State Champ Radio def jam
When Tunji Balogun took over Def Jam in January 2022 after a career working with stars such as Kendrick Lamar at Interscope; Khalid, Bryson Tiller, H.E.R. and Wizkid at RCA; and Normani at his own Keep Cool imprint, he says he found a label with “a lot of question marks. There was a lot of instability. It seemed like there were a lot of different perspectives.”
In the five years prior to Balogun’s tenure, Def Jam had been in a state of near-continual upheaval. After Steve Bartels exited as CEO in 2018, Eminem manager and Shady Records co-founder Paul Rosenberg took the job but lasted only two years. Jeffrey Harleston, executive vp of business affairs/general counsel of the label’s parent company, Universal Music Group (UMG), ran Def Jam on an interim basis — which coincided with the pandemic — until Balogun was hired. By that time, nearly a decade had passed since someone with an A&R background had led the company.
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Not surprisingly, Balogun inherited a label in serious need of reinvention. “It felt like there was an overreliance on the existing roster and not as much of a focus on what comes next,” the A&R veteran and former rapper says. “The current roster was strong, especially at that time. You still had Kanye [West], and [Justin] Bieber was releasing a lot of music; Jhené [Aiko] had a big album. But the reality is, you always need that next wave of artists that’s going to continue turning the page, and I put the focus on that from day one.”
Balogun quickly set to work reshaping the roster, signing Muni Long, Coco Jones and Armani White while expanding into dancehall with Masicka and into Afrobeats with Adekunle Gold and Odumodublvck, in partnership with Native Records. Some of it has paid off: Muni Long and Jones were nominated for best new artist at the Grammy Awards in 2023 and 2024, respectively, and each won for best R&B performance in subsequent years, a first for any label in that category.
The plaque commemorating Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” going two-times platinum reminds Balogun “of one of the most unique and impactful records I’ve been lucky enough to play a small part in bringing to the world.”
DeSean McClinton-Holland
But the path forward, which Balogun says includes “being deliberate about giving our artists resources and nurturing them,” has had its setbacks. Def Jam’s market share has declined for the past three years — a downturn that began before Balogun arrived — and sat at 0.65% at the end of 2023, according to Luminate. And the label that once released culture-shaping music by LL COOL J, Public Enemy, Jay-Z, West and Rihanna had no chart-topping albums.
There was more upheaval as a result of the restructuring and layoffs at UMG in the first few months of the year, which led to Balogun reporting to Republic co-founder/CEO Monte Lipman and Def Jam’s urban promotions and public relations staff moving into the new Republic Corps shared-services division. “It was difficult for us, just as I’m sure it was difficult for any other label to have to go through” layoffs, he says, adding, “I actually think we are more focused and more aligned and more set up for success now.”
Despite these changes, Balogun’s reset is gaining momentum and market share is on the upswing. After Muni Long’s “Hrs & Hrs” reached No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2022, her latest single, “Made for Me,” reached No. 20 on the March 9 chart and became her second No. 1 hit on R&B/ Hip-Hop Airplay, where it has reigned for five weeks. That will lead into her forthcoming debut album, part of a slate of releases this year from Jones, Aiko, Vince Staples, Big Sean, Alessia Cara, Wale, LL COOL J and Chuck D, among others.
As Def Jam celebrates 40 years of history, Balogun says the label is driving forward once again. “I want to get to a place where we’re not defined by nostalgia; where nostalgia is just a part of the magic,” he says. “I do think we’re heading there. But it’s a heavy task.”
Balogun says the boombox is “a reminder of my musical roots and the magical era when Def Jam began to change the world.”
DeSean McClinton-Holland
Def Jam is 40 years old. What does that mean to you?
Def Jam, to me, has always stood for forward-thinking, cutting-edge Black music. And I’m careful to say “Black music” and not just “Black artists” because if you have something special like a Beastie Boys or eventually a [Justin] Bieber, it belongs on the label as well. It was the first label that felt like [it had] a point of view. If you plot the course of the label over time, there has always been risk-taking signings that reflect where music is going. The goal is to continue that tradition and bring it into the future. My entire career, most of my successes have been a little bit left of center: riskier signings, artists that have their own point of view.
When you accepted the role, what was your strategy, and how did it change once you got to Def Jam?
My plan was to look under the hood, meet every single artist and employee and have genuine, one-on-one conversations with them. I found that there was a lot of instability. There wasn’t a focus on the new, which is everything I saw when I worked with Jimmy Iovine, John Janick, Peter Edge.
Did the label need a cultural reinvention?
Yes. I am a walking reset button for Def Jam. That’s not to disrespect anyone who was here before me. It was more about bringing [the label] into my world and the way that I move. I try to be a reflection of what’s happening in the creative community. That’s always going to be my superpower: I’m tapped in with the producers and the artists. Def Jam has always been the culture’s label, the most down-to-earth label, that feels like a reflection of the people. I want to reestablish those values.
How do you balance that with the need for hits?
I want more hits, but to get to that point, you need to plant multiple seeds and allow them to flourish. You can’t just put [a song] on MTV and the radio and it’s over. There needs to be 100 discovery points, a digital story, an [in real life] story, an artist proposition, a song that’s special, and all those things need to align in one moment. When I started, I told Lucian [Grainge] that I’m a long-term guy and I’m willing to wait for the moment. I’m not pressed to chase numbers, chase the algorithm, chase the hot new thing of the week. I’m going to wait until I find something really special that makes my skin tingle, and then I’m going to go for it.
“My small but mighty jewelry collection”: his wedding band and his half of matching Cartier rings that he and his wife wear. His mother gave him the chain with the charm and matching ring when Balogun was in Nigeria “reconnecting with my roots. She literally took the chain off her neck and put it around mine.” A few months later, she “hooked me up to complete the look” with the ring. He wears it on his left pinky and the Cartier on his right.
DeSean McClinton-Holland
How has the UMG restructure affected you and Def Jam?
The biggest changes are in radio promotion, where now we work with Republic’s rhythm and pop staffs. We retained our urban team, which now services the whole group. Since this is Def Jam, the vast majority of these records are going to start in that urban radio space, so it actually, so far, has been really seamless. The other major change is in the publicity space, where we now share resources with the Republic Corps team. From the inside looking out, it has been pretty smooth, and there hasn’t really been much of a drastic change. We’re very much continuing on that path that we’ve been on since I got here.
What’s an example of how the new structure has worked?
A great example of the synergy has been the work that we’ve done with Muni Long’s “Made For Me” record, which our team got started. We got it to No. 1 at R&B and urban radio right as the transition was happening, and then we seamlessly passed the baton to [Republic’s] Gary Spangler and his team, and they got it to No. 1 at rhythm and now they’re building at [adult top 40] and top 40 radio. The creative and the energy and the ideas are still coming from Def Jam, but once we reach certain thresholds, we collaborate with the larger team. That song is still going from strength to strength. It’ll end up as one of the biggest R&B songs of the year, and it’ll set up Muni’s album. It feels like we have more tools in terms of artist development, and now we can approach things from different angles, depending on what the most effective strategy is.
One of the consequences of planting seeds, as you put it, is that Def Jam’s market share has been dropping. Are you worried you’re not going to have the time and space to watch these seeds grow?
No. It doesn’t change the conversation I had with Lucian at the beginning. That’s something that everyone that I deal with understands. I’m also not a dictator who thinks he knows everything. I’m willing to learn and grow, and for me, this [restructuring] is another opportunity to grow. There are things that I’m excited to work on with some of the other labels now that there’s a possibility of doing things together. I’m already moving like that.
Def Jam scored best new artist Grammy nominees in each of the past two years. What does that signify for you?
We are making progress. But every single person who I’ve spoken to who has gone through this [experience] has said it’s probably going to take three, probably four or five years. We’re at the beginning of year three. My biggest fear was, “Am I going to be able to go in there and break new acts?” Now I know we’re able to do it. Every time I’ve bet on myself, I’ve found success. I’m confident in that, and I’m confident in my team and in our artists. We’re already on an incline, so I don’t see how that stops.
How do you want the next 40 years of Def Jam’s artists to define the label?
I want Def Jam to be the destination for the next generation of global Black music. That is my mission statement. In many ways, it reflects what the label has always been, but it brings in all the new scenes and sounds and strains of music — everything from U.K. R&B, to Nigerian drill, to amapiano from South Africa, to a really special country act from Missouri, the next incredible lyricist from New York or the next really special female MC from Atlanta. All these different worlds and sounds need to exist within this label. I truly believe that we are the only major label that’s synonymous with pushing Black music forward.
This story originally appeared in the May 11, 2024, issue of Billboard.
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The list of scandals tied to Diddy’s name grows by the day. Mark Curry believes Shyne’s Def Jam deal was really a pay off from Brother Love.
As reported by XXL, the former Bad Boy Records talent has been making his rounds conducting interviews at different media platforms. Last week, Mark Curry did a sit-down with Cam Capone News and as expected, the “Dangerous MC’s” rapper did not hold back when discussing his former CEO. Curry revealed how he and Shyne once were roommates and detailed how the two were very close at one time.
In 1999, Shyne and Diddy would be involved in an infamous shooting at Club New York in Manhattan. Mark would go on to state that he believes that Shyne’s Def Jam Records deal in 2010 was actually a pay off from Diddy. “L.A. Reid gave him a million dollars to put out an album and the album never came out,” Curry added. “I knew that when L.A. Reid went to give him that million dollars, that was Puff giving him the money, but he had to give it through L.A. Reid.” In essence he contends that the money was for the 10-year prison stint Shyne did for him. “They never intended on giving him an album,” he said. “If they would have gave him a million dollars for an album, wouldn’t we had heard the album?”
This theory comes off the heels of Natania Reuben’s recent claims that Diddy was the one who shot her at Club New York, not Shyne. “I literally told everyone and never changed what I said. I watched him. I got [shot] in the face. I watched him fire the gun” she exclaimed. “I’ve said it all this time. Even the surgeon who did my surgery…testified in the criminal trial that while they were putting me under [anesthesia], I was screaming, ‘Puffy [shot] me in the face.’…Everybody knew he did it, but he paid off the club bouncer…and all these other people to hide the video. That’s his MO.”
You can watch Mark Curry discuss Shyne below.
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A former producer and executive who worked with Russell Simmons has sued the mogul, alleging that he sexually assaulted her in the 1990s.
According to reports, Hip-Hop pioneer and Def Jam Recordings founder Russell Simmons was hit with a lawsuit Tuesday (Feb. 13) in Manhattan, New York. The lawsuit, filed by a woman referred to as “Jane Doe,” claims that Simmons raped her in the late 1990s in his apartment. The woman describes herself as a former senior music executive and music video producer who worked for Def Jam during that time.
In the filing, Ms. Doe claimed that Simmons had invited her to his place to view a rough cut of a music video. Soon after she arrived, his demeanor went from business to being sexual, which she brushed off as a joke. He then pulled a “wrestling move” and pinned her down before allegedly raping her. She detailed how she tried to fight him off, but was unable to. She would further detail how Simmons sexually harassed her afterward at the office, invading her personal space. The lawsuit says she resigned from Def Jam in 1997.
Her lawyers, Kenya Davis and Sigrid McCawley, stated that their client was moving up in her career before the sexual assault. “She was proud of her contributions to the burgeoning musical genre of hip hop, but her hard work and her career in music was disrupted and derailed by Mr. Simmons, a rich and powerful celebrity whose wealth and influence allowed his abusive behavior to go unchallenged for decades,” they said in a statement. “Now a successful writer and producer in the entertainment industry, Jane Doe’s traumatic experiences with Simmons echo those of so many other women who he has preyed upon for decades.”
The lawsuit was filed under the New York’s Adult Survivors Act and the New York City Gender Motivated Violence Act. Both laws contain “lookback windows,” which allow for the filing of lawsuits that wouldn’t occur due to being outside of the statute of limitations. Russell Simmons faced other lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault in 2018 and was the subject of the On The Record documentary in 2020 where other accusers detailed their allegations against him. Simmons has stated in the past that he had been in “compromising situations,” but claimed in an interview that he took and passed nine lie detector tests concerning those allegations.
Ten years ago, Cole Bennett was just another teenager with a blog who loved Chicago hip-hop, at a time when the city was bursting at the seams with rising talent. Chicago drill had taken over, with Chief Keef and Lil Durk leading a wave of young MCs; Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa were riding a different wave, but no less creative and influential; and music lovers (and the music industry) were focused in on the city intensely, making bets on who would be the next to emerge from the hotbed of creativity.
It was in that era that Lyrical Lemonade was initially born — with Bennett, 17 at the time and still in high school in Plano, Illinois, launching what he calls “truly just a passion project, something that I could do in my free time that allowed me to be creative.” A few years later Bennett was living in Chicago, with the kind of freedom that only a summer break between college semesters can offer, when he really began to focus in on what Lyrical Lemonade could be.
Shortly after that he dropped out of college entirely, beginning the process of turning his blog and passion for hip-hop into a career as one of the go-to music video directors and creatives in the business. He shot videos for budding stars Juice WRLD, Lil Xan, Lil Pump, Ski Mask the Slump God and Jack Harlow, eventually working with luminaries like Eminem, Kanye West and J. Cole, all with his signature bright hues and lemonade-carton logo in the corner.
“When I started doing videos, it was really like the second layer of Lyrical Lemonade,” he says. “The first layer was the blog — I loved writing and covering new local talent that wasn’t being covered, and I thought I wanted to go to school for journalism and take that route. But I also loved film and shooting videos and that side of things. And then that started to catch its stride and became the forefront of it all.”
Since then, Lyrical Lemonade has continued to grow and evolve, encompassing a music festival that he launched in 2018, called Summer Smash, alongside festival partner Berto Solorio; working with brands like Jordan and the Minions; and, now, partnering with Def Jam for the first Lyrical Lemonade album, All Is Yellow, released on Jan. 26. The collaborative album is a kaleidoscope of features and cuts from the vast web of Bennett’s network, including Durk, Keef, JID, Kid Cudi, Lil Yachty, Lil B, Juicy J, Cordae, Latto, Joey Badass and Eminem. Bennett has shot a music video for each song, which he plans to stitch together into a visual album once they’re all released.
“It was really about breaking down that door and bringing people together,” he says about the album. “When there’s someone who can act as the glue within it all, people really put their egos down. I want rap music to be more unified, I want there to be more collaboration. Growing up, this is what I was into — I loved posse cuts, I loved left-field features that you wouldn’t expect, I loved seeing my favorite artists from two completely different sides of the spectrum in a photo together. These are all things that fed me, so I wanted to create a world where that was the theme.”
At this point, Lyrical Lemonade has grown into one of the most trusted brands in hip-hop, with a social following in the millions and more than 21 million subscribers on YouTube, where his 400-plus videos have racked up over 11 billion views. Bennett spoke to Billboard to reflect on the past decade of Lyrical Lemonade, the various avenues through which the company has expanded and where he plans to go from here — eventually.
“I’m gonna spend some time with my family and just take a second to see what I want to do next,” he says. “That’s never been the answer; I’ve always had some extravagant thing I wanted to tackle next, and I think right now I’m just going to give myself a breather to figure out what that is, but do it at my own pace.”
You just celebrated 10 years of Lyrical Lemonade last year. What’s the significance of that for you?
For me, it’s the idea of time. Ten years goes by quick, but I also feel like I lived 10 lives within those 10 years. So it’s really just trying to wrap my head around understanding how fast time can go, how slow time can go — and also understanding how many memories can be packed into a few years. It’s made me more aware of how I want to spend my time. Ten years ago I was 17; you’re starting to become an adult, and I started Lyrical Lemonade and stepped into my professional career. So it’s my first time fully understanding what 10 years feels like.
When you first started, what were you hoping to accomplish?
Nothing: It was solely, honestly, truly just a passion project, just something that I could do in my free time that allowed me to be creative and have an outlet for my creativity and my imagination and the things I was into. I just loved Chicago rap music. Then one thing led to the next, and I was like, “Wow, I’m also being productive — this isn’t just a form of entertainment for me, this is also something that I can do.”
In 2018 you launched your festival. Why did you want to get into that and what did you learn from that experience?
I’ve been throwing shows since 2013. The first Lyrical Lemonade show, we spent $150 that I had made from mowing lawns to rent this rehearsal room that fit 90 people, and it was a free show. The festival thing was one of those dreams that didn’t feel realistic; you grow up around Chicago and go to Lollapalooza every year and you just look at that as this heaven on earth, this thing that you look forward to all year round that feels bigger than life. It didn’t feel like a real, tangible thing, but it was this far-fetched dream that I would ponder on sometimes.
We kept doing shows, and the venues started getting bigger. I went to Chicago shows my whole life, and there were venues I dreamed of doing shows at: Reggie’s Rock Club, then Lincoln Hall, then the Metro. These were all on the bucket list. Then on the west side of Chicago, there was a local festival that was happening on a Saturday, one stage — and they weren’t doing it on the Sunday, but they already had the fencing, the stage, everything was prepared for it. So we got in contact with the city and asked if we could take it over and extend it one day and do our own show. And we got approved for it and we ran with it. Berto and I had already thrown a lot of shows together, I had built a lot of great relationships with artists through doing videos with them, so getting people on board was really easy, and we just went for it. It was one day, 11,000 people, sold out.
Once you do something once, your idea of tackling the next step of that is so much more realistic. So it was like a slow build up. I won’t lie, going from the shows we were throwing to that festival was a big leap, but the opportunity presented itself and we took it. But it wouldn’t have been possible without Berto. Working with Berto on this whole journey is something that I’m thankful for and it wouldn’t have been possible without him.
How has that grown since? It’s now three days, over 100,000 people.
One thing led to the next and it was gradual. I think there was a need for it in Chicago and there was an audience for it that loves rap music and wanted a rap festival in the Midwest. We pay attention to detail, we’re very passionate about what we do and making it an experience for the audience. And I think that’s felt by the consumer and it’s allowed us to continue to grow.
You’re very intentional with your color schemes. How important is that to what you do?
I think storytelling can be done in so many different ways. I remember when I first started making music videos, it was a lot of point-and-shoot and then having fun in the edit; there was no storyline. I do want to eventually do films, that’s a dream of mine — but I didn’t love trying to create a narrative within a music video.
That then led me to realize that you can storytell in a lot of different ways. You can storytell with a strong color palette. You can do it with wardrobe, set design, shapes, all these different things. And when I started to understand that, I really became comfortable with the idea of how my eye reacts to color and having fun with what these different colors mean and how they make people feel, and how wardrobe and shapes make people feel, and how all these worlds can live together in a really profound and visually appealing way.
It also plays into the album — the title of the album, the videos for each song. When did you first decide that you wanted to do an album?
It was always something in the back of my head, an idea that was floating around for a long time, but I knew I wasn’t ready for it. A project of this size, you’re going to look back at for the rest of your life. I knew how much love and care and attention to detail it would take.
In 2018 and 2019, which a lot of people would consider a really big moment in time for Lyrical Lemonade, it would have been a perfect time to do it. But I think there would have been some collaborations and things that wouldn’t be true to who I am now. And some of the collaborations I worked on now probably won’t be true to me in three or four years, too. But I will be able to be thankful and appreciative of where I was at when I made this, because I know how much effort and care that went into it, whereas I don’t know if I would’ve been able to give this type of effort and care four or five years ago.
How did this partnership with Def Jam come about?
There’s been a part of me, for better or for worse, that was really anti-label for a long time, so doing an album I really thought I wanted to take the independent route. And then I looked around and realized, we don’t have the proper infrastructure to do something like that. The point of a label is to add that stability and infrastructure to make these things possible. For a lot of artists, you don’t need that, but for a compilation album and doing all these videos, with 30-plus artists, and all that goes into that, it’s such a mountain that I needed a team, someone in my ear giving me deadlines, structure that I didn’t have.
If I would’ve went into this trying the independent route, it probably wouldn’t have come out — you just keep making the album, and then it never gets finished because it never stops getting made. Working with a label, it gave me structure and deadlines. Not in a forceful or uncomfortable way, but in a way that they were keeping on me and I felt comfortable with it, like I was doing it properly.
What does this partnership entail? Are you forming a label, or is this a one-off thing?
It’s just a one-off project. I was never into the idea of doing a Lyrical Lemonade label and signing artists. I’ve never been interested in the business side of the music industry; it’s not a passion of mine, and anything I’m not passionate about I try to stay away from.
What was the process like for putting this together?
It was really about trying to bring different worlds together and throwing things at the wall that, for the most part — there’s maybe three songs that could have happened without this universe that was created — but these are pretty left-field collabs in terms of people coming together. That went for the music, and trying to create music that made me feel something, working with incredible people and just long, sleepless nights in the studio.
“Flyaway,” which is the intro to the album, was inspired by watching a movie; there was a scene in the movie and I was like, “I want to create a song that sounds like this.” A lot of these songs came together perfectly as I envisioned it. And the there were some songs where I was like, “Let me just try something here and let’s see how it starts to build.” And some of those songs didn’t end up making the album, but I learned so much from those songs and working on those ideas. “First Night” is a good example of a clusterfuck of a song that was like, “I don’t even know what the fuck this is, but it exists and it’s here and it’s going on the album.”
Any songs on there that you can’t believe you pulled off?
A lot of the songs, some of these artists didn’t even know the other people on the song — and those are some of my favorite stories. That lets me know that I’m trusted and that I’ve built solid, pure relationships, where an artist can literally not know who someone is that they’re getting on a song with. There’s probably six or seven songs on the album where that’s the case. And I don’t even mean they didn’t know each other like they hadn’t met; they didn’t even know this person existed.
But I mean, “Fly Away” is cool for me because it came out exactly how I envisioned from the beginning. “Hummingbird” is just beautiful; it’s a song that I truly feel is timeless. I feel like that about “Fallout” as well. The fact that Eminem is on the album; I could go on and on about how grateful and blown away I am by that. I still can’t believe it. And he said my name on the song; it just doesn’t feel like real life. There are so many things that I can’t believe actually happened.
Have you thought about the next 10 years of Lyrical Lemonade?
I always talk about how I think it would be cool to do an amusement park one day, but we’ll see how that goes once I dive further into that; it may be something that excites me, or it may be something that I’m not as into as I thought it would be. I want to be doing movies, that’s a big goal of mine. But I don’t know. It’s gonna be interesting. I’m trying to just let it happen as it’s supposed to happen.
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Source: Jeff Kravitz / Getty / Ice-T
Many gamers have been wondering when, in a time when we have gotten some fire remakes, EA will spin the block and bring back Def Jam Vendetta. Hip-hop legend Ice-T shared a theory about why the game hasn’t come to fruition, and spoiler alert: there’s a good chance it won’t ever come back.
Ice-T spends much of his downtime when he’s not acting by picking up the sticks and is a playable character in Def Jam: Fight For NY.
He decided to chime in on Def Jam Vendetta being left in the vault and threw cold water on many gamers, hoping for the video game to return with his theory on the matter.
The game, which featured rappers like Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, even Joe Budden, and anyone involved in the Hip-Hop world, including Jacob The Jeweler, was as if they took wrestling video games like WCW/NWO Revenge and merged it with Street Fighter to deliver what many call one of greatest fighting games ever.
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“So many people ask me why this game hasn’t been brought back for the newer consoles. Maybe because they’d have to pay for voice and music rights again. Maybe?” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
He continued, “Here’s the BIG problem.. I don’t think they paid ANY of us ANYTHING to be in that original game… I know I didn’t get any type of substantial money. It’s was a situation where you didn’t want to be left OUT of the game. Well….. Yesterday’s price is not Today’s price..!”
Notable gamer, streamer, and famous Blerd actor Khleo Thomas further explained why the game might never be remade.
The “Colors” crafter did point out that he did receive the bag for his voice work in GTA V and Gears of War.
Welp.
Def Jam Teased The Games Possible Return In 2020
Neither EA nor Def Jam have ever confirmed this to be the roadblock keeping the game from returning, but it seems plausible. Def Jam, under Kevin Liles’s leadership, hinted at bringing the game back in a tweet, writing: “#itsinthename Thinking I should bring back the series. How many of y’all would like to see this happen #DefJamEnterprises let me know.”
Def Jam even got people’s hope in August 2020 when they tweeted that fans wanted them to make another fighting game. The record label even said they would announce special news if their X account hits a million followers.
Nothing came of it.
If Def Jam Vendetta does come back, count as one of the many who will welcome the news, but we have zero faith that the game will make it onto next-gen systems.
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Photo: Jeff Kravitz / Getty
December may traditionally signal the end of the calendar year, but for Masicka, the twelfth month of the year houses plenty of new beginnings. The dancehall superstar opened the month with the release of Generation of Kings last Friday (Dec. 1), his sophomore studio album and first full-length release since signing to Def Jam in February. The 17-song set comes on the heels of his summer hit “Tyrant,” which sat alongside Byron Messia’s “Talibans” and Chronic Law & Ireland Boss’ “V6” among this summer’s defining crossover dancehall hits.
Upon Masicka’s signing to Def Jam, CEO Tunji Balogun said, via a press release, “Def Jam has always been the home for great artists across the wide spectrum of Black music, and Masicka is very much emblematic of that vision.” That may seem like a catch-all corporate platitude, but Masicka truly does embody the ever-evolving spectrum of Black music. Hailing from Portmore, Jamaica, Masicka grew up listening to not just dancehall and reggae, but also rap music. As Hip-Hop 50 has acknowledged, the relationship between dancehall and hip-hop is as storied as it is symbiotic, and Masicka continues that legacy with a stage name partially derived from his favorite blockbuster 50 Cent album.
Across Generation of Kings, Masicka infuses his trap dancehall foundation with flourishes of R&B (“Wet”) and Afrobeats (“Fight For Us”), calling on a globe-spanning collection of collaborators to bring his vision of collective royalty to life. Equally introspective and biting, Masicka’s lyrics — which explore everything from settling beef to reflections on his childhood — perfectly complement his penchant for lush melodic lines and reverb-drenched harmonies. With such a strong ear, it’s no surprise that, despite dancehall’s current Stateside commercial stagnancy, Masicka has been able to truly break through.
438, his debut album which also won dancehall album of the year at the 2023 Caribbean Music Awards, has earned over 50,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. since its Dec. 3, 2021 release, according to Luminate, and his overall catalog has collected over 258.8 million on-demand streams. Upon release, Generation of Kings looks poised to explode those numbers. In just over a week, the album has hit No. 1 on Apple Music in 16 countries, scored the eighth biggest album debut on Spotify U.K. for the period Dec. 1-3 and reached No. 11 on U.S. Apple Music. Furthermore, with Generation of Kings, Masicka became the first artist in history to simultaneously occupy the top 17 on Apple Music in Jamaica — and he even surpassed Bob Marley & the Wailers‘ unmoveable Legend compilation for the No. 1 spot on both U.S. iTunes’ and Apple Music’s reggae albums charts.
Still basking in the glow of the immediate success of Generation of Kings, Masicka stopped by the Billboard offices to chat about his future as a Def Jam recording artist, his formative musical influences and 50 Cent’s influence in Jamaica.
Let’s talk about Generation of Kings. Where was your head while making this album? What were you drawing inspiration from?
After the first album [438], mi feel like mi cement myself inna di dancehall space with a great body at work. So, with Generation of Kings, mi just feel like it’s my time. The whole era, the whole music, the whole feel, just how everything’s going.
How did you go about assembling the tracklist?
I think that was the hardest part, being we had quite a number of great tracks on the album. So, you kind of get them fi tell a storyline. Mi went back in the studio a couple of times, link up with di team, we decipher a likkle bit and then we think what we choose was more of the songs that were what people can relate to. They’re like the motivational songs you can get a positive vibration from.
So, what exactly was the storyline you envisioned for the record?
Triumph. Just transitioning and taking a greater step towards fulfilling your dreams. This album was basically telling the people dem that I’m ready.
You have some fire collaborations on the album – Popcaan, Spice and Fridayy, to name a few – tell me about bringing those artists into your vision.
The most anticipated collab was the Chronic Law [track], he’s a lyricist from Jamaican and people always wan us fi do a song together. That song also features Lila Iké too – bad upcoming female artist. Mi think di people dem really resonate with that collab. The song with Fridayy, it’s different, the one with Fave too. But I think all of the collabs went exceptionally well.
Did you reach out to Fridayy or did he reach out to you?
Tunji [Balogun] set that up! When I heard di track, I was like, “Yo, this dope,” and Fridayy connected right as his album dropped – mi love di album, it’s crazy.
Speaking of Tunji, you signed to Def Jam earlier this year, so congratulations! Why Def Jam? What drew you to them in particular?
The direction and empowerment for artists culture they have. Mi like how dem work. Mi like Tunji vision more than anything else. We spoke probably about a year and a half before [I] actually signed. Mi also like the humbleness. Mi think we share the same work ethic and vision all in one. Anything’s a risk, but mi think this a good risk.
Why did now feel like the time for you to sign to an international label?
I think, personally, mi cover a lot of ground throughout the Caribbean. I feel like I’ve done everything I needed to in the Caribbean. I’ve traveled the Caribbean like 6-7 times already, over and over again, and it’s just trying to get a greater reach. They see the talent, they see the creativity. It’s just trying fi expand the content and mek di ting grow and just build it. Nuh sense fi have all this talent and you remain on the same level.
There are a lot of hip-hop influences on Generations of Kings and the genre has a rich relationship with dancehall. Are there any rappers you’d like to get on a remix of one of these tracks?
Probably Lil Baby. Lil Baby dope. Jay-Z. 50 Cent.
Compare your headspace from the release of 438 to the release of Generation of Kings.
Mi think mi more mature. Mi think mi have more control in terms of how mi want di music fi sound. The ting before it was just di tip of di iceberg. Mi had just started to venture out into creating albums and creating projects. Mi think 438 was dope, just like Generation of Kings. But mentally, mi more mature, more settled, and the music a likkle bit more polished and direct.
What song on Generation of Kings took the longest to finish?
Mi think “Limelight.” Mi record “Limelight” and then leave it for like a month and then mi other verse come. Most of the time mi do something like that. Mi a just go inna di studio and spit something out. With “Limelight,” di riddim is different so mi actually do the chorus and then the verses.
Why did you decide to make “Limelight” a single?
Mi think di vibe — it was a likkle bit after summer, so you know everybody needs to be pumped. Mi think the vibe and the energy and the whole feeling of the song just felt victorious. Mi just feel like we had “Tyrant,” so mi haffi come with again with something sick. After the “Tyrant” success, mi just say, “Alright then, let mi listen through everything. What does it feel like?” “Limelight” was the next thing. It’s showing that it’s our space and we’re here.
Obviously, we’re in the Social Media Age — how has that been an effective tool for you as you continue to navigate your career?
Social media is the Golden Age, man. It mek it a lot easier and mek people from all over di world see your music. It helps a lot. It help to promote, it help to grow the fan base. Social media is one of the key things right now for musicians. They can just pick up the phone and see somebody in Guatemala and somebody one million miles away. We have a better advantage now than the generation of artists before us, so we just haffi make use of that.
What else do you have on the horizon to promote Generation of Kings?
Mi a shoot alla di music videos! Nuff video, nuff promo, mi already started working on a deluxe. Mi have some songs recorded. Mi think I have some sick collabs on it, it’ll be just as crazy as the album.
What do you listen for in new beats and riddims?
The thing is, you know, the beat don’t matter. It’s the once mi get the beat and mi feel a vibe, mi will record. The beat is a surface problem. For me to get a beat and really write to it, mi like pianos, beats with guitar, percussion. Mi like live songs that have a soulful feeling to it.
How do you approach songwriting? Are you more of a freestyler?
Normally, mi go inna di studio, play di beat for like 2-3 hours, and vibe it, vibe it, vibe it, vibe it, vibe it. Mi cyan write just sitting down. Mi write if mi haffi write, but mi like freestyle. Mi think the music better when mi freestyle. So mi would freestyle it and then go back inside, listen, see where we can make some more arrangements and stuff like that. That’s how mi create music. Mi have a studio at home, so mi inna di studio everyday majority of the time.
Sometimes it’s just the melody alone mi have, I just go inna di studio and mumble it. And throughout the day, when I’m playing a game or something, I just think about it subconsciously, and I finish it like that. Mi nuh have no songbook. I’ve never had a songbook.
Sonya Stephens recently praised you as an amazing songwriter, with a lot of that you can teach older generations of dance artists. I also spoke with Beenie Man few months ago about sharing knowledge across generations of dancehall. What do you think you and your peers can learn from your dancehall elders and vice versa?
Mi think we can definitely study the longevity of the artists dem before. All of them have amazing careers and dem stood the test of time, like Beenie Man and Bounty Killer. Mi think the difference is modern dancehall just gets five minutes of fame. Mi think them nuh love di craft. I think it’s more about getting out there than mastering the craft.
Bounty and Beenie Man start from when they was small, so dem actually really love di music, so they never had any other options. Now we have too much choices. There’s no appreciation for the music, so everybody feel like dem can just be a part of the music and just call themselves anything.
Definitely, mi think they can learn to take more risks, cause mi think we take a lotta risks, the younger generation. They could take more risks and pave more way for di yutes because dem have the opportunity and dem could do way more.
There were a number of global dancehall crossover hits this year, “Tyrant” among them. How do you think that momentum can be maintained?
We just have to realize it’s a bigger market out there. People with different ears, you know, so we just haffi try stuff. We just haffi try to be appealing, try the different music — but at the end of the day, keep originality and keep authenticity. We just haffi try and merge it with the Afrobeats – they’re on that level now. Dancehall was on that level, and it can be on that level again. It will, Imma speak it into being. I just think we need fi come together as people and push di music.
Do you feel that there’s any division that’s preventing that from happening?
Yeah, definitely. Dancehall is known for segregation, and that hinders the growth of the music a lot. Mi think once you have that togetherness and that unity… mi think that’s happening now. Yuh see di yutes dem now? I think the mindset is different, and mi think the yutes just work and take more risks. I venture to say that is why you have so many labels looking to the Jamaican market right now — because mi think there’s a change coming.
And I think that risk-taking, especially in terms of blending genres, is what’s really helping modern dancehall right now. Where do you think your courage to try new sounds comes from? Who were your main musical influences?
Mi love dancehall, but mi started off listening to rap. So, 50 Cent, Eminem, alla dem tings. Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, Massacre. Mi love music. Mi love dancehall, I’m a dancehall artist, but mi love music. Adele a one of my favorite artists of all time, mi listen to Lukas Graham, mi listen to so many different kinds of artists, so mi think with experimenting, it comes from feeling comfortable and mastering the craft and practicing every day. So, if mi get a beat, mi just look at miself like an instrument instead of just a dancehall artist. If I get a beat a need to sing in Spanish, then mi need fi guh learn Spanish! [Laughs.]
We only have one life, so why not experiment and why cage yourself into a box? Grow and try different stuff! Mi just think di music can be so big and diverse, you know?
You had a show in New York recently for your birthday, how was that?
Crazy, crazy. It was my birthday celebration. Di people dem love me out there. They love me in New York, so I always bring the energy. It was a crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy vibe.
Do you have any plans to tour soon?
I have a couple of shows, one in Miami. I have a show in Jamaica soon. And then we start off next year fresh. Right now, mi just a focus on GOK, and getting out there and pushing it.
So, I take it you’ll get some downtime with the family for the holidays.
Yeah, man, just spending some time. Family is big to me, so mi love fi get a likkle time fi spend with my family. I gotta take a break man. After next week, Def Jam cyan get to me! [Laughs.] Just kidding!
Looking out towards the next five years, what are some benchmarks that you want to hit?
In five years’ time, I really love fi become a fully established artist in the U.S. A fully established dancehall artist selling hundreds of thousands of records, start performing in stadiums, and sign some artists.
When it comes to signing artists, what you be looking and listening for?
Typically the same thing what mi have inna miself. Versatility, the love for di music first. You can have the talent, but if you don’t love it nah guh fully work. So them haffi have di love and di drive for it first.
Are there any notes you think the Jamaican recording industry can take from the American and African ones as you continue to work with international labels?
The professionalism. 100% the professionalism and the business behind the music. Mi think that is why the African industry is advancing now and booming like that. Mi think that’s what we lack, but we’re getting back there, right? Once we get back to that disciplinary level within di yutes and within di music, then we will have investors interested in working with dancehall artists cause you’re committed to your words and your work.
Before we go, I heard there’s a dope story behind your name.
You know, actually, it was 50 Cent’s album, The Massacre. Back in high school time, my auntie bought me the album. Initially mi never wan become an artist from di time mi was young, young, young. Mi coulda write songs mi nuh wan turn that.
What did you want to be?
A lawyer, mi was young! I still started my music career young, like 17, 18. But mi get the CD and I kept playing it. My friends dem used to call me Sicka, and then mi just decide say, Yo, Masicka, this is it.
50 Cent influence inna Jamaica is massive. You have the G-Unit tank tops, everybody loves Young Buck, Lloyd Banks — I think G-Unit was one of the crew that everybody inna Jamaica was just crazy about. You have other groups that’s mad talented, but the gangster thing, the aggressive thing just resonate with our culture.
Riggs Morales, the veteran A&R executive who has played a hand in the rise of Eminem, 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa, Janelle Monáe and many others, has joined the team at Def Jam Recordings.
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Based in New York, Morales is today (Nov. 28) named as executive vp of A&R, reporting to Tunji Balogun, chairman & CEO, Def Jam Recordings, a division of Universal Music Group (UMG).
Morales has runs on the board, particularly in hip-hop. He joined Atlantic in 2014 as vp of A&R & artist development, and was promoted to senior vp of A&R & artist development, his most recent role, in 2020.
There, he guided the careers of Khalifa and Monáe, and, in 2015, he signed and co-produced Hamilton: Original Broadway Cast Recording, which won the Grammy Award for best musical and is now certified Diamond by the RIAA. The following year, Morales executive-produced the all-star project, The Hamilton Mixtape.
“Armed with an instinct for creative development that keeps his artists first, Riggs has carved out a unique place for himself in our business, along with an absolutely blockbuster resume,” comments Balogun in a statement unveiling the new recruit. Morales’ “contributions to the culture are the stuff of legend,” he continues. “We’re excited to welcome Riggs to the Def Jam family.”
Those contributions include his work with Goliath Artists, Inc., whose roster included Eminem, Cypress Hill, Xzibit, The Alchemist and DJ Muggs. One year after landing with Goliath, Morales was rewarded with the role as director of A&R for the then-new imprint Shady Records, which, with Eminem and 50 Cent on its books, became one of the prominent labels in rap music.
“Growing up in New York City,” adds Morales, “Def Jam has served as a touchstone in my life for longer than I can remember. In my time as both a journalist and an executive, Def Jam has always been the pinnacle, the iconic hip-hop label, and the blueprint for others to follow.”
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Wale should be counted among one of the most talented rappers of his generation and the respect he’s gained in the industry was hard-earned. After taking some time away from releasing music, the DMV spitter is back with a new single “Max Julien” and is now signed to one of the most iconic labels in Hip-Hop.
Wale last dropped in October of 2021 with his last studio album Folarin II and appears to be his last with Warner and Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group. According to TMZ Hip Hop, the Washington, D.C. artist has been signed to Def Jam Recordings for months but kept details under wraps.
Usually an active figure on social media, Wale has kept largely mum until a recent post announcing the leadup to his new single, the aforementioned “Max Julien” produced by D.Woo.
From “Max Julien”:
I been goin’ through it lately
Nobody give a sh*t but wanna know more lately, uh
Damn, I been more alone lately
It’s no coincidence, been sayin’, “No more” lately
Yeah, see, I’m selfish but never pretentious
It’s not potential when the friendship that come with intentions
We’ve spun the song a few times this morning and the track proves that Wale is, without doubt, one of the most gifted lyricists in the game. There is also some vulnerability that shines alongside the usual bravado. All of this is delivered in his signature DMV accent and his always present confidence.
Check out “Max Julien” below. Welcome back, Folarin.
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Photo: Getty
Nigerian Afropop singer Adekunle Gold has officially signed with Def Jam Recordings, the company tells Billboard.
“I’ve been following Adekunle Gold since I first heard his record ‘Sade’ in 2016. Over the years, everything in AG’s world has elevated — his songwriting has refined, the scope of his artistry has widened, his vocals have strengthened, his approach to fashion is more distinct, and his showmanship and performance ability have grown exponentially,” says Def Jam CEO/chairman Tunji Balogun in a statement to Billboard. “He’s stepped into stardom on his own terms and is completely comfortable being his true self.”
Balogun added, “When I started at Def Jam, I knew I wanted to bring the label into the Afrobeats space tastefully, with the right artists and partnership. Adekunle felt like the perfect fit – he’d already done so much work on his own to build a base, but I knew that we could scale his audience to an even bigger level if we combined our energies and worked together.”
Gold (real name Adekunle Almoruf Kosoko) describes his signing as a “full circle moment” after Balogun tried signing him years ago, prior to the executive’s 2022 arrival at Def Jam. The “5 Star” singer said that because he and Balogun share Nigerian roots, “he understands it, so signing to Tunji makes sense. He’s like my studio buddy that just comes everywhere I go. The day he doesn’t have time to be there, I know he must’ve been like stupidly busy. He’s great.”
When it comes to signing with Def Jam, Gold continued, “The track record is there. The history is there. They break artists, and they have niche, unique artists like me, so I think it’s the right move for me. All of the things that I’ve done for myself already, they know already and that’s why they’re on board.”
Balogun was in Lagos, Nigeria, says Gold, when he and fellow Nigerian singer Zinoleesky were writing and recording “Party Dey no Stop,” Gold’s new single featuring Zinoleesky that marks his Def Jam debut. “When we started to make the music, it was so easy for me to go in and just attack the song. I wrote my verse, I wrote the chorus, and it was a rap. I knew from then that this song was a jam,” Gold says of the track.
“Party Dey no Stop” arrives ahead of Gold’s fifth studio album due in June. In support of the project, he’ll embark on a four-month world tour that’s set to kick off in North America in September and run through the United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, South America and the Caribbean through next year.
Gold first rose to fame in 2015 with the single “Sade,” a highlife love song that samples instrumentals from One Direction‘s 2013 hit “Story of My Life.” “Sade” went on to win best alternative song at the 2015 edition of The Headies, a Nigerian music awards show. Gold eventually signed his first record label deal with Olamide‘s YBNL Nation and released his debut studio album, Gold, in 2017. It peaked at No. 7 on Billboard‘s World Albums chart.
After Gold’s YBNL Nation contract expired, “I didn’t quite know what to do,” he says. “I was signed for two years, fresh off the industry. I was just thinking, ‘What am I going to do from here?’ [And] I’m like, ‘You know what? I got this. Let me just start my own thing.’”
The Afrobeats star then started his own label, Afro Urban Records — “one of the best decisions I’ve made,” he says — and put out two albums: 2018’s About 30 and 2022’s Catch Me If You Can. He released his 2020 album, Afro Pop, Vol. 1, under EMI.
In a previous Billboard interview, Gold explained why he switched labels and the benefits of working with distributor Platoon, which helped with the rollout for his last album, Catch Me If You Can, featuring Davido, Lucky Daye, Fatoumata Diawara, Fousheé, Ty Dolla $ign and Stefflon Don. “When I was fully Afro Urban Records and no distribution label, me and my manager [Elizabeth Sobowale] had to do a lot of work. Platoon has the best hands in everything from PR to marketing,” he said at the time. “All I had to do was work on the music and they’re ready to take the rest upon themselves.”
After his groundbreaking success with Wizkid and Tems during his tenure as executive vp of A&R at RCA, Balogun has been playing a monumental role in bolstering Def Jam’s roster with more talent from the African diaspora. In September 2022, the label signed an exclusive worldwide joint venture with Native Records to develop African artists.
“I think AG is a truly global artist, and a rightful ambassador for Nigerian music and the emerging Afrobeats scene,” Balogun says. “He has the talent, virtuosity, focus, work ethic and temperament required to be a worldwide superstar. I’m excited to work with him and the Def Jam team to bring more fans into his world.”
“Hear it from me,” Gold says. “Afrobeats is taking over the world.”
Def Jam Recordings announced on Friday (March 3) a joint venture with Philadelphia-based entertainment company Stack or Starve Records. The full service label will help develop the careers of their growing roster and newest signees D Sturdy, the Philly Goats and Saadi Four.
“Def Jam is one of the greats, I want Stack or Starve to be recognized in the same vein one day. With this partnership, I want to help our artists build wealth, understand financial literacy and most importantly, I want them to be able to help others and pay it forward,” said Curtis “Boonah” Brinkley, CEO of Stack or Starve. “We aim to do this by connecting them with financial advisors and wealth coaches, building real estate portfolios and helping them diversify their assets. The strategic moves that will be put in place for our artists and team will put them in a position that began with music but elevated them in all realms of life. Personally, I want them to be able to take care of their kids and families.”
The primary focus of the venture will be empowering, teaching and expanding Stack or Starve’s roster by leveraging Def Jam’s robust resources including A&R, marketing, PR, distribution, creative, touring, management, promo and more.
Stack or Starve Records was founded by Philly natives Brinkley and Shana Sherman, Def Jam’s director of A&R. Sherman has a history of working with major labels such as RCA and BMG alongside executives like L.A. Reid and Tunji Balogun. She has also aided in breaking and developing viral artists such as Armani White and Raveena and has worked with Maxwell, K. Michelle, India.Arie, Ledisi, and more.
The company was founded with the belief of improving the lives of young people in Philadelphia and its surrounding neighborhoods. With that goal in mind, the label strives to become a global name as it seeks to grow and empower artists around the world.
“We want to change the culture of music from this era of trending and virality to a movement that’s being spurred right out of Philly,” said Sherman. “The kids on our roster have created sounds and cultural moments that cannot be duplicated; we’re working with kids who have started their own waves, built their own organic followings, and we’re helping them achieve their goals and accomplish their vision, seeing this come to life puts the fun back into my job and the joy back in music.”
Coinciding with today’s news is the announcement of D Sturdy and the Philly Goats signing with Def Jam via the Stack or Starve partnership, joining label mate Saadi Four. In 2018, D Sturdy and the Philly Goats got their start as a Philadelphia dance and music collective comprised of D Sturdy, Sou and Spence.
“We, as a team, always speak of ownership, so the joint venture was something that we all wanted from day one. In doing that, Def Jam recognized and gave us a great opportunity to come together,” said Brinkley.” “I have a great partner, Shana Sherman, and we have a team of young and dedicated individuals working extremely hard. We invested a lot of time and resources into finding and developing several hot young artists and providing them with the platform to be recognized. We are definitely building something special here, and it’s all based on the grind, hard work and great talent.”
