Kimberly Miale: Meet the Most Powerful Woman in Jay-Z's Life Not Named Beyonce

Not only does Jay-Z have a new woman his life, he’s got a new baby. His agency: Roc Nation. And then new leading lady in his life is Kimberly Miale. Before Beyonce married Jay-Z she had long established a name for herself. Miale, on the other hand, had a rather innocuous life before bursting onto the scene very recently.

What makes Kim Miale so important? She is crucial to the continuing legality of Jay-Z’s blossoming venture, Roc Nation Sports, the sports management division of his larger corporation, Roc Nation, was launched in early 2013. Right off the bat, the company signed Yankee second baseman Robinson Cano. And that was fine. Roc Nation could boast an MLB all-star client on their list, and Cano gets to benefit from the networking connections of management headed by Jay-Z. And then Roc Nation turned its sights to the NFL. Just after the draft, Roc Nation nabbed the floating New York Jets quarterback, Geno Smith.

And suddenly, Kim Miale's name was splayed across the headlines, as she is to serve as Smith's contract agent. And his name is surrounded by scandal and sports fans playing referee and crying "foul." They specifically claim that Miale has circumvented the "runner rule," which forbids agents from having colleagues or friends who aren’t certified agents in recruiting meetings. Social media may be Jay-Z's downfall. Smith posted a photo with Jay-Z on Instagram allegedly taken during the recruitment process. And the NFLPA has heard their concerns, and is launching an investigation that will reportedly be "aggressive." 

The investigation will inevitably bring Miale quite a bit of unwanted attention. NFLPA records that Smith is only Miale's third client as a sport's contract agent. Additionally, Forbes reported how Miale has previously failed to negotiate any active player's contract in the NFL. So rookie Geno Smith is being managed by another rookie. But the contract advisor with Roc Nation Sports certainly has an impressive resume. She graduated Providence College, Magna Cum Laude no less, in 2001 and then attended Suffolk Law School. She followed graduation with a stint as a clerk to the Justices of the Connecticut Superior Court before becoming an associate at Tucker, Heiftz & Saltzman, LLP, a position she appears to currently hold.

Her legal background is just the buffer Jay-Z needs to maintain legitimacy in his recruitment process. It's hard to imagine that Miale is the one making the decisions, while Jay-Z just counts his money in the corner. But no one seems to know where she came from, and how she became so inextricably intertwined with Jay-Z, Roc Nation, and the NFL. Miale has refused to comment to multiple established papers, including the Globe and the Times. But the pending NFLPA investigation should prompt (if not force) comments from Miale or others involved in the controversy. Roc Nation Sports seems to have "99 Problems," and Miale is certainly one of them.