Breaking down the benefit of major label artists transitioning away from big-name labels in favor of releasing music independently, Skyzoo and Torae spoke with HipHopDX about the potential to capitalize on name recognition as an independent artist.
“Let a label get you hot for five years, get out your deal,” Torae said in a clip that debuted as a part of today’s DX Daily (October 15). “Those ten million people that bought the album, they don’t care what label you’re on.”
“I tell people all the time, they don’t care what logo is on the iTunes or packaging,” Skyzoo added. “They just, ‘I know who you are, let me get that.’ It’s all about them knowing.”
Providing Talib Kweli as an example of how an artist can sustain major label marketing dollars, Torae admitted, “it’s different…if you’ve been indie all your life.”
“Once the marketing dollars is spent, that’s it,” he said. “You can’t take that back. Talib Kweli ain’t been on a major in years. But between the Warner Bros money and the Rawkus money that was spent to build him to who he is, now you can cash out as an indie artist. If you’ve been indie all your life it’s different ‘cause you never really had $5 million spent on you to break you to everybody, you gotta gradually break yourself in these different places and spend money, whatever whatever. If you were ever on a major and they really broke the bank on it, you could go indie anytime you want.”
Skyzoo offered another example before outlining the potential impact a major label artist might have independently.
“I would recommend every major label artist bust a dope move and go indie,” he said. “Imagine if Drake was indie? Imagine if it was like, ‘Yo, here go my new shit. It’s on iTunes.’ Forget it.”
Skyzoo is a boring ass rapper but pretty smart; Torae also but he’s actually a very good rapper.
And fuck Drake, imagine if Skyzoo’s asslicking hero, Jay-Z, did something/anything indie? I.e. someone who has the popularity to make it work and make a difference…
But Token Negro would NEVER do something to upset the white man, or potentially help other black artists and business people.
Laughterhouse is a good example of a group that 1) sucks but 2) should have stayed “indie’
How much $$$ those bums still owe Interscope?
Get the fuck outta here. This is adult music, not swag rap for teenagers.
Have you listened to skyzoo’s A dream deferred? One of the best albums in years and everybody’s sleeping on it.
Can confirm A Dream Deferred is pretty dope overall album.
cosign. I have ADD on CD and it’s dope.
Dame good album and yes many people are sleeping on it. They don’t understand The Cost of Sleep.
Skyzoo = most boring Duck Down MC ever and that includes the bum relatives Boot Campl Clik who got a feature here and there…
He’s not wrong abou the business but he has no mic presence and the corny Jay-Z imitations are fucking painful.
These two, as the Barrel Brothers, dropped one of the best albums of the year.