Jay Z announces new album 4:44 as 'Beyoncé gives birth to twins'

The album will drop on his streaming service Tidal at the end of the month
Social Commentator: Jay-Z has criticised the criminal justice system and campaigned for Mill Meek's release
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Emma Powell19 June 2017
The Weekender

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Jay Z has announced details of his next album – hours after his wife Beyoncé is believed to have given birth to twins.

Titled 4:44, the album will drop on June 30 on his streaming service Tidal and US phone network Sprint.

The news broke on Tidal’s official Twitter account alongside a preview of a new track called Adnis.

“[Jay Z] x ‘4:44’ album x 6/30 http://Sprint.TIDAL.com #TIDALXSprint,” the tweet read.

Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure also confirmed the news. In a statement he said: “JAY-Z is a global icon and we’re giving customers an incredible opportunity to be among the first to experience his new album 4:44.”

The news comes after weeks of teasing which saw the numbers “4:44” and the date “6.30.17” floating around online.

Tidal then tweeted a preview of a black and white film starring A Mahershala Ali, Lupita Nyong’o, and Danny Glover leading fans to speculate as to whether Jay Z will follow in the footsteps of Beyoncé and drop a visual album.

News of the album came hours after it was reported that the couple had welcomed twins.

Beyoncé's father Mathew Knowles, announced the news on Twitter with a Father's Day post which read: “They're here! #beyonce #twins #jayz #happybirthday.”

Speculation about the twins' birth had grown in recent days after a woman was photographed entering a Los Angeles hospital with one “Baby Boy” and one “Baby Girl” balloon.

Beyoncé famously revealed that she was pregnant with twins in early February with an Instagram post of herself dressed in lingerie and surrounded by flowers.

It was accompanied by a statement which read: “We would like to share our love and happiness. We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two and we thank you for your well wishes. – The Carters.”

Beyonce - In pictures

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