EYL #101 Grand Hustle feat. Jason Geter

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All right, guys, welcome back e y l atl Edition. You know this is our second home man. We love it Atlanta. So this is going to be a legendary episode because this is always kind of my favorite episodes. I like to get the backdrop stories of music and entertainment and stuff like that we grew up, especially grew up on Yeah, so everybody knows, like, you know, Chris Gotti and in all of these episodes that we do,

I think unknowingly, people don't know the game, like.

B O B Killer, Mike Travis, Scott, Iggy Azalea. Of course, t I Trade the Truth, Young Droe, to name a few, just a couple.

I say, I definitely got to work with a lot of great people one way or another. We got to work together, you know, and super dope experiences.

And view the man of mystery for a while. Like I told you, like we always heard your name, but we never saw you. And I think, like I said, like big things popping in the beginning, I'm like, that's got to be him. That's got to be him.

So and and he's actually the owner of Heavy Sounds Lab, which is a whole revolutionary approach to the music industry. We gonna talk abut that as well. So we are a long conversation. So first and foremost, thank you for joining us. Appreciate it, Nah, thank you.

For having me.

Of course, I'm a fan of the show, watched the show, and you know, it's dope to be here.

I appreciate it.

So let's let's get right into it. As far as the music, so you you found TII I heard the story. I read the story about that. So TII one of the greatest rappers of all time, definitely one of the best to ever come out of this South.

Revolutionized trap music.

It's interesting because that it's like a whole genre of music, even though I don't know if his sound is really trap music like what it is today. It's a different story. But sound has change.

Yeah, but you grow.

Yeah.

But so I say that to say, you found him? So how did you find Tia? What's that story?

I'm Ochoy Atlanta in like ninety seven and I started working at Patchwork Recording the studio and Patchwork was was young hip hop studio, like know, so for me coming to the city and I'm seeing it's like you said, you're reading credits, I'm reading credits.

I was the same person, you know.

So I'm seeing like Patchwork on the back of Outcast albums and and just the different more hip hop albums that's coming out of Atlanta. So I ended up going to the studio, getting the job, the internship, the hold On. They had a record label upstairs, which was an independent label. The artists like raz Casts, Me and Green Rest in Peace Mean Green just died and and a guy named missed the Voodle and then downstairs they had the recording studio.

You know. So for me, I pretty much I interned upstairs.

I worked records college at college radio, you know, and then downstairs I would work overnight. I was like the nighttime studio manager, right, So that means I'm doing everything. I'm opening the door, you know, taking out the trash, just whatever the artists need, they need some weed, whatever, I'm figuring it out.

I'm doing everything, you know.

And and you know, like I always say, like that position, you know, I put myself right in the middle of traffic. You know, So everybody in Atlanta, if you was a producer, if you was a manager, artist, A and R, a future something, because you and the unto ride. You know what I'm saying, Like, like I got I put myself at the perfect place because I got to meet everybody opening the door and you know, and now of course gett an opportunity to really start knowing people.

You know.

So I'm fresh out of New Jersey, New York. So I'm down here and I had already interned at Arista Records in New York. I had already sold mixtapes in high school. I had already like had a lot of experiences like up until this time, you know, so when I'm here now, I'm very strategic and I know what I'm kind of trying to put together, you know, And I ended.

Up meeting DJ toon DJ toon Superdope producer.

Yeah.

At the time, during this time in Atlanta, Noontime was like everything, Like anybody know about Atlanta, you know about production producers, Like Noontime was like she was like the mob. If you was a producer and you wasn't a part of Noontime, you really wasn't eating, you know what I'm saying.

Like that.

Was a that was a company by three young entrepreneurs Nooney, Henry Lee, Chris Hicks, and Ryan Glover, you know, and like for real, like y'all need to get with them. If anybody don't know them, you need to like know the history of like Noontime, because that ship was the blueprint for a lot of people who came behind.

That organized noises after that organized.

Noises during the same time see Noon Times Downside. Or why a lot of people don't know them is because they didn't really have an artist that really blew. But like now on the business side, like when it came to like writers and producers, they had like Jay zy Faye, then uh Brian Michael Cox, like John t Austin, Jay Dubb.

They inspired a lot of people, you know.

But during this time, you had noontime in Atlanta, you had noontime, you had organized noise who of course were doing eight thing, and of course you had Jermaine dupri So so death and and it was kind of like.

You had clicks, you know.

So I really kind of said to Tom, like, Yo, Tom, you dope, but you by yourself, you know, so like why don't we find an artist together.

So that you can really display your music properly on you know.

And that's what led us to going out and trying to find an artist, you know, and then.

Not too late after that, we find.

Too you know.

Coincidentally, DJ Toompe grew up with a guy named Tremmell Morgan rest in Peace, who was Tip's older.

Cousin, you know.

So that's how he kind of found him and literally brings meeting music.

He's like, yo, what you think. I'm like, Yo, this kid is dope.

He had a few records that that was recorded, you know, and you know, from there we was like, yo, let's meet him, let's work.

So so you meet him there, right, and then is that the point where you're like, all right, we're gonna take this kid, you create grandhustle management or are we just trying to get him signed to a label.

Yeah?

So so so we meet, we meet, we hit it off, we do it a demo tape, immediately go studio, do four records, Tip and to and get a deal, you know, get a deal, get him signed the Ghetto Vision the Face Records. And at that point, yes, that's when Grunds Some Management started as my management company. And then he was signing the Ghetto Vision Slash the Face Records for the first project.

I'm serious.

It just made me think of the line when he's like, yo, man, if La could just see how wrong he would be. I told you nobody stronger than me. I told you so.

So so all right, so you you did the first album, which commercially wasn't really that successful. That's I'm serious project, right, yeah, So then how do you do that joint venture with it?

Was it Atlantic Atlantic? So how did that come about?

Because at the time they said it was like kind of revolutionary situation with right, yeah, kind of like explain that a little bit.

Yeah, So so we did the first album I'm serious and and like you said, la, like they didn't see it because you know, it wasn't social media and.

Ship then I remember Beanie Man was on the track.

But but for real, like the first album, if you if you from the Southeast region.

Like the first album is like a classic, you know what I'm saying.

So that gave us the ability to do shows like crazy throughout the South, you know.

So for us, we just burning through the South, you.

Know, which which lay They couldn't really see it, but clearly we're doing shows, so we.

Know what's happening, you know what I mean.

And and really he kept he wanted us to do another album, whereas we were like, now let's go deeper. Let' choose some more videos of this album, you know, and our thing was if you, if you don't help us work this album, right when we.

See the traction, why should we do it again? You know, and we really didn't agree, so he agreed to let us go. You know.

So now at that point, you know, for really it was like the best thing that could have happened, you know. You know, like at this point, like we were already moving throughout the South. So I'm already when I come to go to a market, we hitting the mom and pop record stores, which still existed back then, you know what I'm saying, Like we're doing the show, like we get into contacts at the radio station, all nine. So

You know.

But long story short, those mixtapes is what got us traction. You know what I'm saying, those mixtapes, you know, you know how I go supplying demand, you know, so they got the demand right and then regular labels start doubling back and calling, you know, and we ended up doing it with Atlantic, but we had like everybody except for like Jimmy Ilvian, everybody else.

Just based off for like the bus that she was building in the street.

Yeah yeah, yeah exactly.

So Atlantic goes it was a fifty to fifty joint.

Yeah, yeah, that was a fifty to fifty.

So a fifty fifty Like what is it?

Because I hit that a lot, but like what does that actually mean? Like you just split revenue fifty? Are you responsible for fifty of promotion? Like or it is just the revenue go to so.

A record company is always paying the money, Like you're not really coming to the table paying money. But you know, like fifty to fifty is a net profit split. So after we you know the expenses, now these profits we split fifty fifty down.

Is that the standard? Like that like record labels would have like a rough riders. Is that like fifty fifty.

Yeah, yeah, for most artists that's the standard.

And then you have, of course people who will say, I got a distribution deal. So you know that that's even going even deeper. Right, So now it depends on which is split is even with a distribution deal, so verbage can be can be interesting because you can have a fifty to fifty deal and you can still have a.

Version.

Whereas now, at a certain point, after a certain amount of years, the masters revert back to you, versus somebody can say, oh, I gotta deal all my masters, I gotta deal. I got a reversion all my masters in five years?

Did you got did you guys have the masters?

Yeah? Yeah, we got a version?

Yeah, reverted back version.

How does that work?

So basically, after ten years of.

If you do a deal with say whoever, whatever, Sony Universe, whoever you say, after ten years, the masters.

Revert back for the entire catalog, the entire catalog.

Absolutely.

So at that at that point when y'all get to Atlantic, this is the first time you'll put out trap music.

That the first album that comes out, and then and.

Does that create because in my mom I'm trying to paint this picture clearly. So we dropped well you guys, trap trap music, and then Grand Hustle Records comes from No no.

No no no no no no.

We walked in the doorway brown okay, okay music.

So after I'm serious, it was over. We hit the streets.

We did the mixtapes like one volume two. This you gotta think we had during this time. We got powf on our mixtapes, we got Fox Around on mixtapes. We got the record Never Scared came from a mixtape, you know what I'm saying. So like we got records that's like it's coming big.

Records from we heard them. We heard him in New York.

Yeah, so you know at that point, you know flindh Man, So you know, at that point, it's like, wow.

Would we just do artists.

I'm interested to know the backstory on this. We gotta get Tia on the show too. But it was because I was I was in I think I was in college. I was in Baltimore in college, and up until that point, I honestly never listened to any Southern music. I was like really really New York, Like I grew up on

It's interesting because when I met him, that's how he was, you know what I'm saying, And that's what to me, that's definitely was like okay, like during this time outcast is like everything in that you know what I'm saying. So it's like everybody got dressed, they got gold team, it's like a model.

Everybody has that influence. Think about the young bloods, Jim like all of those artists.

Like that's how it was for real, you know, so for me seeing them and seeing that right like yo, damn polo shirt fade.

Teem like this is something interesting, right, you know, like what when you look.

At it, the craziest thing is this, right tips dad lived in Harlem. Okay, I used to go to New York during the summertimes, just the same way if you was from up south, you might go down south for the summer. You used to go to New York for the summer, you know what I'm saying. So that's something that kind of you know, you always got.

To think about that nap swagger like us makes more sense. So all right, so y'all, y'all blow it off the door with trap music. That's like I said, that changed the game. And then right off the gate, like y'all, I start with the the label.

So how did how did that?

All?

Right? So it's one thing to have.

A superstar artist, sure, but I'm assuming it's it's not as easy to like grow it and have other artists come in like that?

How that? How did that work?

You know?

I mean, you know, it's like you said, it's challenging. You know, it's definitely challenging because even when you're doing a partnership with an Atlantic depth cham whoever it is, you're getting a deal on this, you getting this joint venture deal on the strength of this, right, you know what, So to truly get them to look around that at any point as hard as hell.

You know what I'm saying.

You look like it's super challenging, you know, But I think for us, I think we did a decent job for real, you know when you think about like we really went in a lot of different directions. You know, we did the hustle and flow sound sound we did that. That was that was a great experience working with John Singleton. Obviously,

Like, so, you know, you think if you're.

Artist signed to another artist, it's easy to you know, ride his way and be on his rider and be at the hotels and all that ship his reality. But when you think about your reality, like you know what I'm saying, I gotta get out here and really grown from the from the bottom up, you know, So that part a lot of artists.

Too, you know they kind of mentally, you know, like.

Do you think that that's an interesting point that you bring up because you see, like gu it and it was like Lloyd Banks, to me, one of the greatest lyrics is but they never once fifty decided that he was cool off of them. They never did anything right. And it's like for the most cruise that's usually the case, right every now and then you have somebody like a Jim Jones who like started as a hype man and now became actually probably the biggest member in the group.

But for the most.

Part, it's like you have a lead rapper, he has his crew, they're like, you know, the Saint Lunatics disrespect. But then it's like when he leaves, so it's like it's kind of like a gift in a curve. Now this God's crazy shout.

And shot shout the dirty.

It's like a gift in the curse in a way, right.

Absolutely, it's a gift in the curse for sure, man, because too, let's be honest, like a lot of times the rapper is the CEO of the company, right like, and no matter what, no matter how business great your business, you are still an artists, you know, so you are still you know, it's it's gonna be different, you know, things treatment, attention.

All of that. You know, like you're an artist, You're gonna go for opportunities for yourself.

Like so I think that it's it's super challenging. It's a lot of dynamics that come into it.

You know.

That's why typically I think when you when you see at work, you really have the artists and the and the and the business person you know, myself and Tip or Dame Jay or you know what I'm saying, It's like you gotta have some balance because you got.

To have somebody that's kind of still fighting for.

Like the underdog and the new one, having that that that hunger for the business too, you know what I'm saying, Like you think like I was a fan of hip hop before I met.

Too, you know what I'm saying, Like I saw a crushable, I knew what I wanted to do.

It's like I got the same hunger as him when we click up because like, yo, I want to do this and you want to do this. Damn we can do this together.

Pom.

You know, what I'm saying, Like, so I think that that's truly like the best nation that you could possibly have in it.

Yeah, I think that that what you're saying.

As you were saying, I'm like, Yo, you guys are the perfect match, right because this guy is an artist. He's also the co owner of the label. But like you got the business, Like you're gonna take care of the business. Nobody you don't, They don't see you. But you're making all the moves right, So like is it your vision to expand it outside of the music and

What you know about that?

This is like the biggest guy in rap music?

Now that was perfect time.

That was big.

It's funny, man.

I mean like I couldn't really tell you how it started, but the hunger.

Was was was matched, you know what I mean?

Like as far as like yo, at the opportunity to do this and that and this and that, like just.

Being that the blueprints was already laid before us.

So we stood into the game like we in a fashion so naturally all right, like yeah, we're gonna go to fashion at the right time.

You know.

So you just watched the cruise before.

You just watched the cruise before, right, So the same thing with film.

What happened on the film side, It's crazy because somebody had reached out to me, like a casting agency that hit me about tip auditioning for barbershop, you know, so he and we wasn't prepared like they saw like this was like they saw an interview on him in the magazine and was like, yeah, we wanted to audition.

So now we're like what does that mean?

Oh, send the tape like what like, yo, Like we went, is he gonna buck out to Yeah?

We went and my man.

Had a barbershop, were in a barbershop, like we're filming, we're filming him doing the parts. So we sent the tape and obviously he didn't get the part, you know, but that's what was like, it was like, Yo, we're gonna do things that we're supposed to do to get big. That was really the thought process more than anything, like any thing that's like authentic and natural, and you ain't really looking crazy and compromising yourself, Like why not let.

Me let me ask you us because I want to talk about the label. Shout out to Young Droe. That's one of my favorite songs of Shoulder Lean. Remember I was I cookedout?

That was big tune.

That was big.

So you guys, it seemed like you had a lot of artists.

I don't know if it was official situations or so, Bob, how did like because people don't bo.

B number one singles back.

Has a lot of like six million souls. Yeah, I understand, Bob has like a lot.

Of records, Sol super talented, a lot of records, Sol Man.

For so what what what's he on? He's on the label? He was on the label.

He was on the label.

So all right, how did so? At this point, it's like, I guess the first group of people is t I s friends from his neighborhood, young troll from neighborhoods Right, but now you actually all right, now you actually start to have to like are you are you like an A and R at the like are you actually finding talent?

Like?

I mean, how'd you find Bob, like, how did that come about?

So I'll say this right, I was definitely an R I in R all of those albums in the beginning, you know. But more than just that, I believed in building like a real company and a real team.

You know.

So as soon as we went and we got a deal with with Atlantic Records to do the joint benure deal, we got overhead budget. So now I was able to say, Okay, cool, Now it's some people that that we've hit the table.

So so now.

That that that that I've been rocking with that I respect. When I like the way that they're hustling, I've already identified these people like, Yo, when I get right, I'm gonna go back and I'm gonna get my man.

Clay Evans, you know, because Clay, that's my guy.

We met each other a patchwork like he was promoting parties, you know what I'm saying. Like, and he he knew how to move around, you know, I'm new into the town like this somebody I met.

I met him early, you know.

And then there was another person, Hannah King, you know, a young lady, my homegirl. She we met her in school and I'm not in school.

In Lenox Mall. Rather, we met Lenox Mall.

And she started managing the Sharkquar sharkwa used to be on fire out here on Friday. Yeah, Shark used to be crazy. So like I'm seeing like the parties and ship like that she's doing. So like I'm like, okay, I'm gonna go get her. Like these two people, I really don't know. There's so many people in Atlanta, right, you know what I'm saying. But these two people that I met that I'm building with that I like the way that they moved, you know. So we did a

He used to come to the performance.

So when you first heard Bob Bob, Bob, What is it? Which one is it? Is it Bob or Bob?

I mean, it just depends depends on both Bob see him. You're not gonna say.

My close friends called me Bob.

I kind of felt like he was ahead of his time, definitely, because now even I feel like Young Thug is you know kind of it's like it's a whole genre of raps that's like a mix between rock and roll and punk rock.

You don't even know where.

Bob was so ahead of his time that it kind of kind of hurt him for real, you know what I'm saying, Like being that that he was just he was like an outcast, no point intended, you know, I'm saying, he was just like he was just out there like during that eraror like and and for him, like he wanted to get love from his community, right like Atlanta, I go to Magic City, like nobody's checking for me, you know what I'm saying, Like I left, I just left doing a touring Asia China, Like so you know,

He was like up and coming.

I remember him being on the cover of Double Xales Freshman and I'm like, yo, all right, just this dude corrap.

But then it was like they were playing him on Z one hundred and it was like, you.

Know what I'm saying, he had had he had Bruno on his first joint, The Airplanes's record was out of this World?

Is your first record?

That your first record is Double Plot And he's at that time like that's his first So what I'm saying like Bill Bob is the bigger artist on that on that song, and it's like, all right, well who's that kid that's singing on the hook type thing?

So, but how is it all right? So you're running a record label. You have t I, who's like if this was the Lakers, he'd be Lebron James, right, But then you got a bunch of other artists that's coming in the fall Head with his crew PSC. Then you got young Droe was a bunting star in the streets, and you got Bob who's alternative kind of.

You know rap.

It's a little different situation, and it's the record label's growing. So like as a coach of an NBA team. You got to manage egos, and it's like this one person he's not getting enough attention and stuff like that.

Is the record? Is it like that for a record label?

Absolutely, he's an artist, you know what I'm saying, He's a rappers. He's a rappers, right, so you put them in the room, you know how that go? Like they want it, you know they want it.

But truly true, indeed is it's about who really wants it the most, really puts in the most work. It really goes out of their way, you know, consistently put in that word for real. That truly kind of shows you know, you see the difference between the ones that really go ones that don't go. You know, of course, a lot of times it's talent, but most of the time it's work ethic. You know, you're working, You're gonna

I was just that my mom. I'm like, yo, y'all really followed the cruise. Like now I hear the New York presence.

It's like, yo, the firm had Twazi, right, they got a female presence, Big had Little Kim and like y'all got it, y'all went to female route, which I want a different round.

Interesting before that even too, actually, because we had a girl group called Ecstasy South the Jennifer and Bowler Man.

We had two girls.

And it's so funny because like when I listened to like the City Girls and all that stuff. Now, I'm like, man, these girls was ahead of time because that was like that was dumb, you know what I'm saying.

Back then, why do you think Iggy Azelia never really? Because she is talented and she's like a model and she has a huge follow on social media, but it just seems like she's just not a big musical artist. But she has to pretend. It seems it would seem like she has the potential to be a music music.

I mean, sometimes people got to understand, I think, how to play their position, you know, because like you said, like like you mentioned what Little Kim, Fox Boxy, all those people like they didn't come out they wasn't right e Rahms and stuff. Right, it was a part of a team, and it was a part of a movement, and they played a position and was able to really run.

Through the through the holes, you know what I'm saying.

Like, I mean when you get carried away and think, oh, you know, like people start working for you and just like all right, cool and you go. You didn't really do it all by yourself, So you know, how do you think you're gonna maintain it by yourself? Yeah, that's what happens in a lot.

Of those situations. I was, I was surproud of another Z one hundred record. I'm like, damn tip behind that. I got behind that. But I mean it was moving. That fancy record was fancy of this world record was huge records to exactly exactly got a.

Lot of plaques too. Now, like real.

Travis Scott, this is an interesting conversation. I just learned some stuff.

How did so? How did that come about? So you just learned some stuff?

Yeah, man, y'all, look, I'm telling you I'm fresh. Shout, I haven't been outside.

Let me go back to twenty twelve.

Now, shout out the DJ m O K Man dj m o K.

This is crazy, right, So Tip, mat Iggy and Travis on the same night, really same night, you know, and this was in La. I wasn't there. I wasn't so comes back to Atlanta. Of course he's like yo E like tall, white, blonde, foreign chick.

Like he like, Yo, I'm gonna write some mons.

We got something like, you know, like boom.

He's like on it, you know, and and I kind of I'm in the room. DJ MLK is like, yo, Jay, you got to see this other kid though he don't you don't whatever whatever. So I'm like, all right, show him to me. And he shows me Trap's video and to me, it was like I got it, Like yo, it's like baby yay, you know, like artistic the whole none like sound wise, I get it.

You know.

So literally, like a day or two late, I went to LA and I met him actually right then I got on the phone with him, and then I went to LA like a day or two later, and I met him and and and then we came back to Atlanta, you know, And he came to Atlanta and recorded some music, and literally we went to New York and didn't deal with LA, you know.

So epic at the time. You say, you like five hundred YouTube followers.

And it was early, it was early, it was yeah, it was.

So you all right, so you you signed, you signed a record deal with him, you said, with LA.

Partnership Partnership hus grand Us.

So he was on Grand Hustle. Yeah, But how come nobody ever knew he was on Grand Yo?

Because Grand Hustle is smart.

Let's start there.

I mean, like, so think about this, right, So Travis Travis Boom does.

The deal, then he meets he meets Kanye.

Kanye sees what we saw right, kidnapped him, Yo, Boom. They started working and at that point like, yeah, we're here to support you as much or as little as you want to see if it's working whatnot. You know what I'm I'm saying, if it's working, Like why interrupt anything, you know? But for real, real talk, the best thing that happened in that scenario for him when it comes to us, is we took him to La read you know what I'm saying. And this is where LA gets

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You know. So that's the dope part about that story. For realers like Yah, Lab.

Yeah, y'all always kept a good relationship even after y'all left.

La Yeah, Yo, La is the best man like LA from the standpoint of when we left, you know, it wasn't like no brudgets, you know what I'm saying. Like more than anything, it was like, oh shit, damn solute, I was right.

I didn't see it. Let's do business.

Let's dope. Let's dope.

So so Travis Scott signed to Grand Hustle and then right away just decides to do his own thing. But he's already signed, so it's like he's still on the team. It's like if you don't show up the practice, you're still on the team. That's like kind of like.

The list to the first album. You see Tip on the first album, like moderating the first album.

I don't think I heard that.

I don't think I heard the I think people who started catching when after the Rodeo the Rodeo album, it started that traction started growing and he became I don't want to say that part, but that's when I was like, Yo, who is this kid? And then obviously we knew Kanye, and I'm like, yo, this kid like is around Kanye a lot. And then I'm starting to listen Toy's music. I'm like, wait, they're starting to sound like this kid a lot. And then the trajectory is just obviously out of this world.

And then I started So that last album was the Grand Hustle album.

Yeah, absolutely, this.

Classic album, classic modern classic, classic album.

Yeah, you guys still have a relationship with him.

Now speaking, Travis probably in like a year for real.

Okay, yeah, so you know that.

So he was able to create his own imprint before or like right after he left the Astro World tour.

Then Cactus Jack Records comes about.

Cactaus Jacks comes about right at in the beginning to Astro Okay, yeah, so Cactus Jack is a part of Astro World as well.

Yeah, he went back to New York to get his first artist.

Yeah, it was his artist, Oh, Shocks Shacks all.

Of his own, yeah, Shack West. So let's talk about the clothing business. Clothing business, So three hundred million dollars in sales. Yeah, that's that's what that.

I guess, Yes, a king of oneself?

Yes, so who's twelve years old though?

Yeah, started away? So how did that work?

As far as getting into clothing business, I'm assuming it's a lot different than the music business.

What is it the same? It's like distribution deals, Like, how's that work?

It's kind of the same.

It's kind of the same in the sentiment, of course, it's different the way that the money, you know, what's down on the end.

A lot more.

Coos and things of that nature, because it's hard goods, right, you.

Know, But same thing, right for us.

We knew once we caught momentum, we knew there certain areas to go to, you know, we knew the fashion was one of them. You think, like during this era, everybody was wearing white teas if you was in the South, cash money. Everybody wearing white teas right in the South, you know. So to me it was a no brainer.

And here we go.

We got a good looking dude all of that, So put some clothes on them, dress people up, you know. So we started the brand at the time when people thought that artists brands was dead. Actually that was the fun part about it. Like people was like, yeah, that shouldn't work no more. It's played out like the more artists brands Rocketwar and and you know what I'm saying, kind of died out for real, you know.

And we went and.

We met with like a lot of people, like people that was in the business, Russell Simmons and David John and Seth who is Mark Echo's partner, and Echo and Complex and all that stuff.

So we met with just a lot of people.

In the business and and just told them like, yo, this is what we're trying to do, like what's up, like, you know, and it's kind of like music, Like some people put offers on the table and then you start with as you go for meeting the meeting, you're kind of learning as you in these meetings.

Right, like damn he said this, but he said that. But you know what I'm saying, So you learn it, so you learn the game too.

And and we pretty much went a route to get more direct to like a a distribution company manufacturer as opposed to signing like through another record label, so to say, you know what I'm saying. So like we went more direct and did a deal with a company called the RP fifty five group and and mantshter con O eight.

Yeah.

Yeah, so and that's that's still in existence today.

It's still in existence today.

We started a cool in eight and then in nine I started another brand called Straverg's Row.

I don't want to get into that.

I want to get into that because even strives Row is important because first of all, the name and why you chose it.

Obviously the New York roots there.

But I don't think people don't even understand what why you can get into that, why you chose Travis Row's.

Name, strives Row. You know, it's a block in Harlem. You know, that is notoriously historical for the roots, specifically doing a Harlem Renaissance. You know, you had a lot of like the leaders of the Renaissance that lived on this block, you know, politicians, writers, Langston Hughes, like all the type of people who lived on this block, you know. And prior to them being able to live here, they

Was just popping. It was like very influential.

So when you hear the stories, you know about Striver's Row, if you read the stories and the history, it's kind of like a different version of Black Wall Street, you know what. I'm from a creative standpoint more so than a financial standpoint, you know. So when I heard the story, when I heard the name, I thought it was dope.

Let me ask you a question about licensing, because the cool you have you have a license something for Muhammad Ali and Marvel? Yeah, how what was what was the deal with that? How did that work out?

That wasn't good?

Muhammad Ali went really well, what was it?

Like? His likeness?

I mean really like yeah, his likeness everything, so literally, you know, we did a whole caps so nan you know, DNA butterflies, you know what I'm saying, like, and brought it butterflies on sweatsuits, you know what I mean. Like, but of course we had T shirts with booms face on them as well, So we did a combination.

Same thing with Marvel.

We've done something like that as well with the un brand not not really you and brand was it was a collab that wasn't a license.

Our two licenses have been those two so far. We're actually working on something right now that that could be really dope.

So how does that work for like, because we spoke about licensing before, but not from that standpoint of like you actually are the one that's paying the license, like for entrepreneurs that may be listening, they might not be aware of how that works, Like can you explain, like, is it like a set amount that you have to pay them every time?

Like royalty?

Absolutely, So if I'm the brand and you have a brand that I want a license, you know, now, typically how about this I flipped it. If you guys want to license my brand and now I have a brand, now typic league for me to give you a license, the standard is like an eight to twelve.

Percent royalty, you know.

Now on top of that, I may have an advance that I want against my earnings though, right so now I may say, hey, like I need fifty thousand, and then on top of that, I need eight to twelve percent.

Whatever that number is, Like we're gonna grew in twelve whatever.

You know, not to say that somebody else might not say. Not to say that someone else may not do a deal for twenty percent, but eight to twelve.

Percent standard, Yeah, exactly. You know. So that's how that pretty much works.

You so to Mom and Ali, go to the state who owns the rights, got to deal with them, get them their royalty, get them they advance, get the work, and I try to make it make sense.

Is it on total merchandise sol or is it east piece of merchandise sold royalty?

Yeah, yes, it's literally per whatever you're doing, anything that has the likeness.

On it, yeah counts. Okay.

So like like record, like album's very similar. Every album sold they get if you're using this property, you know what I'm saying, that's just the same thing, right if you're using my trademark boom.

So what was the difference because Mohammed Ali obviously that's a family versus Marvel, which is a billion dollar entity. Sure, I guess it was a lot harder with the Marvel more like paperwork and lawyers and stuff like that or.

You know what, not really for real. That's the funny part is you you would think it is. But like with Marvel, they give out so many.

Licensees something, they do it so much, they.

Do it so much, they like exploited it so much.

Real that that's something that we are Honestly, it is like it was good to do it, but it wasn't as profitable because while you got your product in.

Stores, other people got it.

They got it in Walmart and Target.

Marble did you do man? We did? I couldn't speak on them. I look at the phone.

You know what I'm saying.

But like like we did, we did a lot of them.

Man, they probably just sitting on the other side, like, oh, that's a character pressed the button, you know what.

I would I wonder if ghost Face had the ever pay Marvel. They should pay him, They should pay they should pay him. I wonder if he ever had to pay him. Interesting old album called iron Man. Tony Starks was his moniker for years.

But that's interesting though, who should pay who?

They should pay that?

At that time, and I was into comics, like I had the Marvel cards the series like ninety one ninety two when used to with the hologram cards.

I collected them. And then they started getting cartoons.

But like when ghost Face started saying that, and it was like your cartoon characters even like everyone in WU had.

Like an ulteri ego character. I was like, yo, they made it popular.

They didn't have a Marvel movie then, like the first Marvel didn't even put out movies til later, Like the first thing Sony did was partner with them and put out Spider Man and then like okay, now cartoon movies can be a thing.

But prior to that, nobody was thinking about it.

I mean, DC had it with with with Batman and Superman, but Marvel's real quite a little outside.

I was never a collected so I can't speak too much. But that's interesting.

That's interesting because it's like I could see it from both sides.

Yeah exactly.

I mean you kind of you took, you took the thing, you.

Made your whole thing on.

If you was the person who made the originator and the person that took your joint ran would it and made a life of his own, come say yo, you should.

Pay me, pay me though it was dead in the water, but before that was you.

That's a fact, buddy, did help the brand promotions.

We see how many times have we seen that in hip culture?

Yeah, yeah, we definitely know that.

That's interesting. That's interesting.

So okay, so all right, so now doubling back on the music thing. Meek Mill one of the greatest rappers of this generation. He was also signed to you guys.

Yeah yeah, Meek Yeah, Tip, Charlie Max. Shout out to.

Charlie Max, Philly's own.

That's kind of like how how Meet connected with Tip and literally meat was dope like sort of raw energy of it. Sort of you know that was meet with the corn Rolls, all of the clips you see now looking back like that was it?

So like when you when you first heard me, you knew, like this is this is something.

Honestly, when when you first heard me, you knew he was dope.

But even more than that, when we first heard me, Philly was already rocking with me.

Yeah, he was a he was a celebrity.

Feel it's already a local thing, you know. So it was like I got my opinion.

Of course I think he's dope, but really, for real, who cares what your opinion thinks? His backyard loves him right now. It's only a matter of time before it works, you know. And to me, that's what I feel like with artists, Man, you want to get in business with an artist? I look at an artist is like a founder of a company, and you want to invest in someone that's gonna make it with or what else?

Period?

You know what I'm saying, Like, if it's somebody that, yo, you need me for this, need me for that, it's a hard investment. But if it's somebody that like trajectory wise, like you see the energy you see like it's only a matter of time before he makes it.

So you when you guys just let him go free and clear when TI no, just nothing, just like out of good faith, like yo, just let him.

It was done for you. You did it. You return to feel Yeah, we had a.

Producer to be billionaire shout out the rise b billionaire. He went over there with with Ross too during that time.

You know you have any regrets about that, Like do you think maybe you could have still kind of worked out something with you?

You know what I'm saying, Like, I mean, you know it's it's you can't really I don't really see it like that, is what it is what I'm saying.

You can't really like I don't really see it like that.

I mean you know when when you do.

When you make certain moves and you a certain kind of way, you can always be straight.

You got I mean, looking back on it, I mean you lost, you lost me, but you had the next biggest star, probably the biggest.

Star outside of the guy from Canada.

Well well speaking.

Well, we'll get there in a second.

Yeah.

I mean it's interested too, because I feel like in the music business. We spoke about this with Chris Gotti where it's like it's really just based off of your opinion, right, there's really no set or reason like this person is going to be a star, this person isn't going to be a star. It's just kind of like like you said, you can kind of gauge it off of like the

Shout out to Drake first and fall let's say this. We was going to Toronto a lot. We was doing stuff in Toronto and before Drake, Canada was a different world.

That fact was there was.

It was different. It was a lot of love girls is still like you know, you know, to bring you ladies like man, it was.

A different thing.

Man, like.

Shout, we loving Toronto, We're up here, you know. And and it was a few rappers that was buzzing for real during that time.

It was like belly was buzzing and Drake was, you.

Know, doing this thing. And it was a few rappers, you know. But of course, yes, Drake was introduced. I didn't see it, you know, I didn't see it at all, Like we didn't see it, like you know, for real. But at the same time, Drake had this manager, man HaLow back t Slack, that was the name. I don't know where he at, shout out the hollow back t Slack. Always wondered what happened to him for real, because Drake he had this manager and dud essed to like go hard to kind of be a little bit annoying.

Too, for I'm like, yo, what's up all about you?

You know?

And that's why you know, like, yo, it's it's a it's a fun line between like persistence to being a painted ass the fact, you know what i mean.

Way used to teeter that line.

You know that you know, and it's all love, like shout out to him and like, but it's just real. Like so for me and my experience, that was another factor in it.

Too, Like ship about to call me a game, but you know.

Shout out to Drake, like yo, he went and obviously I'm sure he everything went perfect for him, you know what I'm saying.

But you know, when you when you went in it.

Everybody got a story about who they missed out in it, and you focused on Yo, So I'm gonna miss out on somebody else's you know what I'm saying, So you can't think.

And like you said at that time, it's like he has an afro and he's Jewish and he's doing the grassy and saying yeah, I told you. Like even I read j Prince's book and Jay Prince was like he didn't understand it. Like when his son was like, Yo, he gonna be big, he was like whatever, But like I.

Guess, And that's that's all credit to Drake, right, Drake changed like hip hop in that regard, like because real looking at it, there was nobody.

From Canada that was popping. There was Cardinal Official.

Cars now Fish Toronto Legend, shout out to him, Toronto Legend. But that was like the biggest rapper that we had seen to that point, you know. So it was just like, Yo, Drake had like a butterfly collar.

It was just like you didn't see it.

I don't know, no mustache.

He was young, but he bounced back back through the country of Canada. Needs to make him like an official ambassad like no because it's like not only not only did he change the course of music, the rafters all of a sudden became nbah, like the whole culture changed.

Everything for Canada.

I think when we look at the plane that they give, you.

Know, that's the hardest plane out the plane when I tell you right the message at the bombas if you're reading this, we left.

That's hard. That is a hard message.

Drake is like the president of Canada.

Bro, after you got he is straight.

He got, he became the biggest music star, and then he got replaced for a second by another guy from Canada, Justin Bieber.

And it's like, yo, no.

Replaced, never got.

Whatever pop star, pop stars the biggest just to be back the point was the biggest pop star. Yeah, but they I mean these guys, I wouldn't use the term replaced as a pop star.

He got joined.

That wage is important, language important, that's fair. It was a impoint. He got joined by another Toti. Then they started getting number one picks coming from Toronto.

I'm just like yo with and then the weekend pop crazy like.

Drake Tory like he changed Toronto.

Bro like that she used to be like I never seen I never seen we were in Toronto before before, like you said, you go to club for five hours, like you know what I'm saying, Like it was crazy.

I came back and it was like New York. They're like one.

Hundred and fifty for like crazy, it's crazy to think about experience, did you know?

Like Vince car todays, Vince shout to Vince Man.

So let's talk about another licensing deal on the music side, because you guys leave Atlantic and then you I guess you go to Columbia so for the for the Paperwork album. So was that was that different? Like it was a different type of deal. You just signed the licensing, Like, how did that work?

That was a distribution deal?

Distribution deal?

So that was the distribution deal, whereas Boom like like you said, it could work in two different ways. You can turn in the album and they can just distribute the album through a license, or they could just distribute the album directly with you and you good for whatever you agree on, right, one album.

Two albums whatever.

But that's back to you know, one of those splits that that's just straight ownership.

So you tell you did the first one wasn't a distribution deal with records? It wasn't no, that was the JV partnership, but this one was a distribution it. So what's the difference between the JV partnership and the distribution.

The difference between a JV partnership is really going to be the splits. Like a JV partnership is typically fifty to fifty. You know, like I said, you can get your master's back or you cannot get your master's back, depending on your deal. Now, when it comes to a distribution deal, you maintain the ownership of your masters, but now you're split. May change. You can come in people say, yo,

I need some money for it.

Everything you need money for is like, okay, ten more for me, ten more for me, ten more for me. So you can end up being at a sixty forty and it can still be distribution.

You're gonna have been at a fifty to fifty and it's still distribution.

So it's like depending on that split will determine the profit share.

You know, you're still on taming your masters.

So the distribution you ow with your master's right away, that album own the masters right away.

Exactly after that, do you become the completely independent.

After that? Yeah? After that, No, actually put out a project through Epic two.

You know, but it was the same kind of way what La went to Epic Okay, okay, it was that was actually not that long Aguards.

Yeah, and then you then the All Death distribution absolutely acquisition. What's so what? What's what's that? What's what's all depth? So that was Russell Simmons thing, That's your Death.

Yeah. So Russell Simmons started All Death, which is basically a.

Content company right that lives on multiple platforms, predominantly Facebook and YouTube.

They focused on hip hop and comedy.

So Russell Simmons started his company in like two thousand and sixteen, I think maybe fifteen, and they they they raised like seventeen million dollars, you know.

So they created brands. You got for exam, you have art.

And raps, you have you know, different brands that exist on the platform. So now Russell Simmons and these guys ran into some com Locations decided to sell it, we end up buying it. When I say we, I created a a syndicate, syndicate exactly, man, Tip created syndicate. So now myself, Tip Baron Davis.

Paul Judge, Paul Judge, Paul Judge is a part of it as well, Paul Judge, Mucker, Capital, Beta Works, you know too, VCS and my guys, Sedric Rodgers and Seawan Newsome all pretty much acquired it, you know.

But for real, like, yeah, that's that right, So we acquired that in the nineteen open up twenty twenty with it, and now, of course the pandemic hits, you know, So now, like you guys know, content has been up throughout the pandemic initially, so our content was up, our numbers was up, We reactivated the you know, the platform, you know, the programs, and things have been going good. Now add dollars are

So how do you create a how do they get the ability to put content on the platform?

All death?

Yeah, man, you can go to all death and I'll say DM right now that's the biggest way we're working on the web app so.

That the whole page is not up.

But go and DM if you're a creator, if you're a comedian, or you're just a content creator in general, go to All death and shoot a DM.

Over So Heavy Sound Labs. That's what you're that's what you're doing. Now what is what is that?

So Heavy Sound Labs is a modern day record label, you know. So now for me, I say, I did Grant Also, I started that almost twenty years ago. So now what is a record company so to say, look like today? So in my mind, I feel like it's community because I know that I don't want to just.

Have a brand new artist. Me and this brand new artist is just us. That's tough, long road ahead of tail.

So to me, I'll front, I'm like, okay, it's really kind of community for real. You know, when I look at Grand Hustle and I look at what we built, we built the community. You look at all of these brands, they really Rockefeller, fod It's like, yo, it was always community, right, but we really didn't have like, we didn't take advantage of the technology. So to say that connect the community for it, you know when I go to the Trap Music Museum, I see people that that I've seen these

Making a record. You know what I'm saying. You're doing a little dance move or something.

You uploaded it boom, and now it's going so to me, I want every artist, every young creator to know that. Then come to heavysound dot com and upload their music here and we will possibly partner. You know, We've run through a series of questions designed to flow as if we're having a conversation as artists.

What's important to them? Lah?

Now, if they would it, if we would it? We want board them as an artist, you know, as an artist. We work with artists in three phases, you know, distribution, amplification.

And growth.

You know. So distribution is an eighty to twenty deal.

We come in eighty twenty partners eighty thos to the artists for twenty percent. We provide services for them distribution services, payout services.

But we also give them attention.

We give them office hours, you know, or access to our team to really kind of learn stuff hands on.

We give them access to talks like this.

We do talks we're proven industry experts, you know, called heavy talks. So we give them access to those on one conversations. We're going to access to a lot of different resource We have a Slack channel, you know, a Slack group that has about eight hundred of our crew members you know that are in here now having conversations.

That the heavy Groop.

That's the heavy crew.

So you go to the website everysound dot com you can also hit the heavy crew now, you know, because initially what I started seeing is is I pretty much had like an open casting call for artists. I'm turning away a lot of artists, right because a lot of artists are just not ready for us, you know.

So now I'm like, damn, how could I convert them?

I was an intern before, I was on the Street Team before, So now would say, like, what does today's Street Team program internship program look like? If I'm saying I'm doing a digital record companies, now I create the Heavy Crew. So now if you're a artist that you're too early, you know, go apply over here and we don't have conversations to give you information so you can get your shit together, you.

Know what I'm saying.

But now even more than that, Now it's managers A and RS motors, you know, like other people that you know, you have interest in the music business, you can come over here. We got this community and we can all to share information and help build each other up.

But at the same time, I get to activate my crew, you know. So now I.

Got almost fifteen hundred Heavy Crew members and in my mind, I'm thinking back to Street Team, right, like, there's no more hanging up posters, giving out stickers, flyers that don't exist no more.

And that was post on social media right comment all of that stuff.

So now I get to activate my crew and say yo, on Tuesday at two o'clock. We're gonna we're gonna be advertising all started great, So we're gonna post all started great.

We're gonna have hashtag SRT at two.

O'clock on Tuesday, and now we got hundreds of people doing it at the same time, thousands of people eventually, Right for a brand new wartis the biggest thing for brand new artist is to get.

Somebody else to talk about, you know, so you know, just.

Kind of building that crew so it can be like more and I can talk to the audience and in a bunch of ways, not just oh the direct music.

That's crazy because in my mind, I'm like, especially in these times, how are you going to amplify the artists?

But you just gave it a thousand ways.

And one of the things I think is important is that there is no growth anymore in artists. It sounds like this is what this platform is for. Right, Like now it's like, yo, I can make a hot song in my living room, put it out and now I'm hot?

But how do I grow?

Right?

So like absolutely, how do I actually developed turn this into a business?

Right? Right?

It's like everybody got access, Now, how do you turn that into a sustainable business? As the side of it, you know. So for us, like I said, I look at it, I bring artists in. We were originally on an eighty twenty spit and now I look at your traction at the right time, evolved to a fifty to fifty deal. I start investing finances in you, and my goal is to partner with a major label, you know.

With a major label. So it's a music incubator. Now I want to do that over and over.

Do they own their masters?

Yes?

Okay, so it's like a direct and do you just so it's like a tune corps a CD baby like.

You No, it's not like that, right, So you have the toune cores and CD babies.

But I'm like a luxury offering for it, you know what I'm saying, Like you go there, that shit is like the bits. It's just like a black hole, you know what I'm saying.

Like for them as far as like they publish it, to the to the iTunes.

Yeah they own everything.

Yeah, they own everything when they go that route. Now when you come to my route, you still own everything. We do a twenty four month deal, so I want to partner with a major label within twenty four months.

You know, you own.

Your masters, but I got the rights to exploit your masters, meaning that I'm going to be during this time working sinks and trying to get placement of your songs socialized else. So I need the ability to run around and do that as opposed to you know, you're a new artist, so you.

Don't have no demands.

Nobody is waiting for you, so I don't have time to say, Yo, John Brown, I'm calling you, and John Brown's at work, like you know what I'm saying, and John can't get back to me, Like and by the time he gets back to me after the night shift's over with, he hits me back, and I hit the other person back the next day they're like, are you serious? Like I don't care about you know, Like at that point, it's just the numbers game.

Whoever has the sound for the low that's where we want to go right now.

So I just really want the rights for the duration to exploit your music.

And help building music.

But you own your music time because real the masters ain't worth nothing yet, you know what I'm saying, keep you always own it as long as it ain't worth nothing like that doesn't really matter. So people got to really understand, like when they start talking about masters and ownership and people invest the money in you, like a lot of people really don't have a real good education on that.

Still, you know.

So do you think that record labels are still and because we've heard like Steve Stouts say, like record labels aren't they shouldn't even be around anymore, Like do you feel it's still a place for record labels or how do you feel? Like what's your thoughts about that?

Yo?

I mean to me, I feel like I feel like you just got to go on the record label the right way, you know. I feel like the bigger, the biggest acts in the world.

Are with major record labels.

Fact, you know, a major record label provides major resources, provides resources, personnel all around. The global music right now is a global business right with the hip.

Hop biggest genre in the world, you know.

So to me, like I want to know, like, yo, what's going on in Tokyo, what's going on in London, what's going on in Legos, what's going on over here in Sydney?

Like?

You know what I'm saying that if they consuming music in Britain, like, it benefits me to have representation.

Right. So now we talked about all kinds of different deals.

If I tell you, Yo, you could do a deal with these people, you can maintain ownership, they gonna promote you.

I don't get it.

So, you know, I think it's really just the about what kind of do you do? But most artists really want to be the biggest artist they could be. They want to be Kanye, right. You know what I'm saying, I'm the biggest artists. I got sneakers, I got, I'm selling out shows, I got the hot girl I got. You know what I'm saying, Like most artists want to be Kanye. They don't want to be MASTERP for real. You know what I'm saying, Like master people wouldn't work

You know.

It's very rare to find that those attributes both in one person you know, So it's.

Interesting, Jason, Man, you didn't disappoint Man. I appreciate it. I appreciate it. How can the people contact you? And yeah, all of the adventures that you have going on, anything that you want to telling people.

Absolutely, I'm Jason Jeter G E.

T R.

On social media, be it whatever you know every social media and Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Jason Jeter G. E.

T R.

And then you go as go to heavysound dot com if you're an artist, if you want to be part of the process of music, of developing artists, of building the brands, if you want to communicate and network with like minded creatives, heavysound dot com.

Appreciate that choice.

Yeah, shout out to everybody on Patreon dot com that's our proud to pay program. Y'all know that tire four and five gets you access to E y L University and a number online school in the world. Man, shout out to all the earners on there, and shout out to everybody that's in our book club and our investment group on Facebook headed up by myself and our brother MG, the mortgage guy, and everybody that's supporting the merger on

We're just doing pretty well man. We we uh you got some stuff for you?

Yeah, absolutely absolutely yeah yeah, you know what too a thing about that, so we gotta we don't.

Pick your bring any point. Great leader, Yeah, yeah for sure.

Once again, shout out to Atlanta. Thank you guys for rocking with us. We'll see you next week.

Peace.

Peace.

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