The rapper and entrepreneur dismissed his sitting down during the national anthem as an attempt to "convey a signal."

Jay-Z and Beyoncé recently found themselves in headlines after video was taken of the pair sitting down during the national anthem at this year's Super Bowl. Although some interpreted the act as a form of protest, Jay-Z has clarified that that wasn't the intent at all.

READ: Jay-Z And Beyoncé Sit Through National Anthem At Super Bowl

While speaking at Columbia University with author Jelani Cobb, Jay-Z was asked if the moment was an attempt to "convey a signal," to which he responded: "It actually wasn’t. Sorry. It was not premeditated at all."

"We immediately jumped into artist mode," Jay said. "I'm really just looking at the show. The mics start. Was it too low to start? we added a bunch of sound because the sound is done for TV so I had to explain to them, as an artist, if you don't feel the music you really can't reach that level."

"The whole time, we’re sitting there, we’re talking about the performance and right after that, Demi comes out and we’re talking about how beautiful she looked and how she sounds and what she’s going through in her life for her to be on the stage, we’re so proud of her," he added.

"I didn't have to make a silent protest," he said elsewhere during the conversation. "If you look at the stage, the artists that we chose — Colombian [Shakira] and Puerto Rican, J.Lo. We were making the loudest stance."

"We had Botham Jean, a commercial running on social injustice at the Super Bowl," he continued. "We were making the biggest, loudest protest of all. Given the context, I didn't have to make a silent protest."