Roc-A-Fella Records

Today In Hip Hop History: Cam’Ron Dropped His ‘Purple Haze’ Album 18 Years Ago

by
tumblr b49a954f85799717688c0ddc5312df82 4c6ee0b6 1280

On this date in 2004, Cam’Ron released his fourth solo album entitled ‘Purple Haze’ released on the Diplomats, Roc-A-Fella, and Def Jam imprints.

This was the first solo album from the Dipset capo following the Dipset craze, where he switched from his obsession with the color pink to the more regal purple. Songs such as the anthemic “Down And Out” featuring a fairly new artist named Kanye West and Syleena Johnson, “Bubble Music” and “Adrenaline” featuring Twista and Psycho Drama help to popularize the highly anticipated album that took about a year to be released following several label delays during the Roc-A-Fella break up.

The album was propelled by samples from old soul and reggae music, which only helped to add to the LP’s popularity.

Salute to Cam, Dipset, and everyone involved with this timeless Hip Hop gem!

The post Today In Hip Hop History: Cam’Ron Dropped His ‘Purple Haze’ Album 18 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today In Hip Hop History: Jay-Z Dropped His Third LP ‘Vol.2…Hard Knock Life’ 24 Years Ago

by
tumblr pygpkunqiI1t1yehoo1 1280

On this date in 1998, Jay-Z and his Roc cohorts dropped his third album Vol.2…Hard Knock Life on their independent Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam imprint.

Recorded in some of NYC’s most coveted studio spaces, Vol. 2…Hard Knock Life featured some of the games best producers, including Jermaine Dupri, Swizz Beatz, and Timbaland, Hov’s third album was the proof that Jigga had found the formula to produce the most successful full-length project of his career at that time.

Debuting at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and selling 350K in its first week, Vol.2 …Hard Knock Life was certified 5x platinum within two years of its release, setting Hov’s album bar so hight that it won a Golden Phonograph for Best Rap Album at the 41st Grammy Awards. Some of the top singles from the 14 track gem include “Nigga What, Nigga Who(Originator 99)”, “Hard Knock Life,” “Can I Get A…” and “Money Ain’t A Thang” featuring Jermaine Dupri.

Salute to Jigga, Dame, Biggs, Memphis Bleek, Sauce Money, and the rest of the Roc for putting out such a timeless piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today In Hip Hop History: Jay-Z Dropped His Third LP ‘Vol.2…Hard Knock Life’ 24 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Dame Dash Says Jay-Z Wasn’t A Better Roc-A-Fella Artist Than Kanye, “Jay-Z Does It For The Money”

by
Dame Dash Assures Kanye West Isn't 'Crazy' Following Wyoming Visit

Dame Dash still seems to have some ill will towards Jay Z, even almost 2 decades after their split. In a new interview, Dame revealed who he thought was the best rapper from Roc-A-Fella, and it wasn’t Jay-Z.

The Roc-A-Fella co-founder recently appeared on the Podcast and Chill With Mac G podcast where he said that he thought Kanye was the greatest rapper to represent Roc-A-Fella. “If it’s a choice between Jay and Kanye, I’m going with Kanye all day every day,” Dame said.

When asked why Kanye, he said that Ye is a true artist and does it for the art whereas Jay-Z raps for money. “He’s more creative… Kanye is a true artist and he does it for the art and JAY-Z does it for the money. It’s two different things.”

Dame also recalled Kanye’s chaining day in Chicago in 2002. He said that Jay did not want to give Kanye his chain which is why Dame took his own chain off of his neck to give it to Kanye.

“That’s cus Jay wouldn’t take it off his,” he said. “If you look at it, I’m talking to Jay like, ‘Give him the chain.’ He supposed to give that shit back but I never got that back. I was gonna replace it but I never got to.”

In a different interview, Dame Dash spoke on the split between him and Hov and how he felt betrayed by Jay over money. “Yeah, all that, but we were friends,” he said. “Like, how would you feel if your brother just betrayed you for money? Would it hurt?”

The post Dame Dash Says Jay-Z Wasn’t A Better Roc-A-Fella Artist Than Kanye, “Jay-Z Does It For The Money” appeared first on The Source.

Roc-A Fella Records And Damon Dash Agree On Settlement After “Reasonable Doubt” NFT Lawsuit

by

Dame Dash

There has been a legal agreement in the case between Damon Dash and Roc A Fella Records that no one can individually sell the Jay-Z debut album, Reasonable Doubt, as an NFT. SOHH, It’s Settled… According to reports, there has been a legal agreement between Roc-A-Fella and the former co-owner Damon Dash that only the […]

The post Roc-A Fella Records And Damon Dash Agree On Settlement After “Reasonable Doubt” NFT Lawsuit appeared first on SOHH.com.

Dame Dash And Jay-Z Settle Their ‘Reasonable Doubt’ NFT Dispute

by
dame dash jay z
Getty Image

There is once again peace between the members of the Roc-A-Fella Records dynasty, as Dame Dash and Jay-Z finally settle their dispute over Dash’s plans for an NFT supposedly based on Jay’s debut album, Reasonable Doubt. According to TMZ, both parties have elected to settle out of court, with Dame agreeing that only Roc-A-Fella has the rights to sell any future NFTs based on Reasonable Doubt, which means none of the individual shareholders — Dame, Jay, and Kareem “Biggs” Burke — can sell the album. Dame can, however, sell his stake in the company at any time.

The dispute kicked off a year ago this week when Dame offered a Reasonable Doubt NFT via online auction, prompting Jay (via Roc-A-Fella) to sue to stop the sale. Dame later clarified that his plan was to sell his third of Roc-A-Fella after Jay tried to buy it a few months before for a lower price than Dame wanted. In Dame’s words, “Under the terms of the deal with a potential buyer, the buyer would buy my share of Roc a Fella Records, and Jay-Z will have exclusive administration rights.”

After a judge blocked the sale, more details were revealed. SuperFarm, Dame’s partner in the NFT bid, had announced the auction would be for his “ownership of the copyright to Jay-Z’s first album Reasonable Doubt.” This is likely what led to the initial dispute because it could be read that SuperFarm was trying to sell Reasonable Doubt rather than Dame’s stake in Roc-A-Fella Records. Now that they’ve hashed out the exact terms of ownership of the album, Dame might be able to find a buyer for the actual stake.

Today In Hip Hop History: The Diplomats Released Their Debut Album ‘Diplomatic Immunity’ 19 Years Ago

by
Screen Shot 2022 03 25 at 5.21.57 AM

On this date in 2003, Cam’ron’s crew from Harlem, The Diplomats, dropped their debut album Diplomatic Immunity on the Roc A Fella Records/Def Jam imprint during the pivotal time when Dame Dash appointed Cam’ron as the President of Roc-A-Fella Records.

Coming on the heels of the release of Cam’s Come Home With Me LP, Diplomatic Immunity introduced the entire Dipset squad including Juelz Santana, Jim Jones, Freekey Zeekey, Un Kasa, and Hell Rell, who was incarcerated by the time the album was available for purchase. With production from the likes of Heatmakerz, DR Period, and a then virtually unknown Kanye West, the trailblazing sound of old soul samples pushed Dipset to the forefront of the creative curve of Hip Hop, which offered the Blood-affiliated crew from Uptown an almost cult-like following.

The album was saturated with longstanding hits such as “I Really Mean It”, the infectious “Dipset Anthem”, the female-friendly “Hey Ma” and the Master P assisted “Bout It Bout It…Part III”. Commercially, the album was considered average debuting at #8 on the Billboard 200 and selling 92,000 copies in its first week, but the album was certified Gold by the RIAA in 2005.

Salute to Cam, Juelz on the inside, Jim Jones, Freekey and Hell Rell for this classic piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today In Hip Hop History: The Diplomats Released Their Debut Album ‘Diplomatic Immunity’ 19 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Happy 48th Birthday Beanie Sigel!

by
Screen Shot 2022 03 06 at 5.22.54 AM

Born on this date in 1974 in the City of Brotherly Love, Dwight Grant aka Beanie Sigel aka Beans morphed into a icon in the Philly Hip Hop scene as the leader of the now defunct Roc-A-Fella Records’ State Property. Even with all of his legal troubles and the untimely split of the Roc, Beanie is still regarded as one of the best emcees of his era and one of the very few who lives what he speaks in the booth.

With six solo albums, three State Property collabos and four silver screen blockbuster appearances, it’s difficult to argue that Beans has not had a successful career. Anyone who was able to hold Hova’s attention for more than one album has some obvious skills to match his street bravado.

Happy born day to Beans and many more in the future!

The post Happy 48th Birthday Beanie Sigel! appeared first on The Source.

Dame Dash Labels Jay-Z & Roc-A-Fella Records’ Lawsuit Against Him As ‘Corny’ And ‘Embarrassing’

by
Getty Image

Last month, Dame Dash was hit with a lawsuit from Roc-A-Fella Records after he attempted to sell an NFT of Jay-Z’s Reasonable Doubt as well as his stake in Roc-A-Fella Records. Dash owns one-third of the company along with Jay-Z and Kareem “Biggs” Burke, which brings some confusion for the lawsuit.

So far, a judge has blocked the NFT of Reasonable Doubt Dash tried to sell and shut down an attempt from him to stop a meeting between Jay-Z and Biggs. While the matter is far from solved, Dash spoke with HipHopDX to share his thoughts on the lawsuit.

“From my perspective, it feels like this was all done to devalue this asset,” Dash said to HipHopDX’s Kyle Eustice. “I just don’t understand why. What’s odd is that they knew I was only trying to sell one-third, but they’re trying to say I tried to sell the whole thing. But we all know that that’s not the case, so why do they keep saying it? The question is, why is it such a big deal? Why is everyone so scared for me to sell my one-third?”

Dash then addressed Biggs and Jay directly. “Honestly, I think this is corny,” he added. “If there’s an issue, just call me. Why do I have to hear it? Why do I have to get sued? Biggs, Jay, call me and tell me what the play is but if you swing on me, I’m going to have to swing back. And when I say that, I’m saying now that I’m looking under the hood, it looks crazy, but I just do believe that I don’t need all of this.”

He then spoke about an issue he recently discovered with Reasonable Doubt.

“And then insult to injury, just very oddly, we look at Spotify and we see that it says ‘Copyright owned by S. Carter,’” Dash says. “And we’re like, ‘The copyright is owned by Roc-A-Fella, Inc.’ I’m looking at the ledgers and they’re not showing anything that reflects income from any streaming service. So where does that go? I just want to know who authorized that. That’s all I want to know.”

He then revealed that he was offered $1.5 million from the co-founders for his stake in Roc-A-Fella before adding:

When they offered me the 1.5, I was like, “Let me see the books. Let me see how much it’s making.” When I looked at the ledgers, I was like, “Yo, I don’t see any income coming from streaming services.” And then I look on the streaming services and it’s on the streaming service. I don’t remember authorizing any of that. So we’re sitting here thinking, “What’s the long game here? Why f*ck with me?” If I want to sell my third, then you don’t have to be my partner. What’s the problem? You’re making shit up. Why not call me?

You can read the full interview between Dash and HipHopDX here.

Dame Dash’s Attempt To Stop A Meeting Between The Roc-A-Fella Co-Founders Was Denied By A Judge

by
Getty Image

The drama between a pair of Roc-A-Fella Records co-founders continues as a judge delivered a new ruling this past week. The label was created more than 25 years ago by Jay-Z, Dame Dash, and Kareem “Biggs” Burke, but recently, Dash sought to sell his one-third stake in the company, a move that Jay-Z is reportedly trying to stop. According to TMZ, Dash recently learned about a meeting that was set to take place between Jay-Z and Burke on Friday and quickly sought to have the meeting stopped by a judge. Unfortunately for Dash, the judge denied his request and told him to file a lawsuit at a later date if he was not pleased with the outcome of the meeting.

This comes less than a month after a judge blocked Dash’s attempt to sell an NFT of Jay-Z’s debut album, Reasonable Doubt. According to The Hollywood Reporter, U.S. District Court Judge John Cronan signed off on a temporary restraining order to the label. Dash denies trying to auction an NFT of Reasonable Doubt, but his partner in the business move, SuperFarm, announced the auction “of Damon‘s ownership of the copyright to Jay-Z’s first album Reasonable Doubt. This marks a new milestone in the history of NFT’s, entitling the new owner to future revenue generated by the unique asset.”

As for Dash’s attempt to sell his one-third stake in Roc-A-Fella, he claims that Jay-Z offered to buy his portion of the label back in March, but it was at “a price I deemed unacceptable.” As a result, Dash was left to find a more suitable buyer for his Roc-A-Fella stake.

The Roc Hands Dame Dash An L In JAY-Z Album War

by

Roc-A-Fella Records is flexing some serious bragging rights at the moment. The iconic company has reportedly convinced a federal New York judge to prevent label co-founder Damon “Dame” Dash to sell JAY-Z‘s Reasonable Doubt album as an NFT. The Roc Hands Dame Dash An L According to reports, a legal showdown went down this week […]

The post The Roc Hands Dame Dash An L In JAY-Z Album War appeared first on SOHH.com.