H
ouston and the San Francisco/Oakland Bay Area are my two favorite places for Hip Hop. They always have been, but not just because of the music. I love the music that comes from H-Town and The Bay but the reason they’re my favorites is because the local artists and various indie labels have never played by the rules set by New York and Los Angeles based major labels. Other areas like Miami, New Orleans, and Memphis have also made major moves with the help of major labels. After years of maintaining their own local Hip Hop scenes, the majors show up in these areas and give a few artists and labels a chance to play in the big leagues.
I don’t feel like enough artists understand the value of having a few independent albums under your belt before you sign to a major label. Most artists dream of hit records, videos in rotation on BET, and instant fame. If you had the opportunity to hear the detailed stories of every successful rapper, you’d know that almost every last one of us struggled for years or hustled hard for a long time before achieving the success that we’re known for. It’s not difficult to start a business, open up a bank account, and do a deal with an independent distributor. A lot of distribution companies will pay for the first batch of CDs you press up if you have some kind of buzz in your area. When I use words like “hustle,” I don’t mean just rapping and recording. I’m talking about working in the studio, doing live performances every week, circulating your hot songs around the city or neighborhood, putting out mixtapes, and doing anything else you can think of to prove to everybody that you’re one of the best out there. If you’re not a hustler and you’re still convinced that your demo is the best shit ever recorded in the history of the world, you’ll be the only person that feels that way because nobody will ever know about you. The best rappers and producers aren’t always the ones who make it big. The best hustlers usually have their way. If you’re already involved with a local independent label, make sure you maximize your hustle. If you plan on doing your indie thing in the near future, don’t just sit at home waiting on success to find you because you think your shit is so hot that the world can’t deny you’re the next Lil Wayne. In my 20+ years in Hip Hop, I’ve seen a lot of artists blow up in their hometown and be bigger in their own city than the biggest rappers from a major label. Not all of them have made it as big outside of their own cities, but they still make thousands and thousands of dollars without the help of major labels. There’s plenty of stories where a local label is doing it big, and then the majors come in and give them a lot of money to sign. That’s the end of the story. The majors “don’t get it” and after the cars and houses and purchased, it’s over before it really gets started. In some of those cases, that indie label could have turned down the major label deal and fed their families for years on the regional success of those artists. Being part of a local indie label is like going to college for a rapper. Once you make it to the majors, you’re a professional and you’re already seasoned. Fuck that whack-ass dream about walking into a major label and getting instantly signed and then seeing yourself on TV every day as you get filthy stinking rich. It could happen but even if it does, you’ll be inexperienced and won’t know what’s going on around you. You’ll have to rely on lawyers, managers, agents, label execs, and producers to tell you what to do. I think it’s best to crawl before you walk. // Photo by D-Ray
// OZONE WEST