Rap Radar: Steve Stoute

He it was a rap raid all podcast. My name is beat I Elio will say, feeling Elliott.

I'm feeling good, beat Out, How you baby?

Feeling great? Especially after this Geechee Gotti episode. Man, like that we hit the battle raps.

See man, what I'm saying, we battling these other podcasts battle rap Gee.

I love it.

Man.

You know, Geechee really is like the face to me of battle rap right now. He kind of like sparked my interest again in it.

You know.

I love the fact that he's unapologetic with his rams. He saw I tickle it too in a conversation, So it seems like a lot of people loved what we had to say and what he had to say as well.

Did he get any backlash for his uh? What was it? The Mount Rushmore?

I think that Mount Rushmore was battle Rappers in their feelings, the og battle Rappers, And I mean he cleared it up to he was saying, like how he gives props to this generation to also give props like the moods and the low the luxes of the world. But you know, I think it was pretty on point though, you know, so shout out to Geechee Gotti.

Another great conversation.

Did you get get any backlash for you Drake review?

Not actually any ovo text. Not a lot of people.

A lot of people seem to agree with me in my assessment of the project. You know, it's it's not my favorite right now, but you're still sitting by Elliott and the Boy Man the Dogs, Man for the Dogs, maybe rough rough.

I think Sexy Red Man, she might as little find a spot to rapper in the podcast.

Man, that song could be a hit beat Out. I mean, I think it could be a hit.

I think, like I said last week, the Miami bass Atlanta based kind of sound is kind of dominant right now. A lot of people love to dance, you know, like from the Baby and the oozies of the world. So you know, I think it's a good It's a good joint off the album. It's a highlight for sure. Sexy reds out here doing the thing.

Man.

But you know, we gotta run out of guest man. We gotta be in this hot streak though, Man, Like we can't miss right now, Man.

I can't miss. We got back. Steve Stout on his.

Program Commissioner Man The Commissioner, Steve Stout, I.

Always wanted to know why. Jay said he wanted to holler at him. I should have asked that, right, So start to holler at me, man. Yeah, if my invested me part two, I think maybe the check had to come right. Jack ain't clear of it.

But you're actually going to participating in his event this weekend.

Yeah, Select Con United Masters. They've been doing it for third or fourth year in a row. Just a great hub of creatives. My assignment this afternoon is to talk to our colleagues at ern Elisia Man, Rashad and Troy doing amazing work this year. They got the investments, all that stuff. So I'm actually in the conversation with them. And if you and those guys bringing their story to the forefront. I think Steve himself is talking to Davido da veto de Vito and yeah, it's gonna be a

They got it right.

You can'tfront on Steve Stout.

He's been in the game for a hundred years, man. You know, he's responsible for the success of nas. You know, he had a hand in fifty cent early on, and you know Marry J. Blige, jay Z. Of course the list goes on and on it. Of course he's doing this thing United Masters. So you know, Steve has no shortage the stories.

Yeah, last time we spoke to him was way back in twenty seventeen. The black and white era brought like the bottle opens one and stuff to try to impress him. But now we get back with him after six years. And it's funny because he hinted at that. He said, like when he first sat with us was the beginning of the whole United Masters. He didn't want to brag too much or really you know, he wanted the work to do the talking. And now six years later he's

Alum Brent fires our helicopter.

Buddy copters with us, right, you know, rumor fifty million dollars deal with United Mass mister independent joint force with the Commissioner Man.

So we gotta know how that happened. I rolled over United Masters. They get money, man, sit fifty million.

Stole getting the money.

You know, I thought it was cool too, Like membassas we asked Steve about the whole Hippi fifty thing, and I felt like he was playing the back seat to that.

He had a real message behind it, right, Yeah.

Absolutely, you know, he Stout does things strategically, and you know what he talked about in the program about the plan that he has for his own hit Pop fifty, Like, it's really really impressive and our commended for that.

So yeah, taking care of artists like rock Kim and Scarfa's health issues and stuff like that.

Beautiful to see.

Man.

You know, it's always a great interviewers sometimes, you know, people wanted the execs man, they want the behind the scenes forces of culture.

Man.

This is the guy that made Jay Z write the verse for Doctor Dre still dri It's the guy who continues to make noise. Today Met Earth Gang just signed to you know's a shout out to those guys, you know, just connecting the culture.

Man.

So it's time once again to get one of the most important execs in our history.

Man, Steve Stout, the commissioner.

Yeah, on your rap rate up podcasts.

Let's do it, yo, it's a rap rate on podcast. My name is betr Elliott Wilson here with the commissioner.

Yes man, one of the greatest hip hop executives of all time, according to Variety, that's a fact.

Steve Stout, thank you so much. Man. When that list came out, I didn't expect.

I didn't even expect to be on it, to be honest with you, I didn't know that they would get it right, get it right.

Yeah, they got it right. It was it was.

It was a good list of people on that and you know, it was cool to be a part of that historic moment of the celebration of fifty years of hip hop and fifty executives that made an impact.

Do you think they let anybody off?

I can't remember. I can't remember the list.

I remember thinking that, oh, maybe they could have put somebody else on or whatever. You know, they got to get it fifty. You know, it's hard, it's hard to get it tight. But they mostly got it right. I could say that. You know, there was no like Grave like era mission.

Yeah, but it's crazy about your story about like people.

No, no, you conquered the music executive side of things, and then now in this new era with United Masters, you're sort of retooling challenging the whole system that you're a major part of.

Yeah.

Well, you know what's cool is that I had this conversation with you guys last time. I was here literally at the beginning of United Masses, and I really didn't want to talk a lot about it because I didn't want to come out the gate like yoa hype. And you know, I got an announcement like all these other people, like you know, you see it all the time. It's an announcement, and an announcement like do to work, make it important, make it impactful, and then you know it

Do their thing, because I like the fight.

I like there's something about me that love innovation, love innovative ideas.

There's value to that to me.

It may not have monetary value, but it has there's a lot of pride in the fact that you thought about something and you've seen around a corner and therefore, you know, you landed on an idea and United Masses. It was clear when everything went to streaming that there was no need for a record company anymore. It's almost like a joke now as I sit here, and when I said it back then, people were like, are you going to compete.

With Spotify or Apple? They did, or Title.

They didn't really understand what that was. And now when you look at it, it's obvious. You know that you know, outside of the advance that a record company can give you, there's nothing really they can do that you can't do. They can make up shit, but there's nothing tangible that they can do that you can't do. And artists are proud to be independent.

You know. I seen us here in Paris a few weeks back and.

He said to me, you know, Steve, although I'm not with United Masses, I want you to know that it's very important for you and everything that you stand for that I'm the first independent act to play.

The Super Bowl. This is us who's been in a legacy artist saying this to me off top. You know, so clearly we made.

An impact and I'm proud of the work that we've done. We have a long way to go. I think this is the beginning. We're still in the second inning of the independent becoming this idea of a major independent and what that means going forward.

But so I think we're early in the game.

But I think that we are well positioned to do what we need to get done.

We had a conversation earlier this year with NBA young Boy and he said that he's a part owner of United Masters, and he.

Say that on the camera. First of all, the congression you guys were getting a meeting with MBA. That was very difficult for him. He's a very special guy.

I like him. I spent a lot of.

Time with him, and.

You know, there was a deal that we were going to discuss in which, you know, we were going to be in business together, and he was gonna you know, we were in business together, and yes, he you know, equity was going to be a part of compensation. I

The owner, right, You just like that evolution.

So I do believe that people should get equity based off of their contribution, and I wanted to put him in that game, but you know, there was a lot that happened and then he got in trouble and that whole thing didn't work. But yeah, there was That was definitely an in depth discussion, and I have a lot of respect for him and his talent. Certain things that we she handled differently, but you can't take away from his talent.

Right.

Another gentleman we did a great interview with.

We actually went a helicopter with him because that's what the kind of vibe he was on is Brent Fias and I heard you guys admitted, Yeah, we did a little helicopter ride. You see that, you know, because he was inspired by Jay when Jay went on Rap City and Joe Claire did the helicopters. So you know, Tie, everybody was like, Brent only wants to do it if you guys get in the helicopter. So we did the interview sitting down and then we eventually getting the helicopter.

Had to copy here. But we really actually got in the helicopter with so man.

Brent is amazing different. He's a different guy, and you know it was, you know, to get him to come to the United Masters. It was a bidding war. I mean not a bidding war money monetarily. It was a bidding war with what are you going to do? What do you believe in?

Values? People putting forth their values on top of money.

And we had to beat everybody. I mean I literally had to beat everybody, but you know.

Everybody.

Everybody had to beat them everywhere, every aspect of it.

What do you see? Why did you want to beat them? What did you see that?

Why did you because he there's a few artists that stand for independence like it embodies what they are, and he's one of them. He's been doing it him in Tie, his partner's manager, have been standing for those values from day one. They're eloquent on the topic because they know it. That's all they know. They don't even understand when you come at them with i'll give you money and own some of they don't even know what that means. All they know is investing yourself and rip the reward, which

Yeah, can you talk about that, because when the reports came out, it kind of was like elusive a little bit. He said, you and Brent launched a creative agency value that fifty million dollars.

Can you explain more about that agency?

Well, he he Well, the word agencies.

First of all, I hate that word is okay, okay, something to go to translation for a second. The agency, we're creative solutions company. That's what we are. We use creative solutions to solve a problem. That's what we do.

The word agency is terrible word.

It's too much connected with mediocrity and cost and no return and all that kind of stuff.

So no.

Brand wanted to whether it be fashion, creative ideas overall, he wanted to get funding to back a a sort of a creative hub, a creative safe space where things that came out of it may articulate itself as fashion, and may articulate itself as visual content. It may you know, articulate itself as podcasts. Like it was more of a of a creative hub that you know, ideas can be forced out of.

That's what he wants to do. So that's the world. That's what it is.

It's not it's not an agency per se that's gonna you know, work with brands and that kind of That wasn't That wasn't the intent.

Entirely got it.

Also, he's empowering his team around him, so different positions. Ryeah, Yeah, is s O supremacy. I think it's called I can't tell you the name.

But what can you tell us about select conn five man? That's what you in New.

York City for tonight? Yeah, for those nine intends can you explain what that is.

So we started to Select con uh three years ago, three and a half years ago, and Select is a tier in United Masses in which you subscribe and you put out you know, all the any amount of music you want.

And and when you are a subscriber to Select.

You also get connected to the brands that we represent at and T, the NFL, the NBA, State Farm, ESPN, all right, so to get your music in the sync so you can seek opportunities as well as brand and marketing opportunities with that tier of service that we have at United Masses Select Con, which is obviously a take on that is a conference that we wanted to do where it was really helping creators, entrepreneurs, artists, labels, whatever it may be, provide information and intelligence that they can

We've had great speakers. We've had Russ and Chance the Rapper and Pharrell and.

The young Neuralisia gentlemen and others come on that stage and talk about what they went through and the trials and tribulations and provide advice and insights.

And that's what this is all about.

It's about getting the best of knowledge and having them share it.

It's a live masterclass, you know.

And I'm you know, you your leisure today in Leisure today, and that's dope.

Man.

Let's speak a little about those guys like to really bring financial literacy to our culture, like it hadn't really been done before. And it's amazing to see the work those guys are doing right well.

They're definitely hard workers and I love their relationship.

I met.

I met them about three years ago. I did an interview and they were explaining to me. The first person to tell me about them, honestly, was Kevin Hart. It was Kevin Hart, and then Charlemagne within like two weeks told me about them. They were reaching out for me to do the interview. I did not know who they were, so I, you know, delete.

And that's easy to get the commissioner on the line, babe, It's not easy.

And then I met them, you know, after hearing about them from Kevin and Charlemagne. And the first thing, you know, Sean said is like, man, we're going to like rock stars of financial literacy, Like we're going to sell concerts out.

And when he explained the vision, it was.

It was clear he had it like it was clear they had a vision on what they expected and wanted to do. And there are versions of that that exist, but they're just not with African American in our world.

They're not African American rooted and hip.

Hop culture kind of of of conversation and that level of financial literacy. And they knew there was a lane for them, and they've stayed diligent. It's one of the things Jimmy IV and A he said to me, stick to your knitting and stick to your knitting comes from the fact that like you'll go to your grandmother's house and kid, you go to your grandmother's house and she'll be knitting, so it'll be this small and then you come back like five months later and it's a whole duvet.

You're like, how did it? In your mind? How did the time ellapse? How do you get that done? Because she's stuck to her knitting.

So slow and steady, slow and steady, And that's what they That's what they did.

And I'm super proud of them. And we've been partners with them with select Con for a few years. And however I can help them with sponsorships. I do that for them and you know, they have been great partners to us. We have a great relationship.

It's dope because like you've always been a person that's willing to give game. I saw a while ago on Instagram you posted from nineteen ninety six. He was at the how Can I Be Down? Conference? He survived as Chris.

Lighty man, I was scared. I remember that. That was the first time I spoke publicly. I was scared to death. Wow, I was scared to death. And I was standing next to Shat Kim and Chris Lighty. Who are you know, Titans as far as I was concerned back then, And God blessed Chris. Titans men that I have looked up to and admired, you know what they were doing. And I was sort of now entering that frame six yeah, and well not no, it was even the behind the scenes.

Shit, it's on now. And and I wasn't.

Good Like the clip. I don't know how I found that clip. Somebody sent it to me. If you sent it to me, then there it is. That's how I found it. But that clip was actually decent because I was terrible. Yeah, I'm talking about stuttering, scared, can't answer a question.

My voice was trash. The whole thing was bad.

But I learned obviously from it that there was gonna you know, if you're gonna do this, you gotta be able to do that.

But I was just more. I couldn't believe that I was sitting next to them, you know, speaking in public like that. I had gotten to that point.

That was just that was a certainly for me, like a high point in my career at that point.

So how did you grow in that way? Up front facing and you know, I guess writing a book that Tanny America was a huge step, like can you speak to sort of that transition of like putting yourself out there more, putting.

Myself out there more really happened when the you know, as times changed and I was like this guy behind the scenes, and I realized, like, I mean, you gotta go man, like you you have a you're gonna go int the advertising business. You've been a record executive that had success. You got to tell your story and I didn't do music videos, so it was and like that's the way people were getting themselves out there because they were in music videos and be like, oh shit, that's blah blah blah.

I didn't do that. I didn't feel like doing that.

So I chose, you know, to be able to speak about and articulate what I believe in. And you know, whether it was marketing ideas for how we were rolling out albums or.

The key shift came in it and met in black.

You know how I got into advertising when you know will Smith water glasses and the glasses took off. Everyone thought it was a phenomenon, and I thought, no, it wasn't. This is exactly what happens when you put a package good wrapped within a pop cultural moment. You can create contagious behavior where somebody sees it and they want to buy it as a result of that. And maybe I should be on that side of the business. Maybe I should understand that side of the business, which led me to

And others of disservice.

And that's literally what made me, you know, push forward and start to talk and and put myself out there.

And I'm still cut.

There's my moments where I don't want to do it, and you know there's moments why like there's something to talk about, Like right now, there's something to talk about. When there's nothing to talk about, I'm not wanting to be running around and just talking to stay like right, you know, relevant, relevance, you know that word that everybody's concerned about.

Irrelevant? Are you relevant? I'm I sure how many follows you got? Oh? I am relevant?

Right? Can we talk about your time with the Nicks. Are you still working with them?

Yeah?

Okay, work well, I work with James Dolan and Madison square Garden.

Uh. You know, he's he's been great.

I love working with him and I don't give a fuck when anybody says, you know, he he's a dreamer. He's very very talented. He is a very specific point of view. You know, people come down on him for whatever reason. The Knicks aren't winning. You know New York. You know New York fans are you know they love basketball? So they want to see a winner. They deserve a winner. And he knows that not everybody sees what he did in this fair and that's just fucking people up.

What he built in Vegas.

Oh that's him. Wow, that's him.

Two and a half billion dollars, two point three billion dollars of vision. You walk into that place, you can't even imagine what you're in. It's like it's the best venue in the world. Everyone knows that. There's nothing to discuss. You go in there. You go in there. When you listen to the sound system, when you listen to the fact, they can change the temperature, but in six seconds of the room, they're not like change where it cools off or heats up, like change your cold you're hot like.

So yes, I still work with Madison Square.

Go out and I work with James, and I think he's brilliant and and you know, up marketing with the Knicks or whatever it may be. We have a great relationship. And I'm we're right here, Madison.

Square, right right behind it.

So it's dope.

Now, how did you manage like that backlash after your moment at ESPN, How did.

I manage that? The good news was that COVID came right after that. COVID came right after that, and that was good. The I regret doing it. I did it for the wrong reasons. I learned from that doing things for the wrong reasons, you know, talking because whatever, you know, I shouldn't have done it. That other guy, the guy up there, who was an asshole, and I'm really.

Happy that he's he's not.

He got fired of Max Kellerman, who's trash.

He's an actor. I mean he used to be a rapper and all this other shit.

He's he's boxing analysts, he's this, he's that, he's a fake whatever.

He's a he's an actor.

And you know, part of what happened in the interviews that I went up there and as I said, I shouldn't have.

There was no reason for me to go up there and do that.

And then you have this guy who's not talented on the other side, you know, instigating a problem, like trying to egg me on, and it worked. I didn't have an agenda, right, I was just up there to talk. I had no agenda. And then after that. The next day he went up there and started talking shit. I actually ran, I want him to speak to him about that, and like like, why would you go up there the

I the lesson here is if you really have nothing to say, say.

Nothing simple but effective. No, yeah, go back to usher you. I had his performance in Paris. He said you were like a big brother to him. And I know I met him when he was twelve.

Man.

I was living at my mom's house and I had a jeep Cherokee, and I had I had an air conditioner in my window that was broken, and I had to take it out of the window to get it serviced, and like it was in my car for a month because I never.

Got around to get it. Sir.

I remember the uh, the air conditioner being in the trunk and it took up a lot of the back seat. And la Read's brother was his A and R guy, And in the beginning, you know, they were trying to find the right sound for Usher they were looking for, you know, they were taking him around trying to find a producer because they knew they had the special talent.

And he brought him to New York to go meet folks, you know, and you know, I picked Brian up. I knew Brian Reid.

I picked him up at the airport and you know, Usher Young's twelve thirteen year old kid was in the car sitting next to the air conditioner.

I took up a lot of the back seat, and.

You know, I spent time with him, and you know, you know that that whole journey, that era of that. And then he ended up working with Puff and Puff put him with Davonte and that's how they started getting you know, his first album was made and a lot. But the thing about him is he's always allowed me to be honest with him. I'll tell you the thing about whether it be you know, Beyonce or Gaga or Usher or Hove Nas.

Whoever. Bust.

I can name the list of artists fifty, I can name all of them. Any artists that I have a thing Puff, that I have a relationship with. The thing that they expect from me is honesty. You know, that I speak extremely candidly to them and even if you don't like something, even if I don't know, definitely when you don't like something, and that candid nature, sometimes it's tough.

It's like, one of the things.

That I have is one of the values of my company's challenge and respect, Like, how do you say the most difficult thing in the most respectful way?

And I do that.

And I do that because I want them to have somebody in their life that will actually look at it objectively and.

Be honest with them.

And sometimes in that honesty, there's something in it that they're like, shit, you're right, because they're just always used to having people around them, for the most part, who tell them everything that they say is brilliant and that agree with everything. That's how those people that's called fucking job security, they agree with everything. You can get fired deal, you know, versus somebody who's willing to say, nah, take that shit off, that shit is not where it's at

I can be replicated, We can be replicated. They can't.

With that voice, that sound, that look, that level of talent that embodies that particular person cannot be replicated.

It's far and fumed between, you know.

So be honest with them because we're trying to preserve that, you know, and they need that.

That's fair.

Do you think you provide an element that's kind of missing though, like you said, very few willing to do that. Most people will either on to pay roll they had to do it, or don't even have the expertise to kind of.

Well, the expertise, the understanding, the pedigree, the taste level, you name it, the honesty within themselves to understand or even really truly get how rare and special they are. All of them, all of them, every one of them.

But that's the tide with usher because it seems like you haven't really have you formally done Vennis wim or it just seems like you're somebody who's been about to.

Make money on it. It has nothing to do with that. It has something to do with the fan. I have always been somebody who cares about our culture, always, even if it wasn't to my direct benefit.

That's not the point. The point is it lifts the tide, lifts all boats man like that. That's what it is.

So it's not like I'm providing advice specifically. Only when I get something. I speak the cam run and I speak the cam in Mace right now on this show whatever they were advertising.

I speak the cam once a week, wow, once a week. He calls me. I have nothing to do with it. Don't do that?

Do that?

Fuck? Yeah?

Perfect, this, that and the third. It doesn't even matter. It doesn't mean and he feels welcome to call me. No problem. That's me with people that I respect, that have been in the culture, have moved the culture forward, and that are special and unique.

I do that.

I thought it was interesting.

I didn't see you really involved in any of this hip hop fifty talk talk talk stuff going on. What was your take on that, like even like advertising behind it, the whole push behind it.

And that's thank you for that for noticing that.

Part of it was.

I thought that, hey, there was a people were doing a pretty good job on one and a half, like but mass appeal has done.

Yeah.

And then part of it was I felt like people were doing a bunch of corny shit around it, and I tend to walk away when there's like a bunch of corny shit happening. It was more corny things than it was real shit that was subsidient. But we are myself, Ben Horowitz, Fab five, Freddy QD three Felicia Horowitz, Ben's wife. We have a fun called a fun, a charity called payton Full. On November seventeenth, we are honoring those who have led the culture but have not received the financial

Get what they deserved. And we're honoring.

On November seventeenth in Vegas, Scarface and Rock hemp. Oh yeah, we sold out.

It's at the Guggenheim in Vegas, and that's it happens to be on Hip Hop fifty. But like that's impactful. You know, calling.

Scarface and say yeah, that's wants to let you know man that I got this fee.

He's like, what do you have to do. I'm like, just show up man, He's like word.

I'm like, yeah, half a mil this, that and the third boom rock Ken and every year it's an annual thing.

This is what we're doing. So what I want to do is.

All of the artists who had come early, who had to sign bad deals or did sign bad deals or got taken advantage of that. The least we could do is give to them, pay that forward and give to them. So paid in full. November seventeenth in Las Vegas. You guys should come. A's dope like, I would love for you to come because you're going to see something that's going to be very special because no one's ever done

Wow, when did that come together for you? To do that, dude, seeing a lot of the corny shit and just like I got to figure.

Before that, now this is good while Ben Horwitz working with Ben you know.

Nas work me Ben nas QD three Night Team five. But it was like two years in the making, trying to figure out what the right prize is and you know, trying to go through the process and get it right.

But two years.

It wasn't for Hip Hop fifty. It just happens to be that year. You know, so this year, so it's cool to say that that's okay, that's what I did that year, right, that's what we're gonna and that's what we're doing going forward.

Wow.

You know, but why Rock Kim in Scarface as the first recipient?

You just go through.

It was just a process about this a certain amount of this conditions in which you know, you have to understand, I don't want to just put people's personal businesses, the conditions you got to understand. Uh, you know, Scarface had a health scare. You know, there's there's a bunch of things like that, and you know, when you go through it all, you know it was that there's to be others this every year. Yeah, we would have did five, but we chose to and it'll probably it'll grow, it'll grow.

Wow, that's awesome. Another person that you have had a hand in.

Their success is nows as you just mentioned, Like, what do you think of the run he's had as of late, especially on the music to a hit Boy.

Yeah, I just spoke about it this morning, was talking about somebody earlier at breakfast that.

I can't be you know, somebody.

If somebody says to me, you know, stout after everything you've done in your career, you know, when you look back at it, I hope that you see that managing NAS was one of your greatest accomplishments.

And I never thought about that. And it's true.

I worked with and I'm friends with one of the greatest artists that ever walked the face of this earth.

That's a fact.

And what he's doing right now is having a great time looking good.

He's him, it's him and for real battle in the space, like who's who's the most.

Oh god, yeah, they're they're fucking fighting at a battlezations.

Somebody would say pause.

There pop crowd, But yeah, he he he's having a great time. Uh, the music he's making, he's having fun. The fact that he still goes on tour, the way he goes on.

Talk Tang of all people.

With Mary and Lauren and Wu Tang.

Mean, he's just I've seen him in Parisman twenty foived have sold out, seen him again in London twenty thousand sold out. I've seen the show three times Hollywood Bowl, Paris and London, and I'm just proud of them.

The fact that they go on tour together.

And you see wherever they go around the world, the same kind of feel when those same songs come on and they're having a great time, and you know Nas is putting out music on top of it, dropped an album on his birthday. He's been saying he was gonna do that for ten years and he finally did it. He always says that you think I should do.

It on my birthday. I'm like, we keep saying this like I don't understand ask question, and he did it.

But what do you think the drive came from this sort of inspiration. Six albums in three years. I mean I would have been a dream back then. I remember the battles of as being around.

I think, you know, inspiration and boy him inspired.

I think being independent, having in the constraints of a record company, you know, telling you what the jew and is it the first single and all that other bullshit.

I think that's that freedom.

Yeah, they don't judge that, I was saying to Hippoy, even theseulf they don't judge those albums by what they sold.

They just judge it aby the quality.

They judge it by the quality of art. And you know the fact that NAS is just putting out music. We like that.

We like that and and and I tell artists that they should they should do that.

Man.

I think I told Jada kissit down that at NAS's birthday, and like, yo, put out music, man, put out music.

Stop.

What happens is the old legacy system and ways you get caught up in sales first week and all that kind of stuff, and those kind of things stay with you.

It's almost like you get ptsdals. Oh my god, I'm.

Concerned about market and now you're out of it. You're playing with the house money. Put out the music. People want to hear what you gotta say. Try things. It's not being judged like that, like you're not no matter what you do. It's not falling off like you don't have to work. Yo, you only did whatever your first week, you fell off Like that doesn't work that really, So just stop put out music.

I would tell all.

The acts that's been in the game for some time, like put out music. Always put out music. Don't never let them not make you put out music. Don't keep that shit in your drive. Put that shit out.

I think it's dope that Nas has been able to age gracefully in this thing, because you know, he's fifty years old, and you have artists like jay Z and even artists like Killer Mike. They're still performing at a high level.

Yeah.

Well, we all thought that it was a young man's game, and it is a young man's game from a perspective of attracting youth, But it's not a young man's game when you talk about hip hop audiences and the maturity of content and music and ideas that we've grown up with. You know, it may not be as big as obviously sixteen year olds, but it doesn't matter. You know, you still have an opportunity to appeal to a fan base that loves you and has grown with you, and you should continue to talk to them.

Why do you think DMC said they seemed like they they've evolved. When we was coming up, it was like, oh, the MC would fall off by the fourth album when he turns in his forties. Like it seems like now these guys are still growing. It's still able to contribute great music.

Well, I'm not sure about I'm not sure about that.

Okay, I think the talented ones have been able to jump the fence and continue to make great music.

Let's pull back for a second.

I think the one thing I do know about hip hop and AMC is that bars really do matter. And we sometimes I could have sat here during periods of time with rap Radar and you would have been like, yo, bars is not even can on more dog? And then all of a sudden, you see like J Cole just ripping down these verses and everybody gives a fun.

You know, bars do matter. That the core of.

Hip hop and the MC is putting that putting words together, and yes, melodies matter, and obviously you want to dance to it or whatever however you want to feel. And there's periods in which bars seem to not mean anything, and whether it was the mumble Wrap error or whatever it was. But then you get back.

To bars, and then you get back to bars, and then you get back to.

The Big Three, whether it's Cole, Drake and Kendrick or Nas, Biggie and Jay or Rock Kim Cararas and Kane, whatever you want to do, get back to bars, and we're back to bars.

Facts, you know not.

I said on what this all really means Off Magic Too, that you met Nipsey Hustle about doing a documentary on IM being bootlegged.

Well though, well, yes, I had spent time at Nipsey. He very special.

Yo, very unfortunate circumstance, and he was so supportive of United Masters.

From the beginning.

I would go speak and he would be in the front row like he he's sitting in the front row. Was like crazy that he would do that, but he was so keen on understanding and that was his whole thing, knowledge of everything.

And anyhow he sent me a text that I still have.

Wow.

He literally asked me, tell me about the process when you were making it was written, and I'm like, yo, that's so crazy you asking me that. He goes, because, well, I'm making this second album right now, and I just want to know how did you go through thinking through it was written? What was the mistake you made? And I'm like, you know, I think we rusted Doctor Dray record because it was the last one NAS's coming as

Wow, this guy is.

Asking me about it was written. And he's like, man, I mean, I can get my phone on the show to you, but it was written. Thing was important to him. And he started rattling off all the songs that meant a lot to him.

Get my phone for a second. Oh shit, look at this. There is won See this right there? Wow, read that again? Read it all right.

This is March twenty six, twenty nineteen, Nipsey says, Top of the week, hope you, hope you. Silid got a question. I want to ask you about making my sophomore album when y'all made it was written, Do you feel like y'all did anything wrong?

And you respond, you're crazy, crazy for asking that. So smart.

The biggest mistake we made was rushing to get Doctor Dre nis is coming. It was decent, not great. That was Doctor Dre's first production outside of Death Row.

Oh wow, you think about that.

The smartest thing we did was go for the feature out the Gate, utilizing this his incredibility from mellmatic. So I Ruled the World made perfect sense, Nipsey responds, right in capitol letters, If I Ruled the World was undeniable. I was eleven or twelve, and I remember being blown away and we was on some West Coast only shit. Back then, that song was the only voice other than Pak that spoke to us as young kids from the street on that level. I gave you power, the message,

It's press on to that. So and if you look at the date and then when he passed. You'll see how.

Tight it that was just a couple of days prior.

You just understand what I'm saying.

Wow, it's a lot, It's a lot, yes man.

Yeah, But we talked about that, you know, from the area where that we know what to make of NADS when he came with the lauryn Hill single, like you know, you changed the sound, you changed the soundtrack.

Master was a new sound. We wanted to keep him in this illmatic bubble.

And even you're saying it is interesting, and you said that, even that you kind of played to it by putting it last in the sequence of the album.

Then I dropped the hold on. I gotta still get over that thing. That's crazy, you said. You see what I'm saying. I'm not even sitting there. These are real.

Every question everything has comes with depth, and it's important the words you say and how you speak to people and how you treat people.

My care and concern about the culture, I have nothing to do with that.

Right when we were making it was written, people told me I was gonna kill his career.

Q Tip told me that my face in the studio. Wow, I was at the master.

Room plant and Q Tip said, are you putting that out? Yeah, Yo, you're gonna kill a kid's career. And I'm looking at Q Tip and this is the first album I'm making from scratch, and Noah's trusted me, and I'm thinking, like, is he saying this because he don't like the record or because he didn't produce on this album because he produced on the last album and I went in a different direction, and of course, but I'm like, man, fuck

And cut into that and all that, I'm like.

I'm not listening to nobody anymore.

Like once that worked, I guarantee you every young manager goes through that. They go to a record company or they go to something and there's some og or somebody who's supposed to know shit, and then you sit there and they tell you to do something or else, and then you don't do it. You do the fucking you follow your gut and the shit works, and now you start looking at them like, Yo, you don't know fucking shit.

Tell me what that was. You were here, Wow, shit, wow shit.

People give just like they're like, oh, that's not gonna work. Oh, that's not gonna work. We tell them it's not gonna worry. It's the biggest fucking hit of my life. You don't know shit. People just like you know, follow your good instinct. Have enough confidence to follow your good instinct. You'll actually live. You'll sleep at night knowing that you followed your good instinct versus you didn't follow your good instinct and you fucking did some other shit and failed. Believe me, that

Those people that like it was written more than Ellmatic, there's a generation that doesn't even understand that.

Yeah it was backlash time, yo.

I've been offending it was written for so many years.

What are you talking about? This fire? You know? Yeah, yeah, you know.

Coming following I had to make the album you know, I had to make NAS's album it was written following uh Nomatic, and then I had to make Mary's album World My Life.

What yeah, yo, And it was it'sra and hated you for it, man Like back.

Then people hated me for it or whatever they did.

But if I gotta if I gotta work, part of it is being honest again. You're working with an artist. You work with Mary, you work with nas Da in that point of their lives. And you know for a fact, Yo, this album Pete Rock Tip Premiere. These producers, you're going with the track masters, you're going with Doctor.

Dre, You're going with all of this new You're not using the same formula at work before.

You know, my life was pop and chucky tyn thing you and you're going to new producers and new ship.

Why was that the right move to do you see a sound growth, elevating their sound.

I'm not elevating their sound. I'm not I am not elevating the sound. I'm not saying that. I'm saying that growth as you start, as you grow, you have to leave.

Certain things behind. You got to move on.

And from the distance between Illmatic and it was written was a lot of time had passed, music was changing, you know, and there had to be I had to be addressed. In the case of Mary, Mary writes from her heart, So this time had changed, her life had changed, and you know where she was in my life and you listen to it and where she wasn't sharing my world. Look, she's coming up with the titles. You know what I'm saying. She's giving it away. She's telling you how she feels.

Talking about that growth.

Three years ago, month prior to the pandemic, there was a picture of you Nas and fifty cent at All Star Week in Chicago. How did you and fifty manage to salvage your relationship?

My mistake with fifty was when I was leaving in the Scope, I promised him I can get him a deal before I left. I'm like, I got you before I leave. I took fifty to Rough Riders, I took him to Timbland. We weren't signing things directly to in the Scope like that. We were always signing them through producers. That was Jimmy's idea. Winks out and because of the heat around him, I couldn't. These guys wouldn't fuck with him. That's a fact. They would not fuck with him. They

They also dropped a Lisha Keys.

That doesn't get said enough right right there is the same.

By the way, the same executive, the same idiot Sonyhow.

Don't matter, It doesn't matter.

It's like it's some white guy at the time trying to tell young.

Black kids what's what's hot. It's the normal dumb ship.

So anyhow, he drops both of them, Alicia Keys one person.

Now I'm over at. I'm not at.

I'm not When when fifty got dropped from Sony, I wasn't there. I had already gone the interscope.

So when he.

The six million dollar man, comes back, you know better than ever, and the bullet and the mouth changed his voice and made him gave and gave him another.

Fucking flow pocket to get it, and he.

Had that ship. I'm like, yo, I can get I'm taking it to these people. I'm on my way out to do it.

The last thing I did I worked on the eight Mile soundtrack and I'm out, like I'm going over the inniscope. I go over the interscope and I start doing other shit. I'm like, you know whatever, I'm doing it in the scope rough riders and I'm building my my repertoire over at Niscope. They didn't do it, and I didn't even think to bring it to or Eminem. I didn't even think to do it. I didn't even think to do it, and that that part hurt him at that time.

Bothered him.

Hurt him because he because I did say I was going to get it done, and I did not get it done, and I was fucked up that I couldn't get it done. I actually couldn't get it done. And that was always the problem that I said that and I couldn't get it done. But you know, early on, obviously I told Drag I got him over the j I got him over there out of his jam assj deal, paid jam massa Ja whatever it was to get him out, had him up.

In Bearsville, New York, were recording. I put him with shaw Money.

Shay Money was a kid that lived behind I knew shaw Money's older brothers, show Money had some equipment.

I put him, which Shy Money shot money in him.

Was like this in the beginning, making all those making all those records, and boom that all happened. And then the whole thing in the garden is another story, which was but whatever. You know, he didn't like a comment that I made, and you know, I thought I made the right fair comment, like, yo, where's the music, you know? And your technology? I don't understand why you're doing that? Your fifty you it's your fifty, Like why And I'm just saying that as a person who admires his talent.

And his persona as a musician.

And after that at Madison Square Garden where we had the face off, it looks like Muhammad Ali and Fraser Muhammad Ali and we uh we we meet backstage at the garden like so that's half time, and we literally sat there for an hour and a half like the players.

The players left the court and we were still sitting there talking.

And we went from that to Chris Lightdi passing and what that meant to him. And we spoke for a long time, so it was honest conversation and that was kind of an it all just caught you know. That was the end of that sort of thing. And then obviously there's, like I said, the respect never left and you see what he's doing in film and television, which is fire. And when I seen him, it was at nas we were in Chicago and he's seen us. He got out the car and man, and it was like love.

Man, I grew up growing up in Queens.

Within a three mile radius is fifty cent Russell Simmons, IRV.

Gottill.

That's beat outside of town. Yeah, this is side of town.

Yeah. Yeah, you from Lowton, South Jamaica. You're from South Jamaica, so beat out.

All right, within a three mile rady, I'm not even joking around the kid Keith who started footbo with Damon and for them they were all within it wild within three miles of each other.

Is all of that talent.

It's just a very wild thing that you have that much talent that comes from that one specific area of Queens. But yeah, you know, envy clue queens get the money, Nikki.

Of course.

I can keep going on and.

On, but that, like the level of talent that came from that area is kind of fire.

I want to speak to one of your newest talents, one of your brightest upstarts. It was an unfortunate predicament, super Superstar Pride. He yeah, he was signed to United Masters and he was arrested in charge of first degree murder. I wonder know what was your reaction when you heard that news.

It bothered me because the kid was he was such a stand up guy. Like when we signed him, it was another bidding war, and he came to Miami and I sat with him and told him about the value of being independence. And he comes from a small town like twenty thousand people, and he wanted like five million dollars from a label, and when they didn't give him five million, they were offered him three. He's like, if

Zero.

We got money, they got money. We get talent. They got talent. I'm not sure how many people in a major label system can fuck with me from a talent perspective, period.

So we take the thing. The record goes number one.

I see him after that and he's like, man, missus stout everything you said you were going to do, you did this, that and the third. Now I'm looking at the kid the whole time, and I can't see the people around him. I know they get busy, but like all solid committed people who come from the street, if you keep your word, you have nothing to worry about. All you got to do is keep your word, don't lie to them, don't give him the fuck boy shit,

Got busy.

When that shit happened three weeks later, man, I was like, how many times is this gonna be the same shit? Another young kid who gets money, who has an opportunity to change his life, gets one foot fucking pulled back in the shit and then does something that's stupid.

Not Look, I don't know.

Obviously he's charged with he didn't go to trial yet, but the fact that he was even in that circumstances the problem.

Man had a number one record painting pictures. Yeah, and then.

They had the whole situation with getting it cleared, and he eventually got cleared with Faith Evans.

So unfortunate yep, yeah, yeah.

Earth Gang in good News, Yeah, Earth earth gang Ville. How did you guys connect with them?

Barry have to manager? They had left in this call. Barry's a cool dude.

Barry first said no, Barry, you know, and we have a great team at at United Massage.

Man, this is not like look at Toby Man this case.

Fuck gone, movies gone gone gone. Not even they don't even touch the ground anymore when you see him. In fact, if you look closely, their feet aren't.

Hitting the ground. Yeah.

So, like, I'm just proud of these things that have taken place for people who've been around our orbit, and that the last time I was here it was the beginning of something. And now I'm sitting here telling you something that's tangible, and there's a conference and we're going to it and all these things.

So I don't sit here and you know, saying they put.

Yeast in the story, tell you something that's a theory that's not true.

Actually do what I say.

You know how rare is that you know that people actually say something and do it and follow through and stick to.

The nitty stick to and that's what it's about. That's that's what it should be.

And those are the values that I learned from the era of hip hop that I've come from that as a hustler, as somebody who's trying to move something forward, you keep your word and you do everything you say that you're gonna do, or you do your.

Best to do it. That's all I know, and that's why I'm here.

But you did promise to bring us the demo of jay Z with the still d R for Doctor Drake. Come on, man, we're gonna get a copy.

Man, a couple of those demos. Man, is there's a couple of them that you know.

It's it's like big. It's Nas writing Men in Black. It's Na's reference to Men in Black.

It's jay Z's.

References for Foxy's first album. It's jay Z's reference for Still d R. It's Jadakiss doing the Benjamins m h uh uh puffs versus the Benjamins.

These are all big fun.

You've heard him. You've heard him.

There's another one, jay Z a freestyle to looking out the front Door.

You heard about that one. Yeah, it's a jay Z. Jay Z has a freestyle where he's raving in the background.

We're in New York City, New York. It isn't about it like let this go, don't like edit around it. This is it is cool.

Yeah, he has a freestyle over main source looking out the front door.

And I think you heard this. Yeah, it's it's out there. But like I think just Blazer Young grou has it on on hard.

Drive, so he's going crazy on it.

I don't know, I haven't heard it, but it exists.

I'm gonna find out about it.

You get to the bottom.

I love that song, Looking at the Front. I like that whole first Maine Souce album, Breaking Adams, Breaking, Breaking Adams to the Chronic.

I'm not mad at that.

From a production standpoint, Breaking Adams production.

Is Professor Baby.

That's ceased again.

Yeah, that first album is that, the production at the botto about it, the transitions, everything, you know, And I compare production wise to the Dre album to the you Know, to the Chronic.

But was an amazing moment when Super Bowl Doctor Dre still dr performance. I saw Jay on the big screen. You was right next to him. Like, what was it like witness in that moment?

Well, I had just I was trying to find a Rock Nation booth and I was listening around and I was getting stopped because at the super Bowl for me, it's a super Bowl of advertising everybody.

So I'm trying to get to the booth.

But I'm stopping by and I'm dapping up the ceover Rising, I'm dapping up State Farm, I'm dapping up all everybody, and shit, I gotta get to this rock Nation box. I get in the box and as soon as I get next to Jay still dr starts like I mean it starts. And it was a very special moment for him and I had to share that. We acknowledge as a special moment because of the me how impactful that song was first for me as a A and R guy is, you know, working that in the scope, Like,

They'll turn in the album and he's like.

Are you sure? Can you make one more? And they're like one more? Jimmy, this is it. This is the first single. And he's like, he's asking Dre, what does eminem think? And I'm like, Jimmy's really He's Jimmy's just pushing everything to see how could you are you like one more rap? Like He's just it's basically that, it's like, dude more and they're like, I don't want to do anymore. Jimmy's like, well, if you make the song it doesn't go from the song from the studio directly in the

Jay goes in the studio, you know, mumbles.

To himself, goes out to Noble, seriously, goes to Noble and comes back and finishes the verse.

No spits the verse, just like.

That starts it, leaves, comes back, spits the verse.

Him and I drive to.

Atlantic City to go to a show, a little a junior Mafia show in Atlantic City in which he promised Kim because after Big Pass that he was gonna, you know, on stage with him. So Jay a man of his word, as you know. So with him and I are driving to Atlantic City. The issue is we get lost. There was a renting tight on time, so we I try it's probably I'm sure he'll say it was my fault, so I'll take the blame. I like tried something like, oh, let's go this way and we can cut off time

Yo. This man. By the way, we're playing still d R re on A. They're playing it over. We can't believe it.

We're just playing it over and over and over and over. It's only that we're playing for two and a half hours, stuck talking a little bit.

Play it again.

We go through Trenton and Jay starts saying, nah, go this way, this way, that way, and I'm like, oh, ship, he really knows Trenton.

And then somebody comes.

Up to the car and like, yo, Jay, what's up. Remember you used to serve me up. There's something crazy like that. I'm like, Ship, He goes, yeah, man, that diner right there is to be my spot.

Anyhow, that was them.

There's a lot of memories obviously at that moment, and then when we heard uh the final of it.

The thing that was probably most shocking.

Was that Snoop did James Park and didn't change anything, and uh, it was dope. It was dope for New York hip hop, it was dope for Jays a writer, it was dope for me as an r AN executive. And that was the first single. So there's a lot of memories connected to that, to that moment.

When he created a lot of great memories. Steve Man, we appreciate man.

Yeah, Man, well, thank you for having me.

Uh and you know, hopefully the next time I come, there'll be another chapter, a new idea, another endeavor that's pushing culture forward.

Absolutely.

I got to know Steve. Who's more competitive at you? Well, Beyonce.

She she does a lot of things great. The thing is a little thing. The little thing is not Jay is very competitive at.

You know. Think I love him though.

You're the best player player better than the cards.

The funniest thing is with I won that day.

And the thing, the funniest thing with you knows is how people be changing the rules mid stream, like I'm like, wait a minute, you didn't know we could stock, Like what are you talking about? You know you just did it. When you put your reverses around, Like what do you think it goes?

Like? Get the funk out of here.

Yeah, I forgot about you and calab with the golf too, though, Man, has you guys stop playing?

Yeah, this is world War three when you guys get on the on the green.

It was world War three because I won. It was World War three because I won. I beat him two to one. And he didn't like that.

No rematch, no rematch.

Well that's what he kept on. He was.

He tried to extend the trilogy. It was trilogy, and then he tried to make it pop. I'm like, math doesn't work that way. Unfortunately math works don't and uh, he didn't like that. But you know he's been playing a lot. You know, it definitely be playing out. I would have to brush up. I definitely know. Me winning that trilogy got his ass sharp, got him out there. I always feel like he's every day he's just dying to get me back out there, trying to get out of my pockets.

Gentleman a gentleman, No, I took that money and I coped. Hey yeah that so good? All right, gentlemen, thank you. Yes.

Yes.

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