Jay-Z: My Daughter, Blue Ivy, Has to Love Herself

Jay-Z has big hopes for his daughter, Blue Ivy, 9 months. In a new interview with The New York Times' style publication, T Magazine, the doting dad gushes, "My family's amazing."

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The 42-year-old rapper welcomed his first child with his wife, Beyonce, in January of this year. Jay-Z says his daughter's childhood will be very different from his own. The hip-hop icon, whose real name is Shawn Carter, grew up in the gritty housing projects of Brooklyn. "We would fight each other. My brother would beat me up," he says, but adds it was necessary. "I was going to have to fight, I was going to have to go through some things, and they were preparing me."

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Baby Blue, however, "doesn't have to be tough," the proud dad says. "She has to love herself, she has to know who she is, she has to be respectful and be a moral person."

The happy family celebrated Beyonce's 31st birthday (Sept. 4) this week on a private yacht on the Mediterranean Sea in the South of France. On Wednesday, Jay-Z also treated the birthday girl -- who is also the new cover star of Us Weekly's style issue, on stands Friday -- to a romantic dinner out at Michelangelo Restaurant in Antibes, France.

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For a peek inside the Beyonce's private world (and closet!), pick up the special fashion issue of Us Weekly, on stands Friday!

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