Now, Jay-Z lends support to Obama

London, Oct 2 : Rapper Jay-Z will be holding two free concerts in support of U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama.

The 38-year-old singer hopes to encourage young people to vote for Obama at the upcoming November (08) elections.

The free shows will take place in Detroit, Michigan on Saturday (04Oct08) and in Miami, Florida on Sunday (05Oct08), reports the Daily Star.

The Democrat recently appreciated the modern generation of hip-hop stars, insisting that stars such as Jay-Z and Kanye West are real businessmen, not just musicians.

Obama told MTV.com: "In the past, musicians often times were commodities. They were just shuffled around they did well, but they didn't have the vision to say, 'I'm going to build a business.

"I'm going to build my own studio. I'm going to create my own production operations.'

"I think they're a lot more sophisticated than in the past, and that is a wonderful thing."

ANI