Jay-Z told a UK newspaper recently that Coldplay singer Chris Martin is a modern day version of one of the most famous artists to ever grace the planet.

That artist? A certain William Shakespeare. Hov told Metro,

“I have been in the industry long enough to know when I’m in the presence of a genius and Chris Martin is just that.”

He went on to make… that comparison saying,

“In years to come, Britain will look back at him as a modern day Shakespeare. He is an incredible recording artist, an incredible songwriter, but where he really comes alive is performing live. If you get the chance to see Coldplay live, do it – you ain’t gonna regret it.”

Yeah, nah.

Chris Martin has definitely made some hits over the years that were okay songs that had some solid piano chords and some singing about… stuff, but he’s not Shakespeare.

For you youngins out there, you may know Shakespeare from such hits as Othello, Hamlet, and MacBeth.

Chris Martin did not write any of these famous texts, but he did write the song “Sky Full Of Stars,” which goes:

“‘Cause you’re a sky, ’cause you’re a sky full of stars
I’m gonna give you my heart
‘Cause you’re a sky, ’cause you’re a sky full of stars
‘Cause you light up the path”

In another not-quite-Shakespearean song with the Chainsmokers, Chris Martin wrote the following verse:

“I’ve been reading books of old
The legends and the myths
Achilles and his gold
Hercules and his gifts
Spiderman’s control
And Batman with his fists
And clearly I don’t see myself upon that list”

There’s a lot to dissect here. Not sure quite what Martin is going for with the grouping of Achilles, Hercules, Batman, and Spiderman. I guess he’s going for a superhero thing, which, yeah, that’s not modern day Shakespeare material.

Jay-Z and Chris Martin have had a well-documented bromance since the early 2000s with songs like “Lost+” and “Beach Chair.” These tracks combined Coldplay’s arena rock thing and Jay-Z’s hip-hop thing to make one ultimate jam.

This combination seemed pretty cool at the time, but looking back as music, and hip-hop especially, continues to push the envelope these collabs look pretty stale.

Regardless of Hov’s comments here, which are very incorrect, 4:44 was fire. So there’s that.