From ‘93 Til Infinity When Souls Of Mischief came out with the hit song “From ‘93 Til Infinity” fifteen years ago, they did not know how true that song title would be for them. As part of the Hieroglyphics crew, their movement has had staying power in Hip Hop that many have envied and very few have rivaled. The Hieroglyphics crew consists of Souls Of Mischief (which is Tajai, Opio, Phesto, and A Plus), Casual, Pep Love, Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Domino, and DJ Toure. The producers of the crew are Domino and A Plus. They are based in Oakland, CA and are proud of their strong roots and staying power in Hip Hop. “It’s hard to sell records these days,” Domino reminds me. “I think it’s because of a lot of different factors: the growth of the internet - but that’s not as big a factor as everyone thinks. Really, the labels have killed it. Radio isn’t selling records either. People are unhappy with what they are being presented with. They want variety in music, instead of the same thing. Yet no one is smart enough to do that. Look at the success of Gnarles Barkley and Amy Winehouse, both tremendously successful releases, and tremendously important classic records.” They spread organically and quietly went platinum. When I pressed Domino to elaborate further, he informs me, “The industry is so singles driven now that there is no more artist development. And this is catching up to the industry in lackluster sales. Fans don’t know who the artists are anymore. There is no connection to the hits. Just the same 8 records played over and over. And digital sales are the only area of the business that are growing. Ringtones are huge (and legitimate) - that’s where revenue is coming from. There’s no attachment to the artists that the people hear. No one cares, what’s the next hit?” The true fans are being alienated by the artists not being developed, and the artists are focused on making hit songs instead of great albums. Hip Hop fans are now turning off the radio and are moving on to other things. It shows in the sales every week. The industry is not giving the people what they want, so the fans are leaving in droves. This affects Hip Hop as a whole, and the entire entertainment industry. “We have a lot of short sightedness in the music industry,” quips Domino. One of the tenets of good business and a basic law of not hustling backwards is to give the people what they want. Or said in a different way, you don’t sell crack in a heroin neighborhood. Yet this is what the music industry continues to do. Not only do we not give the consumer what they want to buy musically, but we rarely give it to them in a format in which they want it. While iTunes has attempted to do that, a consumer still is not able to buy every song in existence at their store, and is then unable to download it onto any other MP3 player other than that company’s limited, yet incredibly successful, iPod. I wondered how Hiero broke out of this usual mold that industry folks usually get stuck in. Domino attributes their mentality to their life experiences. “We were fortunate to be with a major label so we could leave and then maximize our opportunities. When our Souls Of Mischief album dropped on Jive in 1993, we had the opportunity to have a major label build awareness for us. We had a website in 1995, so we were ahead of the game. We were touring heavily, but back then there was no Hip Hop circuit for touring. We established the Hip Hop tour circuit. To get the word out there, we linked to the fans directly and marketed directly.” “When we left Jive to do our own thing, we called college stations to find out who promoted the shows in their areas. We learned to promote at radio stations and walk around malls, plus we maximized the internet. Overseas was a big part of our success because they are more open to progressive music in general, and progressive Hip Hop as well. Although hustler and dope boy music is growing there now, there’s a very, very big market for soul and funk based older sounding Hip Hop,” Domino tells me. Hiero hits everybody, using the internet as an incredible outreach. Merchandising plays a very big part of their success. They have a known and noticeable logo. They pushed the logo of the crew ever since everyone was signed. “It’s a strong brand in Hip Hop,” Domino reminds me. “We often make as much off the merchandise as we do off the show guarantee.” They press up and sell the B-sides and unreleased music that is only available at their shows (like “Hiero Oldies”) and on-line (specialty stuff). In addition, they sell their releases through normal distribution channels. They don’t sell these current CDs at shows, however, to force sales through retail stores. They still want to hit the charts and support retail stores. They also push heavily through iTunes. The difference between being their own label as opposed to signed to a la-
hustlin’:
words by Wendy Day from Rap Coalition
bel? Money comes to them directly. All of the money. While they have to spend their own money to promote themselves, they also get to say where it’s spent and how much is spent. Then, after the distributor takes their 20% share of the $10 or $11 wholesale price, a check is cut to Hiero for the remaining 80%. Plus they own all of their own masters and their own publishing. Hieroglyphics has grown into an empire instead of a crew of musical groups. The video and TV game placements have been crucial. “We started getting placements on skateboard videos, and since San Francisco is a skater and snow board community, we promoted the music and built the fan base in the skateboard community. So many people were talking about Souls Of Mischief before Jive ever signed them, because of a song Domino gave to a skateboarder video for free since it didn’t make the album. Now they hire a company to do the placements for them. They’ve been in videos and were placed on Entourage and The Wire. They were on Tony Hawk’s video plus the Del song was on the commercial. “In the beginning it was just Hiero and now again, it’s just Hiero. Placements have been a great way to promote and to make money. Since we own all the masters, we can clear stuff quickly and that’s important to these companies. We stay always ahead of the curve. You have to have multiple streams of income. Touring, merchandising, placements—placements aren’t every week, but one for $15K or 20K every now and again is good, “ Domino states emphatically. “We see more money in a year than most of the signed artists.” “You gotta ask yourself, ‘What are you in it for?’ There is a difference between being famous and making money. Many getting into this game want to be on BET and wear a fat chain. But the chain is rented. A lot of artists play the major label game to get 15 minutes of exposure.” Hiero speaks from experience. Domino asks me, “What did it mean to us to be on a major at the end of the day? After two years on the label, we were expendable—didn’t own our masters; didn’t own shit. Once we went indie, and wanted to put out a Best of Hiero CD, we decided to license all of our own music. Elektra said ‘NO!’ to Del to license his own music. So as an artist, you put out these records; you put in your own blood, sweat, and tears and at the end of the day, Elektra wouldn’t let Del license his own music for a Best of Hiero CD.” The hardest part of being indie is the attitude of the folks who don’t get it. “Once we got past the ‘I used to love you guys. What are you doing now?’ comments, we were fine. Our indie releases have scanned over 100,000 copies sold,” Domino reminisces. And they get to call their own shots, control their own releases, and make their own choices. There’s no waiting for any other release to drop…they are the release that gets the focus. They are the priority, unlike if they were at any other label. “I don’t wanna be all over the radio and then dropped when I’m told I am not hot anymore,” Domino tells me. “We bought an 8,000 square foot building in Oakland that houses our company and our recording studio. We bought it from our 2nd indie Hiero release. That sure is better than a chain or being on BET. We have ownership and something to pass down. It really just depends on what you want. Some folks just want to be noticed when they go to the liquor store.” Another problem that seems to plague Hip Hop today is the band-wagon jumping syndrome. Hiero has never jumped on the flavor of the minute. I point out that they are based in the Bay, which over the past few years has been Hyphy Central. There were no Thizz-Hiero Tours, no radio songs featuring Keak Tha Sneak or Mistah FAB-- What gives? Domino laughs at me and says, “We have an old school Hip Hop esthetic. The oldest one is me at 36. We’re not ever going to jump on the latest fad. We come from an era in Hip Hop where the rules were clearly defined: Originality; No biting. We stay original and different, not trendy. I can’t use a sample that someone else has used. That’s the era I’m from. We’re all pretty progressive ourselves, we’ve never been followers.” So, what does the Hieroglyphic Crew have coming up? This is their 10th year anniversary as a label in 2008. They just put out a “remixes and b-sides release, Hieroglyphics Over Time. It’s a compilation. A Plus has a solo album coming called My Last Good Deed. We plan to distribute a metal group called A Band Called Pain. One of the guys from Christion (an R&B group), who used to be signed to Rocafella is part of that group. It’s a metal band. We plan to put out an album by Mousab, the first non-Hiero release on our label. Then we have a new Hiero album coming, a new Souls Of Mischief album, and a Del album called 11th Hour. Oh, and of course, a tour! // OZONE WEST // 11