There are some presents that stand the test of time, and JAY-Z decided to gift one to his grandmother Hattie White. On Christmas Eve, the Carter family presented their matriarch with her own landmark: an engraved bench in Prospect Park.
Hov, his mother Gloria, Beyoncé, and their three kids Blue Ivy, Rumi, and Sir were photographed at the bench in Brooklyn alongside White. The inscription on the bench reads, “Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. With love and admiration to our root, Hattie White.”
Photos of the gathering quickly circulated thanks to the Beyhive, and 93-year-old White was photographed reacting to the gift. Check out the photos below.
White’s influence on the Carter lineage is evident in JAY-Z's and Beyoncé’s music. The rapper most recently references her in his feature on Meek Mill’s track “What’s Free.” White also narrates part of Lemonade at the end of “Freedom.”
“I had my ups and downs, but I always find the inner strength to pull myself up. I was served lemons, but I made lemonade,” she says during the visual album. The quip came from her 90th birthday celebration in 2015, which reportedly influenced the Beyoncé’s historic project.
Fans flocked to the new images not only for the sweet family moment, but for the opportunity to see updated photos of Rumi and Sir.
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