The year was 2003, and Jay-Z’s iconic “Black Album” would be released on Nov. 14. According to the Grammy Awards website, the album would also be his sixth-straight No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 and was initially signaled to be his retirement project.
All of this was riding on the moment of an earlier debut that summer, with the launch of Sean Carter’s 40/40 Club.
A New Type Of Night Club
Situated in New York, NY’s Flat Iron district, the 40/40 Club was created as a luxury sports bar that doubles as a nightclub. Based on a report from Rolling Stone, the name pays homage to a rare achievement in baseball: hitting 40 home runs and stealing 40 bases in a single season.
The nightlife concept saw success. Two years after opening, additional locations opened in Atlantic City, NJ; Las Vegas, NV; Atlanta, GA’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, and Brooklyn, NY’s Barclays Center.
“I love sports,” Jay-Z said via Flatiron Nomad. “[I] wanted to create an environment that is conducive to match my lifestyle while watching the games at the same time.”
Despite the rapid growth and popularity, the Manhattan club in the Flat Iron district remained the premier location. Rolling Stone further detailed that beyond the main seating area, up the stairs, the club was tiered like a basketball arena, with “labyrinthine corridors” lined with sports memorabilia leading to luxury boxes. These private rooms, where athletes, musicians, celebrities, and influencers gathered, included the Jay-Z Lounge, Elite Lounge, Coaches Lounge, and the semi-private Mezzanine with its own lounges and bar. Each room had different price points, packages, and a minimum spend.
40/40 Club Took Over New York Scene
With its success, the 40/40 Club had become a marker in Jay-Z’s growing business portfolio. The space was even the selected location for a high-profile fundraiser during former President Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign.
Also in 2012, Jay-Z completed a $10 million renovation, making changes to compete with newer clubs in Manhattan at the time, per Flatiron Nomad. He even used the space to display and market his business endeavors.
At one point, a 20-foot-tall golden monument was built from bottles of Jay-Z’s champagne Ace of Spades. The multimillion-dollar feature became a centerpiece of the club and was featured in pieces like the music video for his song “Roc Boys.”
From Top Success To Slowed Momentum
Despite the success and continued popularity of Jay-Z, 40/40 Club did encounter some decline. According to Eater New York, the Las Vegas location closed in 2008, just a year after opening, followed by the Atlantic City club in 2013, after a lawsuit alleged the company owed over $115,000 in unpaid rent and other charges.
Without much public information, the central location in the Flat Iron District closed its doors after 20 years in July 2023. However, a rep from the Barclays Center notes that the arena location is still open and operating.
40/40 Club Plans To Come Back
The 2023 closure of the flagship location now seems to be a pause in the larger story of the 40/40 Club. Us Weekly has reported that the 54-year-old plans to reopen his club in a different location.
“It’s always been the plan to open a new spot,” Sheldon Robinson, vice president of operations at 40/40 Club, told Us Weekly. “Finding the right location that makes sense to the brand is key, and that takes some time. We’ve narrowed it down to our last few choices, and now we’re in the negotiation phase.”
With hopes of reopening in 2025, fans and patrons saw what’s to come during Fanatics Fest on Aug. 16, 2024. The pop-up event, hosted in collaboration with Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, featured high-profile guests like Carmelo Anthony, Quavo, and Travis Scott.
The pop-up attempted to evoke the nostalgia of the 40/40 Club’s original days with throwback jerseys, champagne towers, grand chandeliers, and food inspired by the original menu.
“It is all the reasons that Jay[-Z] and his partners originally opened the club,” Robinson said, per Us Weekly. “They wanted to create an environment where guests have this sense of luxury, good service, and good food while watching their favorite sports team play and also listening to their favorite artists. It’s combining sports and music… and we’re gonna remain consistent.”
