Nas VS Def Jam
- Thread starter Casey
- Start date
I don't think the slavery line referred to whites enslaving blacks, as both LA Reid and Chris Hicks are black. And while it may not be correct, and I can see why others have a problem, I believe he is just trying to make a point, in a dramatic kind of way.
I also agree with what Nas is saying, and without being overly pedantic, a lot of what he is saying is the truth. I agree with Nas, the reason for the current state of hip-hop is due to the labels. While hip-hop is far from dead, and I am not a fan that lives in the 90's, it is far from flourishing. I also agree that the majority of executives are failed artists.
To sum up... Fuck the labels. I understand business and the need for budgets and a working business model. But the music industry model is flawed. Maybe if they listened to the fans and artists the failure rate wouldn't be so high.
I also agree with what Nas is saying, and without being overly pedantic, a lot of what he is saying is the truth. I agree with Nas, the reason for the current state of hip-hop is due to the labels. While hip-hop is far from dead, and I am not a fan that lives in the 90's, it is far from flourishing. I also agree that the majority of executives are failed artists.
To sum up... Fuck the labels. I understand business and the need for budgets and a working business model. But the music industry model is flawed. Maybe if they listened to the fans and artists the failure rate wouldn't be so high.
What he says is the truth. He has fans that love his music, and the fans like the artist not the label. I don't think you can call it "dramatic ego" when it's the truth. Beautiful people know they are beautiful and skilled people know they are skilled and everyone else is envious. That, too, is nothing new. I'm feeling this.
I'd be pissed too if I were in his shoes.
And I think that when he said slave he meant as he can't do anything about it because the record label owns him at this point.
It sucks because he's not the only artist in that position. A lot are getting screwed by the deals they sign. But you gotta sign these deals if you want to put some music out.
And I think that when he said slave he meant as he can't do anything about it because the record label owns him at this point.
It sucks because he's not the only artist in that position. A lot are getting screwed by the deals they sign. But you gotta sign these deals if you want to put some music out.
I know it's easy to place the blame on the labels and all, and having had experience with several major labels including Universal (the parent company of Def Jam) I have my own share of horror stories, but let's also remember that this is only Nas' side of the story, and that Def Jam have their own side of the story also, and as usual the truth is most probably squarely in between the two.
"That's the sound of the beast, I'm a Columbia Records slave, so get paid.....I was a Black Zombie"
Just like when Nas said he was a slave to the label at Columbia it's the same now. I don't think this is a situation of Nas making the same mistake twice either. The label is just doing him dirty, real dirty to be honest. Regardless of how much money they are willing to give to push the project them not counting it towards his contract is fucked up, plain and simple. Def Jam was the home of rap music for a long time. Nas knows his Hip-Hop history, he knows who has been there etc. he respects the label, he said that sort of thing a lot when he first signed with them. I don't think he thought the label would do him like this but like sofi said with the struggle the industry is going through it's easy to see why they are. Jews are about money, Nas just got caught up in the politics of making it. Argue all you want but Nas is truly one of the last artists that rap has left, it's a shame his music is getting the "lasers" treatment right now. word to Lupe.
Just like when Nas said he was a slave to the label at Columbia it's the same now. I don't think this is a situation of Nas making the same mistake twice either. The label is just doing him dirty, real dirty to be honest. Regardless of how much money they are willing to give to push the project them not counting it towards his contract is fucked up, plain and simple. Def Jam was the home of rap music for a long time. Nas knows his Hip-Hop history, he knows who has been there etc. he respects the label, he said that sort of thing a lot when he first signed with them. I don't think he thought the label would do him like this but like sofi said with the struggle the industry is going through it's easy to see why they are. Jews are about money, Nas just got caught up in the politics of making it. Argue all you want but Nas is truly one of the last artists that rap has left, it's a shame his music is getting the "lasers" treatment right now. word to Lupe.
What most probably has happened is that Def Jam agreed to give him x amount of money for each album of original material, and since this isn't original material and Nas will likely not be making music videos and doing the kind of promotion that he would for a new record, they don't want to give him as much money for it. I'm sure they will renegotiate and figure something out.
The amount of money being given isn't the main issue I have with this though. It's them not counting it as a release. Columbia released a greatest hit album from Nas to fulfill his 10 album contract over there. Def jam has released who knows how many greatest hits and done the same. Why they fuck with Nas right now is on some bs
Well, all the material on the original Lost Tapes was unused (in some cases re-used) tracks from Nastradamus, I Am... and Stillmatic.
If all the material on this is from the sessions for the "Hip-Hop Is Dead", "Untitled (The N)", and "Distant Relatives" then Def Jam will argue that they already paid Nas a cash advance for the material recorded in these sessions and that he owes them an all-new album. Especially if it's like the first "Lost Tapes" where some of the songs actually HAD been released.
At least three tracks (and possibly more) on the first "Lost Tapes" were already released and most Nas fans already had them from what I remember. I specifically remember that I had "Blaze a 50" for at least three years before "Lost Tapes" came out because it had been a bonus track on the CD single for "Hate Me Now". And I'm sure "No Idea's Original" and "Everybody's Crazy" were bonus tracks on "Stillmatic".
We don't know if this is the case with "Lost Tapes 2", but if it is, then you can see where Def Jam are coming from.
Contractually, if you sign a record deal for three albums, you get a budget for those three albums, you can't just record 30 songs, release 10, wait a year, release 10 more of them, wait another year and then release 10 more. That's not how it works. All this stuff is covered in any standard record deal because artists have tried to utilize loopholes like this to get out of contracts on many occasions.
There's a lot of fine print in any record deal, Nas knows this and while I don't necessarily disagree with him, he's quite obviously twisted the real situation to support his own opinion, and like I said, Def Jam have their side of the story, and the truth of the situation is likely in between the two.
If all the material on this is from the sessions for the "Hip-Hop Is Dead", "Untitled (The N)", and "Distant Relatives" then Def Jam will argue that they already paid Nas a cash advance for the material recorded in these sessions and that he owes them an all-new album. Especially if it's like the first "Lost Tapes" where some of the songs actually HAD been released.
At least three tracks (and possibly more) on the first "Lost Tapes" were already released and most Nas fans already had them from what I remember. I specifically remember that I had "Blaze a 50" for at least three years before "Lost Tapes" came out because it had been a bonus track on the CD single for "Hate Me Now". And I'm sure "No Idea's Original" and "Everybody's Crazy" were bonus tracks on "Stillmatic".
We don't know if this is the case with "Lost Tapes 2", but if it is, then you can see where Def Jam are coming from.
Contractually, if you sign a record deal for three albums, you get a budget for those three albums, you can't just record 30 songs, release 10, wait a year, release 10 more of them, wait another year and then release 10 more. That's not how it works. All this stuff is covered in any standard record deal because artists have tried to utilize loopholes like this to get out of contracts on many occasions.
There's a lot of fine print in any record deal, Nas knows this and while I don't necessarily disagree with him, he's quite obviously twisted the real situation to support his own opinion, and like I said, Def Jam have their side of the story, and the truth of the situation is likely in between the two.
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