News Archive



Jay-Z Confirms Roc Nation Deals With Sony, Atlantic

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on July 1, 2009 - 2:33am.
Jay-Z has inked a distribution deal with Sony for his Roc Nation label, the Brooklyn-born rapper confirmed to Billboard last week. "Sony is Roc Nation. That's where Roc Nation's going through," Jay-Z told Billboard.com on Friday (June 29). As for the deal he recently signed with Atlantic, he clarifies that it is a one-off situation for his upcoming album, "Blueprint 3," slated for a September 11th release. "That's pretty much just for this specific album. Roc Nation -- we're experts in marketing and making records. But we do distribution deals," he says. "On this one, we're working directly with the Atlantic staff, which is Julie [Greenwald], Lyor [Cohen], Kevin [Liles] and Kyse [Mike Kyser]. For the rest of the Roc Nation artists, we did a distribution deal with Sony."

Str8hiphop.com Has Slashed The Prices On How To Market Your Music On The Site

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 29, 2009 - 12:13pm.

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Janet Jackson Thanks Fans At BET Awards

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 29, 2009 - 5:09am.
Michael Jackson's sister Janet Jackson and father, Joe Jackson, attended the BET Awards Sunday to thank fans and celebrate Michael. "We're doing fine, thank you," Joe Jackson said on the red carpet. JACKSON'S FINAL CONCERT: The old magic was back, observers say JACKSON'S ESTATE: It could take years to sort out HEALTH PROBLEMS: They dogged Jackson for years FUNERAL PLANS: Unclear what family wants to do "It's a fantastic thing. It's a great thing. I just wish (Michael) could have seen this celebration. It's hard. He's gone, but … I'm here to celebrate." Jackson, wearing sunglasses and shaky at times when he spoke, continued: "He was the biggest star in history. I feel sorry that the biggest star in the world is gone."

Black Eyed Peas 'E.N.D.' Album Scores Groups First #1 Debut On Billboard

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 24, 2009 - 4:23pm.
Black Eyed Peas' "The E.N.D." bows at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 304,000 -- the hip-pop act's best sales week ever. It's also the first No. 1 album for the group, which had previously gone as high as No. 2. Its last set, 2005's "Monkey Business," bowed in the runner-up slot with a then-best 291,000. It had the unfortunate luck to come out the same week as Coldplay's "X&Y," which kept the Peas' at bay when it started at No. 1 with 737,000. Believe it or not, "The E.N.D." is only the second top 10 album for the Peas. While "Monkey" peaked at No. 2, its first two releases -- 1998's "Behind the Front" and 2000's "Bridging the Gap" -- both missed the top 50. It wasn't until the group recruited Fergie for "Elephunk" in 2003 did the group break through big time. That album, powered by three top 40 Hot 100 singles (including "Where Is The Love?"), peaked at No. 14 and spent 106 weeks on the chart.

Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy & Drake Announce 'Young Money' Tour Dates

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 16, 2009 - 11:54am.
Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, Soulja Boy Tell'Em and Drake will go on an official tour this summer, and the dates have just been confirmed. The "Young Money Presents: Americas Most Wanted Music Festival" trek will start on July 27 at the Toyota Pavilion at Scranton, Pennsylvania, and will end on August 23 in Dallas, Texas. According to reps, Wayne will headline while Jeezy, Soulja Boy and Drake will serve as openers. Tickets for the 21-city tour go on sale June 20th via Ticketmaster, Live Nation and select venue ticketing systems. Lil Wayne's upcoming rock album, "Rebirth," was originally slated for an early April release then pushed to May and then June. Now, his seventh solo studio album is due on July 21 via Young Money/Cash Money/Universal Records. First single, "Prom Queen," reached No. 15 on the Hot 100 chart earlier this year.

Tony Yayo Upset At Max B's Lawyer Over Verdict In Trail

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 16, 2009 - 12:19am.
G-Unit member Tony Yayo is disappointed to see friend and recording partner Max B go to jail. Max, born Charles Wingate, was found guilty of manslaughter, as well as eight other charges, last week in New Jersey. His sentencing is July 31. Yayo said the trial went south before it even started, blaming his friend's downfall on a January video blog, in which Max and his lawyer, Gerald M. Saluti, spoke about the case for more than six minutes. The two also were part of subsequent Internet interviews. "It's an unfortunate thing that happened to Max B," Yayo told us. "He just had a kid. I f--- with Max. I f--- with French [Montana]. I think he had bad representation with his lawyer. What lawyer do you know that's gonna do a blog with you? That's when I think everything got messed up. That blog f---ed it up. You know I'm always in trouble. When I have a case, I don't do no press, nothing. If you don't got a lawyer there telling you, 'Shut the f--- up,' you're f---ed up. The lawyer was wack. Your lawyer wants to sit there and do a blog with you? [Max's] lawyer may not have been the one to handle a homicide."

Rihanna & Chris Brown Both Appear At NBA Finals Game

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 15, 2009 - 2:26am.
Forget about the matchup on the floor. Rihanna and Chris Brown were both in the stands to watch the nail-biting fourth game of the NBA Finals in Orlando. A source told People that the two had asked to sit together, but that was not the case. They sat on opposite ends of the same row. When ABC showed the celebrities in attendance, she appeared on camera; Brown did not. Both attended earlier games in the series separately. If the two had indeed attended the game together, the timing would have been strange, considering Rihanna has been subpoenaed to testify against Brown at a preliminary hearing on June 22 and her attorney has said she will appear.

Max B Found Guilty

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 9, 2009 - 5:00pm.
Former Byrd Gang rapper Max B was found guilty today for his involvement in a robbery that left one man dead. While the details have yet to be revealed, the Harlem rapper’s rep has confirmed with XXLMag.com that a New Jersey judge has found him guilty. It is unclear how much time he was sentenced to. Max, born Charly Wingate, was accused of being the mastermind behind a $30,000 heist targeting two wealthy men. Reportedly Max conspired with his step brother Kelvin Leerdam, and his girlfriend Gina Conway, who served as the prosecution’s secret weapon in the case against him. She turned on Max, testifying against Max in return for a shorter jail sentence.

Fake Drake Album Spotted On iTunes

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on June 5, 2009 - 8:28pm.
Drake is such a hot artist that one of his albums is selling even though he didn't release it. An unauthorized album, "The Girls Love Drake," which features selections from the Toronto rapper's mixtape "So Far Gone" and other tracks, was released May 28th by a label called Canadian Money Entertainment and distributed by the Independent Online Distribution Alliance (IODA) on iTunes, Rhapsody and Amazon. Drake's camp, which is still trying to clear the samples on "So Far Gone" and his two other mixtapes in hopes of selling them in stores, says it didn't authorize the release. If it hadn't been disqualified on the grounds that it wasn't confirmed as being an official album, "The Girls Love Drake" would have debuted this week at No. 101 on the Billboard 200, No. 16 on the Digital Albums chart and No. 1 on the Heatseekers tally. "Best I Ever Had" and "Every Girl" (credited to Young Money), two tracks on the mixtape that have previously charted, appear on this week's Hot Digital Songs chart thanks to downloads of "The Girls Love Drake." Additionally, "Best I Ever Had" jumps 60-18 on the Billboard 200, while "Every Girl" leaps 75-35, although chart experts predict they will both drop again once the unofficial album is no longer available.

Jay-Z Close To New Deal With Epic Records

Submitted by Str8hiphop.com on May 28, 2009 - 8:47pm.
Jay-Z is close to signing a deal that will bring his future recordings to Sony, Billboard sources confirm. The deal -- which will link Jay-Z's Roc Nation releases with Sony's Epic Records for distribution -- "is 95% complete" according to people familiar with the ongoing negotiations. A formal announcement is expected in the coming weeks. Just last week, Jay-Z confirmed his departure from longtime label home Def Jam. His split from the Universal Music Group-owned label reportedly came with a $5 million price tag, but left the rap artist and label executive in control of his future master recordings. Jay-Z's eleven solo records (including the live "Unplugged" album) and collaborations with Linkin Park and R. Kelly have sold more than 29 million units according to Nielsen SoundScan.