Monday, July 30, 2007

If you are and hip hop artist, and missed Ice-T at the making moves conference this weekend, you played yourself


Ice kept it real about the industry ya'll. Lots of things we thought we knew, as in this being the worst time ever in music, he confirmed. He even broke it down like..."Look at being a rapper today as if you went to college and bust ass to get your degree as a nurses assistant, only to find out after you finish that Nurse's assistants only make $25,000.00 a year."
He went on to say that maybe 10 rappers today are rich off of music alone, and suggested, with the rate that Baltimore artist actually make it, that kats "Don't quit their day job".
He compared the industry to the 'pimp game', and pointed out that most deals are 7 years, and the record label has the option to terminate at anytime. 7 years is also the same amount of time that European servants coming to America on 'credit' were required to be slaves to work off their debt. He pointed out that the labels don't give you anything, and are more like loan sharks that give you money up front, only to take it all back, and then collect 5 times more than you on your profits. If you are in the red these days, record labels in 2007 force you on tour to work off your debt, collecting all monies off shows and merchandise until your advance id recouped.
His suggestions. Get into a new industry, but if hip hop music is for you, produce everything yourself so that you own it, submit your project for distribution to record labels, and get 50%. If they didn't front on the creative process, then they can't front and try to get all in your pockets.

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