beyonce and jay-z to marry

Are Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z ready to settle down? The London Mirror claims the rap star announced their impending nuptials at a music industry bash in New York Wednesday night. "You've been one of the best friends I could have had," Jay-Z is quoted as telling outgoing Def Jam bigwig Lyor Cohen, who will head up Warner Music Group, before he added to Beyonce, "apart from this woman beside me, who I love and who I will marry very soon." The chart-topping "Crazy in Love" superstar, 22, and her 34-year-old "Hard Knock Life" beau, who have been dating for a little over a year, are notoriously tight-lipped about their relationship. "It was really unexpected," a witness tells the Mirror of Jay-Z's alleged declaration at the party. "As soon as he said it everyone in the place started whooping and cheering".