The SHYT These Record Labels Do

[Ghostface Trillah]

People have unrealistic expectations of financial success in the music industry. They rush out a formulaic product quick to get paid a fast 10-30k. They dont want the standard middle class lifestyles.....they want that Rolls Royce money. Not just the rappers. I'm talking about the producers, the promoters, everybody. To them, living a quiet middle/upper middle class lifestyle is on their minds, so they push out all these trap dudes who can record an entire mixtape (or album) in 5 days on some Tyler Perry shyt with decent returns. They want to be multi millionaires their first calendar year and live up that lifestyle for eternity.

That Jay-Z and Master P business model expectations ruined black music.

No. People not following the business models of the Jay's and Master P's is where people fail. Before the Def Jam deal Rocafella was doing everything out of pocket on their own. Reasonable doubt was originally released on Freeze/Priority records because it was a distribution deal. By the time Def Jam came around Rocafella didn't need a deal, they needed the infrastructure that record labels had and they had the leverage to get a partnership not a record deal.

Master P was already moving records on his own when he got offered a record deal for 1 mil. He turned it down and paid Michael Jacksons entertainment lawyer 25k to consult him about deals and ended up getting an 80/20 distribution deal with priority. Remember when he tried to help Kodak by looking at his paperwork and kodaks label and management wouldn't let him see it then Kodak got mad because P tried to charge him for his time?

Nothing wrong with the business model. The basics behind both of those stories is people investing in themselves so they didn't need the handouts/loans/record deal debt that some stupid artist off the streets does.

 

[BlkAxeMan]

“The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side.”

― Hunter S. Thompson

 

[HellRell804]

People have unrealistic expectations of financial success in the music industry. They rush out a formulaic product quick to get paid a fast 10-30k. They dont want the standard middle class lifestyles.....they want that Rolls Royce money. Not just the rappers. I'm talking about the producers, the promoters, everybody. To them, living a quiet middle/upper middle class lifestyle is on their minds, so they push out all these trap dudes who can record an entire mixtape (or album) in 5 days on some Tyler Perry shyt with decent returns. They want to be multi millionaires their first calendar year and live up that lifestyle for eternity.

That Jay-Z and Master P business model expectations ruined black music.

You're making a lot of assumptions here.

Look at someone like curren$y who puts out a mixtape damn near every month. He's still independent but when you're independent you basically live off of touring and merchandise so it's in your best interest to keep music out and stay in the public eye. You can't keep going to the same cities performing the same songs over and over again.

But if we're looking at the big name major artists they're only dropping an album every 2 years or so. The mixtapes are the throwaway tracks that don't make the album.

A major artist might record 150 songs in an album cycle and have to whittle that down to 12 tracks for the official release.

To act like that's lazy is incredibly disingenuous

 

[T.H.E. Goat]

If you’re not willing to invest in yourself then prepare to get fukked in the music industry

Being self-sufficient may not bring fame but it will most certainly bring in revenue especially if the music you’re selling is likable

 

[T.H.E. Goat]

You're making a lot of assumptions here.

Look at someone like curren$y who puts out a mixtape damn near every month. He's still independent but when you're independent you basically live off of touring and merchandise so it's in your best interest to keep music out and stay in the public eye. You can't keep going to the same cities performing the same songs over and over again.

But if we're looking at the big name major artists they're only dropping an album every 2 years or so. The mixtapes are the throwaway tracks that don't make the album.

A major artist might record 150 songs in an album cycle and have to whittle that down to 12 tracks for the official release.

To act like that's lazy is incredibly disingenuous

Even Curren$y had some shytty deals too though he was just fortunate enough to play his part until he could invest himself and make money independently

 

[Devil Plisken…CMS]

In 2020 you might be better off recording, buying/creating your production and pushing it

See where it takes you

 

[MischievousMonkey]

@Booksnrain you don't fukk with To Pimp a Butterfly?

 

[Devil Plisken…CMS]

But where does integrity play into it?

 

[HellRell804]

Even Curren$y had some shytty deals too though he was just fortunate enough to play his part until he could invest himself and make money independently

Yea but it was those bad deals and exposure to artists like lil Wayne, Master P, and Wiz Khalifa that made it a lot easier for him to sell records independently. He wasn't just a nobody with protocols and a dream. There was already a demand for his music

 

[SheWantTheD]

Good thread but this shyt ain't surprising.

Independent or creating your own label is the way to go.

You don't need to be played on the radio to get notoriety anymore with social media.

 

[⠝⠕⠏⠑]

@Booksnrain you don't fukk with To Pimp a Butterfly?

Wesleys Theory it’s all starting to make sense

 

[⠝⠕⠏⠑]

Who gon take care of these artists?!
They so young too

 

[T.H.E. Goat]

Yea but it was those bad deals and exposure to artists like lil Wayne, Master P, and Wiz Khalifa that made it a lot easier for him to sell records independently. He wasn't just a nobody with protocols and a dream. There was already a demand for his music

He did a helluva job cultivating his fans from the No Limit days and making the type of music that anybody could listen to

 

[Peter Popoff]

Sounds about right. Also.......a record deal is just a student loan. Rappers brag about borrowed money and could essentially go bankrupt if they don't acquire some kind of patent or ownership to use those residuals to pay it back.

Independent just cuts out the middle man so you owe nothing back. Record deals are just the key to marketing your idea efficiently with ARs handling your promotion.

 

[MR. SNIFLES]

Why can’t these multimillionaire musicians come together and form their own record label to at least give better terms to artists?

BECAUSE WHO WOULD BENEFIT? THE ARTISTS DON'T WANT TO CHANGE THE GAME. THEY JUST WANT TO GET TO THE NEXT LEVEL.