Stacks of cash. Luxury cars. Designer clothes. Labels will throw most anything at their successful rap artists in order to retain them. But one particularly successful incentive is to offer them their own sub-labels. This gives a rapper a chance to be a boss, a talent scout and potentially richer as well.
Of course, hip-hop vanity imprints have a checkered history. You only need say the name “Memphis Bleek” to inspire a snort from many rap fans, despite the fact that the Jay Z associate actually has two gold albums for his friend’s label, Roc-a-Fella. (Bleek even had his own label, Get Low Records.) Indeed nepotism, rather than commercial viability, sometimes drives these decisions. Other times, muscle is valued as well as rhymes. In the early ‘90s, Ice Cube enlisted for his Street Knowledge label rappers Da Lench Mob; in addition to making compelling music, it didn’t hurt that they were willing to tangle with Cube’s enemies.
Something like that may have been at play when rapper Pusha T signed to Kanye West’s label GOOD Music, at the beginning of this decade. Make no mistake, the Virginia rapper and Clipse alum is one of the most acclaimed rappers of his generation. But he makes no secret of his past as a drug dealer, and rhymed on the label’s 2012 song New God Flow: “I think it’s good that ‘Ye got a blow dealer / A hot temper matched with a cold killer / I came aboard for more than just to rhyme with him / Think 99 when Puff woulda had Shyne with him.” For those who missed the Bad Boy Records reference, on one of the song’s versions the verse is concluded with a gunshot.
But whatever the case, Pusha’s role at the label has since become more formal, as indicated by the announcement this week of his appointment as GOOD’s president. His interview with Billboard is worth a read, not just because he uses the word “manicure” five times, but because it gives insight into the direction of the imprint, which has received its share of criticism during its decade or so in existence.
Though you’ll hardly find a bigger critics’ darling than Kanye, he’s been savaged as an A&R. His most recent breakout artist, Travi$ Scott, was panned as derivative. GOOD artist Big Sean may move units, but he doesn’t always impress music writers. The label has certainly fostered beloved artists – John Legend and Kid Cudi among them. But these days it seems likely that, between Kanye’s shoe-designing and Kardashian-ing he simply hasn’t got enough time for his imprint. That’s where Pusha will step in, developing artists like Kacy Hill and strengthening the label’s merch game. (Like Kanye, Pusha is big in the fashion world.)
It’s a move that will make many take GOOD more seriously as a company. Which is not always the case with vanity labels, many of which whither when the rapper CEO doesn’t have time to tend to his garden of flowering artists. While Dr Dre’s Aftermath has fostered huge talents like Eminem and Kendrick Lamar, it has underutilized, and then ultimately driven off, some of the greatest talent in rap history, everyone from Rakim to Busta Rhymes.
A smaller stable can often be effective. Rick Ross’s Maybach Music Group has quietly become one of the most successful labels in hip-hop. Beyond providing an outlet for acclaimed rapper Gunplay, it has already put out number one albums from two different artists this year, Wale and Meek Mill, and may get a third with the scheduled release of Ross’ Black Market next month. Lil Wayne’s Young Money, meanwhile, has put on two of the biggest rappers going, Drake and Nicki Minaj, but faces an uncertain future because of Weezy’s battle with his label leader Baby. (It’s a little different with imprints like TI’s Grand Hustle and Wiz Khalifa’s Taylor Gang – as well as classic favorites like No Limit and Ruthless – which operate independently, though they utilize major label distribution channels.)
Perhaps the most intriguing model for a vanity label is what Eminem has done with his, called Shady. Though the imprint has certainly seen mainstream success – they signed 50 Cent, for one thing – it nowadays maintains a boutique mentality. Shady puts out acclaimed rappers with uncertain sales expectations, including Yelawolf and Slaughterhouse, a super group comprised of MCs previously messed around by majors. (Including Joell Ortiz, formerly of Aftermath.)
Despite the fact that Shady is under the umbrella of the colossal Universal Music Group, it’s clear that Eminem signs these artists because he believes in them, and could care less how many records they sell. Of course, not everyone can be so lucky. Eminem’s own albums pretty much bankroll his corporate boss’s lifestyles, which is likely why they’re happy to let him sign whomever he wants. Still, in a cutthroat industry that’s focused by the bottom line (or, sometimes, on childhood friends with uncertain abilities) it’s nice to see an example where quality wins out.
