http://www.audiblehype.com/diy/entry/the_straight_dope_on_the_rawkus_50/

^^The audible hype classic...and sure enough, slopfunkdust had to bring up the El-P thing AGAIN, plus make some bullshit up about “old spice deodorant” to add to the confusion.

Here’s his comment:

and Bling Finger, the fact that you’re quoting El-P is retarded. you should quote his public apology for making false statements about rawkus and that he was pissed cause the founders posted a pic of him, mr. underground till the day i die, with puff daddy holding up a stick of old spice deodorant… sellin’ out to corporate america and trying to save face with his fans…

Okay, got that?  Now here’s the photo.  FIND THE DEODORANT (hint: it’s invisible):

http://www.audiblehype.com/img/el-p_and_puffy.jpg

The moral of the story is, never talk shit to Bling Finger.  Dude is too advanced for y’all.

The Funny Keeps Going

http://www.ohword.com/blog/661/hey-rawkus

^^Some LULZ from Rafi.  The real fun begins in the comments section, where people who actually lived through it start questioning the Official Story about Company Flow being “helped” by Rawkus (because as Rafi points out, of course, record labels are charities, not businesses).

The thing is, my understanding of the Rawkus/El-P relationship is that Funcrusher was released as an EP on a label called Juvenile Techniques. It sold out. It may have only sold 10,000 copies, but it sold out none the less, and CoFlow was able to keep their own masters (and most of the subsequent money from it). So Rawkus steps in and puts out Funcrusher Plus as a full album—AFTER CoFlow was in talks with major labels, but went with Rawkus so he could keep his publishing rights. CoFlow was already an established group. The thing that I haven’t heard anybody comment on yet through this whole ordeal is how much the Stretch & Bobbito show did to promote CoFlow when they were doing the Funcrusher EP and starting out. So if anybody can “take credit” for “discovering” El-P/CoFlow, it should be Stretch, Bobbito & Lord Sear. Although, I’m not from NYC & wasn’t around for the Stretch Armstrong/KCR days, so if anybody else has any more info on this, or corrections to make, please do.

And corrections don’t come—just more details:

Co Flow was definitely known before Rawkus. The Funcrusher EP did sell out—I was told that when I tried to buy it c. 1996. They were definitely getting played on Stretch and Bob in the mid-90s (before the LP), and probably earlier.

So, I guess have nothing to add, but to confirm what you said.

Co Flow did get bigger while on Rawkus, but that’s mostly because they dropped an album—releasing something always increases your exposure. Now, a lot of cats were big Rawkus heads, and probably checked out the Co Flow album just based on the label. So did they get bigger than they would have had the album come out somewhere else? Maybe marginally, at one time.

Anyway, whoever continues this beef any further is a loser.

And apparently, that “whoever” is the dude talking about invisible sticks of Old Spice deodorant.

Jarret Myer and Bryan Brater reflect on how they met:

[qoute]Brian Brater (right), 29, was born in Manhattan, where he still lives. In 1995, after graduating from college, he and Jarret Myer founded Rawkus Records. Funded initially by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, the hip-hop label became a significant outlet for emerging talent, releasing early singles for the likes of Eminem, and provided an alternative to New York’s established music companies, Def Jam and P. Diddy’s Bad Boy Records.

Jarret Mayer, 29, met Brater in 1976 at the Temple Manning Nursery, and they have been best friends ever since. The two still run Rawkus Records, now a subsidiary of Universal/MCA. Mayer lives in Manhattan.

Brian Brater We met in 1976 - we were at the same pre-school, then we went to the same high school, the same college. Essentially we’d always been very music-minded, from as soon as we started going to record stores, aged 12 or 13, and studying music, then trying to become musicians. Hip- hop was a culture and style thing to me. I was a Manhattan kid and, in the 1980s, Manhattan was a huge parade of cultures and styles. Hip-hop was popping up everywhere in the Village.

We got heavily into jazz and be-bop. Just before we went to college, people told me I could have become a pro - I was playing a lot of upright bass and electric bass, and Jarret was playing jazz guitar. But for me, aside from being in a high state of paranoia at not being good enough, I realised we could do more behind the scenes for artists and musicians. We went to college in Providence, Rhode Island, majoring in media and modern culture. And it was during our time there that we decided we wanted to set up Rawkus.

We conceived of an idea, but we had no experience other than what we’d done in our last year at college, so we were just winging it. We were certainly never equipped to be lawyers, doctors or accountants. It was very scary at the start. We moved into New York, and at that time it wasn’t cheap, but the two of us wanted to create what we hoped would be an extremely relevant record company.

In the beginning, Rawkus was Jarret, me, and 10 grand. From that we managed to pay our rent and get some friends who believed in our vision to come to work for us for free. In our first year of operation, we were in this loft in downtown New York, two blocks from World Trade. At the time there was a scene growing in New York with people like Mos Def at the fore. We got together and they realised we were open to, and felt strongly about, their musical visions. A year after setting up, shit got real hectic for us - our singles were selling 10 times what most small labels were doing - and we had to put together a business plan which we sent out to a bunch of banks and News Corp. New Corp was thinking of growing its investment in music, and Rupert seemed to be pretty interested. He was a cool guy, someone who wasn’t afraid to represent popular culture in new ways.

Me and Jarret tended to share roles in the beginning, and even at this point we co-rule, co-manage the company. I think Jarret has always been a bit more precise, collected and surgical when in a hectic environment, and I’ve always been a bit more of a dreamer and scatterbrain. He’s definitely the cool head. We have a 26-year relationship - at that point you’re able to operate peacefully.

Sometimes people might think Jarret’s a little more serious than he should be, but he’s very serious about what has to be done to take the label to the next level, or to brake a new artist. So for me - aside from being a best friend - he’s an ideal business partner.

Outside the office we share a tiny beach house in Long Island, the ultimate blue-collar beach community where real people in New York go when they want to go to the beach - it’s not really the Hamptons. That’s how we are in general. You’re more likely to see us drinking a beer at a real person’s bar than at some industry bash.

Jarret Myer I don’t know if everyone has friends like this, but Brian is one of those friends you can’t remember not having. We were tight since we were little kids, and we were always a bit nerdy with our music. Back then my dream was to play the kind of music that Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus and all the hot dudes played.

At college we had to major in modern culture and media - that gave us the keys to a recording studio. Everything we did at college was based around music. Even at vacations, when other kids would go home, we stayed, first of all because we had no life and no money, but mainly because we gave local kids who could rhyme and make music the chance to get into the studio.

We started sending the tapes we made to friends in New York. It took us a while to fine-tune our vision but that’s basically how Rawkus started. It didn’t seem hard in the beginning - it was fun, so we did it. I can’t pick out any one moment when I thought we’d made it, because we’ve seen things change so many times - the first time we saw kids in our T-shirts, then seeing our stickers all over New York, having a record played on Stretch [Armstrong]’s [radio] show, getting a record on Billboard, getting a gold record. We’ve had the pleasure of seeing our dreams come true together.

Our biggest regret, early on, was not taking the opportunity to sign Eminem. We were a small label back then and our vision right there was to break our priority signed act, Black Star (Mos Def and Talib Kweli). It was clear to both of us that this kid was nice - that’s why we did so many singles with him. He was a special artist, but I think our only lack of experience at the time was to think, about artists like Eminem, that we’d find another one. I wish I knew back then ‘cos I’d be like, `Are you fucking crazy!’ But it did seem like we were running into amazing artists all over the place. It was a special time.

Brian’s a motivator and he’s a first-impressions person. I like things to develop over a long period of time, whereas Brian will lay it out - he’s got a big personality.

The News Corp link was one of those weird things. In retrospect, I’m not sure how we persuaded them. We got along with James Murdoch - he was looking for something to do and got swept up in moment. It probably looked like, “These guys, they know everybody, they make records, how could it go wrong?” But it did go - our distributor in the US, Priority, went under. Now more than ever, we’ve got our business deals very solid so we can focus on what’s important - music, artists with vision, helping to take them to next level. We want to be known as the label that made the most money putting out the most important artists.

Rawkus, MCA Deal Reaching Final Stage
By Rashaun Hall, N.Y.
Publication: Billboard Bulletin
Date: Wednesday, April 3 2002

Rawkus Records’ distribution deal with MCA will be finalized Friday, MCA president Jay Boberg tells Bulletin. “All terms have been agreed to, and the long-form contracts are in the process of being signed,” Boberg says of the deal, which has been rumored for months (Bulletin, Dec. 19, 2001). Rawkus was distributed by Priority until the latter was merged into Capitol.

New York-based Rawkus remains partially owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.; the label was founded eight years ago by son James Murdoch, Jarret Myer, and Brian Brater. Rawkus’ roster includes Kool G. Rap, the Cocoa Brovaz, and Pharoahe Monch.

“They are sort of where Def Jam was 10 years ago,” Boberg says of Rawkus. “I think Brian and Jarret have the potential to do what Russell [Simmons] and Lyor [Cohen] did.”

Voxonic, Inc. Announces Partnership with Rawkus Records to Collaborate on Multi-Lingual Recording Initiatives

Voice technology company, pioneering urban record label bring international flair to Hip-Hop music.

New York, NY (Billboard Publicity Wire) January 29, 2007—Voxonic Inc., the innovators of a proprietary patent-pending software which transforms voices into foreign languages, today announced their partnership with urban record label, Rawkus Records, to release a single from Rawkus’ rap artist, Naledge, forthcoming album, “Naledge is Power”, in various languages.

“Voxonic’s ability to customize voice for web and mobile applications has a huge appeal and is certainly a great business in 2007,” said Brian Brater, Co-founder of Rawkus Records. “We anticipate Voxonic enabling Naledge to reach a wider audience than the typical artist can.”

abari “Naledge” Evans, a Chicago native and graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, will be the test client for this new partnership. His album “Naledge is Power”, will be translated in various languages and has an array of producers which include Just Blaze, 9th Wonder and Pete Rock.

“It’s exciting to see various music artists break international barriers, which can ultimately reverse the decline of record sales, “said Arie Deutsch, President of Voxonic Inc. “With Voxonic’s technology, record labels, independent artists and music franchises can expect to see a steady increase in sales.”

Voxonic provides the technology necessary to create voice conversions, which allows voices to be presented in any language with 99% accuracy of the original speaker’s voice. This technology promises to have a significant impact on both national and international business, as well as the entertainment industry as voices can now be converted into more than 1,400 different languages including Spanish, French, and German.

About Voxonic Inc.
The New York-based Voxonic Inc. has developed some of the most innovative software since windows revolutionized the computer industry in the early nineties. This exciting technology is able to convert any person’s voice into any known language in the world. The applications are endless streaming from international business, politics, music, entertainment and the video game industry.

About Rawkus Records
Rawkus Records, an independent hip hop record label established in 1996 by Brian Brater and Jarret Meyer, is responsible for bringing fame to many underground hip hop acts such as Sir Menelik; Company Flow; the High and Mighty; Mos Def and Talib Kweli (a duo known as Black Star), Common, Pharoahe Monch, Skillz, and DJs and producers such as Hi Tek, Dr. Luke and DJ Evil Dee, as well as resurrecting hip hop legend Kool G Rap.

Source Link: This is London

Kidz In The Hall, aka rapper Naledge and DJ/producer Double O, could never be described as underachievers.

Rather than claiming credibility around street life, dealing drugs and cheating death, Naledge (aka Jabari Evans, 23) and Double O (aka Michael Aguilar, 26) are respectively a published author and former Olympic track and field athlete who take pride in their University of Pennsylvania Ivy League education.

Aptly, the title of this punchy duo’s debut LP is School Was My Hustle - and it has been credited with the immense challenge of restoring revered independent hip hop label Rawkus to its original position as the definitive imprint for accessible, progressive rap with a conscience.

‘We feel honoured but we’re also anxious,’ says Naledge, considering how it feels to be taking on the mantle developed by Rawkus’s legendary successes. Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Common and Company Flow all broke through on the label, creating smart resistance against the growing tide of gangsta rap.

Hip hop deservedly established its place in the mainstream between the label’s 1995 inception and its demise in early 2004, after major label takeovers. Rawkus has fielded some criticism over the years (founders Brian Brater and Jarret Myer were financially aided by Rupert Murdoch’s son James). But now, thanks in part to a new distribution deal, Kidz In The Hall (KITH) credibly revive the label’s groundbreaking tradition.

The album’s feelgood style builds around the classic boom bap template of glorious soul hooks and funk combined with no-nonsense rhymes. Positive messages are finely nuanced, rather than forced, offering something new on each listen.

It also clearly references the early 1990s bright, jazzy hip hop sound that preceded and clearly influenced Rawkus. Did KITH deliberately try to connect with that era? ‘We grew up on that sound but I don’t think we purposely had a mindset to create something from the 1990s, it just happened that way,’ explains Naledge.

‘Good things come together when you’re being creative and it’s possible to channel that energy subconsciously because we’ve always felt that era and music.

‘We always wanted to have the same type of impact as Gang Starr, A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Pete Rock & CL Smooth. We are the stepsons of that era but we’re also from the Jay Z era and it’s mashed in together - there’s an arrogance and a bravado but also a humble, everyday aspect to our sound.’

Just as a decade ago, the KITH/Rawkus ethos represents perspectives beyond thug life or lifestyles focused on partying, grillz, girls, and the size of your rims. ‘In hip hop the convention is the extreme, meaning the extremely poor or extremely rich can rap and no one’s talking about the middle ground and what happens in everyday life,’ says Naledge. ‘There are nuances in everyday life that can tell a great story, without you shooting somebody or f***ing hos or drinking champagne.

‘It doesn’t have to be in every song and it doesn’t happen every day. If you ask nine out of ten people, they don’t hug the block, drink Cristal or wear Versace - they’re taking the bus to work, on their lunch break they wish they could switch jobs, and are dealing with their children.’

And there’s a real sense that with Rawkus’s return, and the rise of conscious hip hop artists such as Kanye West, Common, Lupe Fiasco and Rhymefest, that nihilism and materialism-obsessed rap’s dominance of mainstream hip hop is being challenged. Naledge, himself from The Windy City, argues it’s no coincidence that all these artists hail from Chicago.

‘I believe the music people make is a product of their environment and Chicago is a very blue-collar city, but very urban too,’ he says. ‘So there’s a twist - black Chicago is detached from the corporate world downtown; it gives you the ‘hood and gangster element. But the city is also very rooted in religion: both Rhymefest and Lupe are Muslim, and Kanye talks about Jesus as a churchgoer. There’s a sense of community and being a real citizen.’

Naledge admits that his PhD-educated parents motivated the 23-year-old to achieve his goals. ‘They love my music and are very supportive because I represent myself in my music, so they don’t hear me trying to be something I’m not,’ he says. ‘They hear me trying to inspire my generation and realise I’m doing something very special.

‘In this day and age I’m the voice of my generation, a generation who don’t read books, listen to teachers or preachers as much as they listen to music. Rap is the main voice of the youth and they realise I’m taking the role of leader and stepping forward.’

With great music comes great responsibility; it sounds like these are the Kidz most likely to succeed.

source: list of clients for Styles Security

# President of the United States of America, President William H. Clinton
# King of Swaziland, Africa, King Mswati III
# Former Prime Minister of Israel, Minister Shimon Peres
# Former Prime Minister of Israel, Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
# Congressman Floyd H. Flake
# Lyor Cohen (CEO of DEF Jam / Def Soul Records
# Kevin Liles (President of Def Jam Music Group)
# Sean “P Diddy” Combs (President of Bad Boy Entertainment & Sean John Clothing)
# Richard Branson (CEO of Virgin Airlines, Virgin Records & Virgin Megastore)
# Kenneth Cole (Kenneth Cole Clothing)
# “Amir” of Amir Clothing
# Brian Brater (Co-Owner of Rawkus Records)
# Jarret Meyer (Co-Owner of Rawkus Records)
# Kevin Edwards (Vice-President of RCA Records)
# David Bernstein (Inventor of skycam)

source:dubious website, no corroborating stories

Rawkus/MCA Facing Copyright Suit

Rawkus Records has been hit with a huge copyright infringement lawsuit by, among others, Eminem, Naughty By Nature and Q-Tip.

Rawkus Records has been hit with a huge copyright infringement lawsuit by, among others, Eminem, Naughty By Nature and Q-Tip.

The Royalty Network, a publishing administration company, has filed the lawsuit against Rawkus on behalf of their clients’ and their publishing companies, some of which are owned by The Alchemist, Da Beatminerz, The Teamstas, and Stic.Man (of Dead Prez).

The suit claims that Rawkus, Who are currently in the process of merging with MCA, has not paid royalties to any of Royalty Network’s client list since 1996.

It also states that CEOs Jarret Meyer and Brian Brater have ‘full knowledge of the infringing activity and have induced, caused or materially contributed to the infringing conduct of Rawkus Entertainment and MCA Records.’

Other artists that have yet to receive royalties include Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Ras Kass, Big L, M.O.P., O.C., and a host of others. Some of the Rawkus projects listed in the suit include Lyricist Lounge Volume I & II, Black on Both Sides (Mos Def), Soundbombing I & II, Blackstar (Mos Def & Talib Kweli), and others.

Apparently The Royalty Network has been in contact with Rawkus several times to collect payment but have yet to receive anything.

The suit is seeking lawyer fees and the royalties owed to their clients, which range from $750 to $30,000 per song.

source: The Cowl

From the womb to the tomb
Joe Mavodones
Issue date: 2/5/04 Section: Arts & Entertainment

The greatest hip-hop label of the 1990s was Rawkus Records. Sure, they weren’t as big as Bad Boy, as popular as Def Jam, or as cheesy as No Limit, but they were by far the most noteworthy presence in recording during the mid to late 90’s. Just take a look at the artists that have been affiliated with Rawkus: Eminem, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, El-P, Big L, the High & Mighty, Kool G Rap, Pharoahe Monch, Skillz, Common… The list is endless and impeccable. I mean, who can compete with that? After eight years in existence, however, Rawkus called it quits last week.

Started in 1996 by college students Brian Brater, Jarret Mayer, and James Murdoch, Rawkus quickly became a force in underground hip-hop. Built upon the ideal of promoting independent, original hip-hop and allowing for artistic freedom from its artists, the label first gained fame with the release of Company Flow’s Funcrusher Plus in 1997. I remember listening to Funcrusher Plus for the first time and instantly becoming a fan of Rawkus. After that, I bought every release that the label put out. Lyricist Lounge Volume 1 was legendary, mixing together a blend of unknown emcees alongside greats like De La Soul and showcasing some of the best freestyles ever put on wax. Soundbombing 2 dropped in 1999, and instantly became one of my five favorite CDs of all time. Mixed by J-Rocc and Babu of the Beatjunkies, Soundbombing had a Hall of Fame line-up including the likes of Eminem, Dilated Peoples, Tash, and Pharoahe Monch. Plus, the three albums from Mos Def and Talib Kweli: Black Star, Black on Both Sides, and Reflection Eternal. I mean, what label can claim such success over the same amount of time? None.

Things started to slump for Rawkus around 2000 though, when out of nowhere they shut their doors and left many of their artists without a label. A few months later, the label, in search of cash to keep up its production, sold its rights to MCA. This was the turning point for Rawkus. After being sold to MCA, and later becoming part of Geffen/Universal, Rawkus strayed from its ideals and focused more on the commercial aspect of things. Subsequently, the fans stopped buying the albums that were put out. Last month, Geffen/Universal opted not to renew their deal with Rawkus, leaving them without a distribution deal. It’s a little ironic that a label once so grounded in the independent spirit gets shut down after complications with a major label.

With their doors now shut, Rawkus’ legacy is indisputable. Obviously, nobody can question the quality of the music that they put out from 1997-2000. Yet their legacy is more than just the music. Rawkus started and boosted the careers of so many popular artists today. Where would Mos Def and Talib Kweli be, if it weren’t for Rawkus? In addition, the spirit that was promoted by the label led to many offshoots, including labels like Eastern Conference Records and Definitive Jux. The independent, artistic vibe that Rawkus encouraged was unparallel at the time, and still seems invigorating today.

So the next time you wander down to the record store, check out a Rawkus release and take home your own little part of hip-hop history. It’ll be well worth it.

Source: Diesel NationTalib Kweli is soft in the head.

Rough versions of his next album “The Beautiful Struggle” were leaked on the net and a message board fan posted links to it. Talib got angry and flipped on the kid. The positive, pro-Black emcee even threatened to hurt him, saying:

He should be thanking him instead. Doesn’t Talib know that obscurity is a bigger problem for artists than piracy and that downloading has been academically proven to not affect record sales? Talib complains that he’s never gone gold or platinum like Kanye West and that this bootlegging will harm his record sales. Of course he doesn’t realize that Kanye’s album was also bootlegged before it came out and rough versions of unreleased songs were on mixtapes almost a year beforehand. I should know. I copped the mixtapes and the bootleg album. I was so impressed by Kanye’s soul sample flipping that I bought the album on its second week out.

So should Kanye be beasting on me for stealing money out of his hands? Talib should realize that the real crooks are at his record label, Rawkus Records. I’m sure he doesn’t get more than 12% of the profits from his own work. So let’s see him threaten Jarret Myer and Bryan Brater next time.