Byron Lee's Writing Blog

Times change, and with them, so do attitudes. It was not long ago that artists such as Young MC, Kid N Play, MC Hammer, and even Kurtis Blow were labeled sellouts for signing endorsement deals and appearing in movies. Phrases such as "Keep It Real" and "Be True to the Game" were still the order of the day in the hip-hop community, with Def Jam founder (and one-time owner) Russell Simmons being accused of watering down hip-hop and marketing it to the masses.
After seeing many of rap's pioneers struggle after their years of glory, however, many of today's stars have, to use investment terminology, "diversified their portfolio", building upon the monumental hip quotient currently being enjoyed by rap stars and branding their names for use in clothing lines, label management, partial sports team ownership, and other business ventures. In this edition of the Limelight, we will profile two of the biggest names in this arena: Cornell "Nelly" Haynes, Jr. and Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. We will highlight their achievements while also demonstrating that money does not always work magic.

CHANGING THE FACE OF RAP: The most important aspect of Nelly's success, from an industry standpoint, is that he was able to provide the same hard-edged rhymes found in most of commercial rap while matching the impact of the content with catchy choruses and a photogenic look.
Throughout the 90's, St. Louis struggled to have a local urban artist breakthrough nationally, although acts such as Sylk Smoov ("Wit' A Good Rap") and Billy Lawrence ("Happiness") came close. In early 2000, a song started getting rotation on St. Louis airwaves. It was a catchy song, with a light bounce, irresistible rhymes, a singsongy delivery, and an overpowering chorus.

STAYING PUT: Defying naysayers who said that he would fade away, Nelly released the successful 2002 sophomore effort "Nellyville" spawning the hits "Hot in Herre," "Dilemma," "Air Force Ones," and "#1" and selling 6 million copies.
The song was "Country Grammar", by a handsome University City rapper born Cornel Haynes, Jr., but known to the recording world as Nelly. Soon after, the former standout athlete was making sold out in-store appearances, and it was not long before his debut album, which shared its name with the breakout single, was outpacing "Notorious K.I.M.," the more heavily-hyped sophomore release from New York female rapper Lil' Kim. Boasting additional hits, such as "E.I.," "Ride With Me," and "Batter Up," the album went on to sell 9 Million Copies, making it the most successful rap solo debut of all time. In an industry where fanbases are constantly looking for the next new face, Nelly's pop savvy, down-to-earth personality, and heartthrob status have made him a mainstream mainstay, allowing him to enjoy the success of 2001's "Free City" (an album he released with The St. Lunatics, a group in which he is a member), 2002's "Nellyville", and 2004's "Sweat" and "Suit" LPs. He has also used his fame to branch out into clothing (the "Vokal" and "Apple Bottom" Lines), sports drinks ("Pimp Juice") and music management (with the Derrty Entertainment Label). He is also part owner of the NBA franchise the Charlotte Bobcats. Due to these endeavors, Mr. Haynes recently tied with So So Def head Jermaine Dupri as Fortune Magazine's 10th most wealthy person in rap music. (Both performers grossed $60 million the previous year).

A SUPERSTAR IN OUR MIDST: Nelly's pop savvy, down-to-earth personality, and heartthrob status have made him a mainstream mainstay. Despite his success, he has never forgotten about St. Louis.
What is most important about Nelly, geographically speaking, is the fact that he has never forgotten St. Louis. Since he first landed on the national scene, he has always recognized St. Louis as his hometown, whether in his manner of dress (Cardinals and Rams uniforms were omnipresent in his early videos) or in his rhymes. Furthermore, whenever his burgeoning acting career has provided on-screen opportunities to flex his talent (such as in the little-seen thriller "Snipes" or in 2005's big budget remake "The Longest Yard"), he has always had special, St. Louis premieres for the films, bringing a taste of Tinseltown to the Lou.
Nelly's affection for his hometown has also led him into the philanthropic arena. He founded both 4 Sho 4 Kids (http://www.4sho4kids.org/), a organization to benefit children with developmental disabilities, and Jes Us 4 Jackie (http://www.jesus4jackie.com/), a entity dedicated to finding bone marrow matches for those suffering from Leukemia (Nelly was inspired to start this organization after his sister, Jackie Donahue, was diagnosed with the disease; she passed away in March of 2005.)
Nelly has not always been embraced with open arms. After the success of his first album, Mr. Haynes was denied a proclamation from the city by then-Mayor Clarence Harmon. (Nelly eventually received one from Harmon's successor, Francis Slay, as one of Slay's first initiatives as mayor). Furthermore, in the spring of 2004, Nelly was forced to cancel a bone-marrow drive on the campus of Atlanta's Spellman College because of a planned protest of his video for the song "Tip Drill" to be held during the drive. (To be fair, the video is quite over the top, but it is not worse that any other videos that have been made in support of songs recorded by other rappers, such as "Poppin'", a similarly graphic video featuring Atlanta native Ludacris.)

In what is, perhaps, a true symbol of how far Nelly has come, he was recently trusted with the task of reintroducing pop singer Janet Jackson to the public via their collaboration "Call On Me," from Ms. Jackson's forthcoming album, "20 Years Old." The kid from St. Louis has hit it big, and, in his own way, taken us with him.
Another artist who has taken full advantage of hip-hop's new influx of entrepreneurship is Shawn Carter, better known to the world as Jay-Z. Carter, born the youngest child and second boy of 4 children, has a gift for composing rhymes in his head (a gift that was cultivated as a child when his best ideas would come to him while he was riding his bike). Jay also had a tenacity with which he tackled life, a drive that would lead him to try to acquire large amounts of money while still in his late teens. When he tired of the life that provided this income (drug dealing), he decided to pursue rapping as a legitimate hustle. After meeting a brash, Harlem-bred, loud mouthed young business man named Damon Dash, the two, along with third member Kareem "Biggs" Burke, started releasing records independently.

The two eventually made a joint deal with preeminent rap label Def Jam Records (with Dash fighting for part-ownership of the music) and the sales for Jay-Z's third album "Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life" (bolstered by the monster hits "Hard Knock Life," (which ingeniously sampled the song of the same name from the broadway musical "Annie") , "Can I Get A..."( which introduced
the world to gravelly-voiced rapper Ja Rule) and "Jigga What, Jigga Who") made Jay-Z a mainstream superstar. (The album sold 5 million copies.) Also, during this time, Rocawear, a clothing extension of the Roc-A-Fella brand formed in 1999, developed into the brand of choice in urban casual wear. It is now worth 500 million.

HOV and B: Here, Jay-Z and pop songstress Beyonce Knowles arrive at a basketball game. Although the two continue to be secretive about their relationship, Ms. Knowles's elegant, good girl image, and Carter's silent depth make them a perfect fit for public admiration and speculation.
Around the time Carter was recording "Blueprint 2: The Gift and The Curse" (the sequel to his commercially and critically successful, soul-infused sixth album "The Blueprint") rumors began circulating that the M.C. was dating R&B bombshell Beyonce Knowles of multi-platinum group Destiny's Child. Although the two were, and continue to be, secretive about their relationship, it was clear that they were an item. The contrast of Ms. Knowles's elegant, good girl image, and Carter's silent depth made them a perfect fit for public admiration and speculation.
However, the same unshakeable cool that infuses both his demeanor and his delivery with a powerful authority seems to be the same attribute that puts him at a distance from others. The effect of this attribute was suggested during a time when a meeting of two superstars was supposed to take place. In the spring of 2001, a press conference heavy on starpower (Sean Combs, Russell Simmons, and Johnnie Cochran were all in attendance) announced that Jay-Z and R&B hitmaker R. Kelly were going to record an album together. (The idea was spawned by the mammoth success of their collaboration on the remix of the R. Kelly
single "Fiesta.")

Soon, however, salacious allegations involving underage girls were leveled against R. Kelly, intensified by a widely accessible video recording. Not long after, it was announced that there would be no videos filmed for any song from the album and that a planned tour had been scrapped. It was rumored that Jay asked the people at VIBE magazine to remove him from a planned cover promoting the album, which received lackluster reviews based on the widely held
belief that both performers phoned it in. (When asked in interviews about the belief that he abandoned Kelly, Jay would become defensive. The two eventually agreed to tour a year later, but the tour ended in disaster with R. Kelly filing a lawsuit against Jay, alleging that Jay failed to provide proper security and sabotaged his performance set.)

A belief that Jay had few qualms with severing ties was strengthened by the recent split between Carter and longtime business partner Damon Dash. There had long been rumors of conflict within the Roc-A-Fella camp, starting with Damon Dash's appointment of rapper Cam'ron (who Dash managed) as Vice President of Roc-A-Fella Records when Mr. Carter
took a long deserved vacation. When Jay returned from his sabbatical, Jay vetoed Cam'ron's appointment. Furthermore, long simmering tension between Dash and Record Excutive Lyor Cohen (who was then head of Island Def Jam) had gotten worse, while talk of Jay's disenchantment with Dash's aggressive persona grew stronger.

CHANGE CLOTHES: After reigning supreme over rap, Shawn 'Jay-Z' Carter took over as President of Island Def Jam in January of 2005.
In 2004, it was announced that Jay-Z would become the new President of Island Def Jam in January of 2005. What was also disclosed was that not only was Dash no longer involved with Roc-A-Fella Records, but that Jay-Z had retained the rights to the name that he had built with two other people (it has since been discovered that Jay offered the name to Dash and Burke in exchange for full ownership of the masters of "Reasonable Doubt" (Jay's classic first album); Dash said yes; Burke said no). Additionally, Kanye West, the only artist on the old Roc-A-Fella roster who consistently moved units, decided to sign with Jay-Z's new incarnation of the label, even though Dash is credited with both discovering him and convincing Jay to sign him.

Dash eventually sold his stake in Rocawear for 20 million, severing all business ties to his former
partner. (Dash, for his part, is struggling to regain his footing in the music industry; he has, however, gained some recognition as a producer of films. He had a hand in producing the provocative Kevin Bacon drama, "The Woodsman" and the thought-provoking documentary
"The N Word.")
For now, Jay, who is part owner of the New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) Nets, has not yet had a
successful artist that he can truly claim as his own. In a very telling development, it was recently
announced that the self-proclaimed "God M.C." will come out of retirement to release a new album entitled "Kingdon Come" in November. Some view this decision as the result of a thirsty MC itching to get back in the game, while others view it as a tacit admission that Def Jam needs a new Jay-Z album just to be in the black this year.
Whatever the motivation behind this occurrence, Jay's quote from his 2001 hit single "Hova (IZZO)" has proven to be prophetic: "Can't leave rap alone/the game needs me."

To view more writings, articles and perspectives from the cultural analyst known as Mr. Byron Lee please visit his official blog @ http://www.bleebus.blogspot.com