While music is an art form, the business side can get grimy. A producer by the name of Self Service — who has worked with DMX, JAY-Z, Fat Joe, Nas and more in the past — recently joined Math Hoffa’s My Expert Opinion podcast, where he exposed the alleged unethical business practices of Murda Inc. co-founder Irv Gotti.
Self claimed Gotti took half of his publishing and gave himself a production credit for DMX’s 1999 track “What’s My Name?,” despite not touching the record. The cut served as the lead single for the late Yonkers legend’s …And Then There Was X album, which peaked at No. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Irv took credit for the ‘What’s My Name?’ record. He didn’t do nothing on that beat,” Self said, before accusing other big-name producers of doing the same. “Puff did it, Irv did it and Jermaine Dupri — n-ggas with them names, they were getting beats from other n-ggas. Dre did it.”
Self Service went onto reveal he was willing to give Irv Gotti a smaller percentage because he did eventually bring the menacing beat to DMX for him to record over.
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“50 percent goes to the writer and 50 goes to the writer of the music and he took 25,” Self continued. “He didn’t do nothing to the beat. I’ll make that beat right now. He been getting 25 percent of my publishing for that record and that was 20 years ago. He gets the same shit that I get for nothing.
“I would’ve gave him something because the opportunity was through him, but you still gotta ask me. Don’t just initiate it because you the A&R… I never was in the studio when [DMX] did the record… I never had a relationship with X.”
Ironically, there was a comment under the YouTube video by a user under the name of Corey “Yellowman” Jackson calling out Self Service for using the same dirty business tactics as Irv Gotti.
“Self did that same shit to me in 1998,” he wrote regarding a beat that eventually got into Onyx’s hands. “I was an up and coming hungry producer That was relatively unknown.. He proposed to me that he would sell my beat as his own.. Give me a musicians credit.
“And instead of me getting minimal money Coming in as a new producer in the game He would get 10 times more for the beat And give me twice as much as I would’ve gotten on my own!”
If I was a producer I would just sell my beats cash up front. No cash, no signature, no CD, no file. That simple. And the way rappers are so particular about beats I bet they will pay up quick if they actually got the money. You start cutting deals and doing favors to get into the industry, expect to get screwed sooner or later.
No one asked shit head. Go back to North Dakota and f**k a polar bear.
Did this guy really just say polar bears live in North Dakota ? If he really believes that, then yeah Im from the moon yall.
He stoles them? Lmao pay attention and proof read your title
20 years later be broke, needs money and he crying hahahahah
They all do it. It’s old news. Dre and JD actually did start out producing but then after a while started having protege and other producers do the leg work for them while all they do is give them guidance on it then take the majority of the credit for it Puffy on the other hand, had no production skills at all and has a team of producers The Hitmen do almost all his work and he takes all the credit and gives them pennies because he holds something over on all of them and they know it. Sadly that’s the nature of beast.
If I was a producer, I would roofie these up and coming beat makers. They’ll wake up with their beats missing and loose booty holes. The King of North Dakota has spoken!
yasss you tell ‘em girl!
You are mental and major sus
The level of ignorance in the music BUSINESS never ceases to amaze me. If you make a beat or write a song seal a copy in a secure package, have the outside notarized, then mail it to yourself before you present it to someone to use. It’s like a self copyright. I’m sure it’s in the book “everything you need to know about the music business”.