Is it OVA for the HOVA ? Jay-Z Possibly To Depart Def Jam

There's been many rumors of this for months, but the shit might be happening now as Jay-Z's contract is set to expire and the major labels are restructuring and many people, including high-profile execs are finding themsleves out of jobs ...just in time for the hoildays.

Jay-Z in Jam over contract

Could Jay-Z be cleaning out his office at Def Jam soon? We hear that contract-renewal negotiations between Universal Music and the rapper-turned-CEO have broken down.

"He wanted big, big money that was way out of sync with the realities of today's record business," a source says.

Island/Def Jam CEO L.A. Reid and his boss, Doug Morris, are said to have found Jay's demands "excessive" in light of the time he's been spending on tour.

"People have lost count of how many times he's come out of retirement," the source says. "Everybody knows he's not around the office much. Everybody at Universal loves him, but they can't justify paying him the money he wants when so many people have been laid off."

His contract is said to expire at the end of this month. Friends of the rapper, who last night was celebrating his 38th birthday in Paris, scoffed at claims that Reid and Morris had thrown in the towel.

"They are still actively negotiating," one friend insisted.

According to another: "The talks will continue when he returns to New York. They still have a ways to go before a decision."

Source [NYDailyNews]