, "You know, most people walk away, and like the divorce rate is like 50 per cent or something 'cause most people can't see themselves. The hardest thing is seeing pain on someone's face that you caused, and then have to deal with yourself. So, you know, most people don't want to do that. You don't want to look inside yourself. And so you walk away."