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Jay-Z and Apple to Launch Record Label at Macworld?

Since DigitalSkunk seems to have addressed most of the points, I'll just add in a few of my own.

Mindflux said:
Actually selling Millions of records in this day and age is quite easy.You settle on a genre that the masses hoard. So right now it seems EMO and Hip-Hop fall into those categories. Where do you get the idea I lack intelligence when:
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Selling a million copies is very difficult, as slicecom so accurately pointed out. Besides, what does this have to do with anything?

I'm the first one to bring up there are simply MORE people in the world than prior decades. Furthermore, the Gen X-ers and beyond are also known to spend frivolously. The people born in the decades proceeding the late 70's and early eighties were much more frugal.
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You mean there are more people now than there were before? No, say it ain't so!

But seriously, numbers of people mean...nothing. He has as many #1 albums as Elvis, tied for second all time. Not platinum, as many #1's. That's different, and if you fail to see the difference then that is your problem.


You keep digging yourself a deeper and deeper hole. You're commenting on something you do not know (Jay-Z's business acumen and musical success) and at the same time arguing your flawed points off of wrong facts.




Now, since that should be over with I'd like you to do something for all of us:

Buy a copy of Reasonable Doubt (1996) by Jay-Z. And when you listen to it, don't mind the expletives, try to see past what your mind will initially say (rap is just drivel, blah blah blah blah) and listen to it with the lyrics out in front of you. Then come back and tell us what you thought, honestly.
 
szark said:
...The settlement from the most recent lawsuit transferred full control and ownership of the Apple Records trademark to Apple (Computers) Inc. That eliminated any claims of trademark dilution, since Apple Inc. now owns both trademarks. Therefore they have no contractual restrictions on entering the music business.
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Touche... lol.


I still don't think this is a good idea.
 
Mindflux said:
The decline of intelligent human beings since 1977 is astounding. Nothing more. Jay-Z has 'as many' platinum albums, sure. How much larger is the population now.. and furthermore how many of them have good taste? How many would consider Jay-Z to be in good taste? Not I.
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hahah and yet you consider yourself of good taste? lol that why it's called taste, we all have different ones, I may find what you listen to extremely annoying and distasteful to ME, but i would never go on to say that the music you listen to sucks...some people out there still even like Elvis and I can't stand his music...
 
Badandy said:
But seriously, numbers of people mean...nothing. He has as many #1 albums as Elvis, tied for second all time. Not platinum, as many #1's. That's different, and if you fail to see the difference then that is your problem.
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yet i still can't name a single song from him because obviously he never was hit around here in europe .. in fact many of his nr 1 albums not even made the top 40

(here hip hop is having hefty problems currently in terms of sales outside of the really big acts ... yet again after years of hip hop media dominance people got tired of it)

Badandy said:
Buy a copy of Reasonable Doubt (1996) by Jay-Z. And when you listen to it, don't mind the expletives, try to see past what your mind will initially say (rap is just drivel, blah blah blah blah) and listen to it with the lyrics out in front of you. Then come back and tell us what you thought, honestly.
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so ? how about you listening to Blind Guardian,Rhapsody of Fire or similar power metal bands ?


Jay-Z is great in US focused marketing but he still has to prove himself on a bigger scale
 
If this was to happen, how would they get around the old Apple Corps agreement?

Either way, they couldn't have the name Apple in the name of the label. Maybe using a different name would be able to by-pass this?

Still doubt it would happen due to too many obstacles, but you never know.
 
Willis said:
If this was to happen, how would they get around the old Apple Corps agreement?

Either way, they couldn't have the name Apple in the name of the label. Maybe using a different name would be able to by-pass this?

Still doubt it would happen due to too many obstacles, but you never know.
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As its been stated earlier in the thread, Apple settled with Apple Corps and have full and unrestricted right to use "Apple" in whatever context they see fit

Tako said:
yet i still can't name a single song from him because obviously he never was hit around here in europe .. in fact many of his nr 1 albums not even made the top 40

(here hip hop is having hefty problems currently in terms of sales outside of the really big acts ... yet again after years of hip hop media dominance people got tired of it)
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Jay-Z is big in the UK (26 Top 40 singles, and nearly all of his albums have reached there too) and pretty much everywhere else in Europe that has a thriving Hiphop scene (Germany, Croatia, France, Sweden etc).
 
takao said:
yet i still can't name a single song from him because obviously he never was hit around here in europe .. in fact many of his nr 1 albums not even made the top 40

(here hip hop is having hefty problems currently in terms of sales outside of the really big acts ... yet again after years of hip hop media dominance people got tired of it)



so ? how about you listening to Blind Guardian,Rhapsody of Fire or similar power metal bands ?


Jay-Z is great in US focused marketing but he still has to prove himself on a bigger scale
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So what on the first part. Playing in the world market isn't a measure of how good someone is as an entrepreneur. And the same thing goes for the obscure band you just mentioned. Honestly, the only problem I have with everyone and this Jay-Z thing is their cultural ignorance and their feelings towards Apple choosing a musician/businessman that isn't from their country or favorite music genre.

If Apple did choose some guy from another genre would they have knowledge about hip hop, or metal, or jazz? Not if they are from Europe, and definitely not if they didn't have the amount of knowledge that Jay-Z has. I don't listen to too much of his music myself sans the albums that made him a lot of money, but you can't deny his talent as a successful musician and president of Def Jam.

As stated before, he has done more with the hip hop genre than Jobs has done with technology and did it in a shorter amount of time. And Jay-Z, being a hip hop artist, has reached more European Americans than the metal bands in Europe have.

Honestly, I would rather see Jay-Z create a music label with Apple just to spite those that don't want to see it happen.
 
Hmm, don't see why Jay-Z is getting all the hate. If there is anyone out their capable of running an Apple label and making it successful, it's JAY-Z. Like said previously, anything he touches turns to gold.
 
turlehe said:
Hmm, don't see why Jay-Z is getting all the hate. If there is anyone out their capable of running an Apple label and making it successful, it's JAY-Z. Like said previously, anything he touches turns to gold.
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It's because people don't understand him or the culture/genre he comes from. What ignorant people don't understand, they hate and attempt to destroy. Others, the smart ones, try their best to learn it and study it so they may understand.

Like Mindflux said, and he was right, intelligence levels have been coming down since 1977 all over the world it seems.
 
Digital Skunk said:
So what on the first part. Playing in the world market isn't a measure of how good someone is as an entrepreneur. And the same thing goes for the obscure band you just mentioned.
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well if they are obscure to you it's obviously not my fault ... but your intolerance ;)
that said apple _is_ a world wide company and thus should have somebody with a broader focus

Digital Skunk said:
Honestly, the only problem I have with everyone and this Jay-Z thing is their cultural ignorance and their feelings towards Apple choosing a musician/businessman that isn't from their country or favorite music genre.
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surprise surprise people like to listen to music they like and want more of such music

Digital Skunk said:
If Apple did choose some guy from another genre would they have knowledge about hip hop, or metal, or jazz? Not if they are from Europe, and definitely not if they didn't have the amount of knowledge that Jay-Z has. I don't listen to too much of his music myself sans the albums that made him a lot of money, but you can't deny his talent as a successful musician and president of Def Jam.
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well i still think that somebody who has experience in a broader field might be more interesting for apple (if such business guys are available) ... and what exactly has jay-z done to hip hop ? did he bring up a revolutionary new style or something ?
and talent as musician is entirely a matter of taste

Digital Skunk said:
As stated before, he has done more with the hip hop genre than Jobs has done with technology and did it in a shorter amount of time. And Jay-Z, being a hip hop artist, has reached more European Americans than the metal bands in Europe have.
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and what does time frame have to do anything with it ? (jay-z has hardly a long experience as head of a label so you are somehow contradicting yourself with above "amount of knowledge")

and what the hell are european americans ?
 
takao said:
well if they are obscure to you it's obviously not my fault ... but your intolerance ;)
that said apple _is_ a world wide company and thus should have somebody with a broader focus

surprise surprise people like to listen to music they like and want more of such music

well i still think that somebody who has experience in a broader field might be more interesting for apple (if such business guys are available) ... and what exactly has jay-z done to hip hop ? did he bring up a revolutionary new style or something ?
and talent as musician is entirely a matter of taste

and what does time frame have to do anything with it ? (jay-z has hardly a long experience as head of a label so you are somehow contradicting yourself with above "amount of knowledge")

and what the hell are european americans ?
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Funny thing is that you haven't said anything to the contrary to what I said except the last statement. Every time someone here said "Why Jay-Z? He doesn't have this and that and he isn't good. They should use, place favorite musician here..." they have been saying opinionated statement. Any one you'd have in mind to do this job would be very limited in genres as well, and probably more so for an American based company.

No one has any facts that prove that Jay-Z is the wrong person or that he has any lack of knowledge on any genre of music nor do we have facts that matter to most people that would back him up, so the decision, if this rumor is true, is entirely up to Apple.

No musician from Europe would do a better job at running an American music label, so what the fuss? Time frame has everything to do with amount of knowledge my friend, and you missed the point. Jay-Z as businessman, from the time he sold his first album out of his trunk to the 2008, not just when he was president of Def Jam, and that has everything to do with knowledge of the industry. Like many other hard working people, he worked his way from the bottom to the top, which is something to note even if you don't like his music.

A European American is an American who has European decent.
 
takao said:
and talent as musician is entirely a matter of taste
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No. Liking it is a matter of taste. Talent can be discussed outside of taste with someone who understands the history/culture/zeitgeist of said art. Why do you think the Beatles' albums will always be classics? Because of taste? Rubbish.

And Jay-Z does have some of the most influential and best music of the genre.
 
takao said:
well if they are obscure to you it's obviously not my fault ... but your intolerance ;)
that said apple _is_ a world wide company and thus should have somebody with a broader focus
Click to expand...

I really don't see how anyone can have a broader focus. Maybe Rick Rubin, but besides that...


well i still think that somebody who has experience in a broader field might be more interesting for apple (if such business guys are available) ... and what exactly has jay-z done to hip hop ? did he bring up a revolutionary new style or something ?
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Yes. Again, you keep commenting on a subject which you know nothing about.

and what does time frame have to do anything with it ? (jay-z has hardly a long experience as head of a label so you are somehow contradicting yourself with above "amount of knowledge")
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Hardly a long experience? He was one of the first people to start an independent by refusing to sign with a larger label. He started Roc-A-Fella records in 1996 and built it into a business empire without any help from larger labels. When he allowed DefJam to purchase it, he became the President of the label and has introduced many top-selling acts and promoted them very well while at the same time not wasting dollars on acts that would not make business sense.




I mean. What's better than a music superstar who is very entrepreneurial and has office experience and success? Oh, I know what's better: An entrepreneurial music superstar with office experience and success who sings instead of raps and who uses guitar riffs instead of beats...
 
Badandy said:
Hardly a long experience? He was one of the first people to start an independent by refusing to sign with a larger label. He started Roc-A-Fella records in 1996 and built it into a business empire without any help from larger labels. When he allowed DefJam to purchase it, he became the President of the label and has introduced many top-selling acts and promoted them very well while at the same time not wasting dollars on acts that would not make business sense.




I mean. What's better than a music superstar who is very entrepreneurial and has office experience and success? Oh, I know what's better: An entrepreneurial music superstar with office experience and success who sings instead of raps and who uses guitar riffs instead of beats...
Click to expand...

Exactly. I don't know what's so hard about this to understand. Some people just have no clue.
 
Badandy said:
I mean. What's better than a music superstar who is very entrepreneurial and has office experience and success? Oh, I know what's better: An entrepreneurial music superstar with office experience and success who sings instead of raps and who uses guitar riffs instead of beats...
Click to expand...

/thread
 
I thought I read somewhere that (c)rap was on its way out. Why would Apple want to associate itself with such a degenerate form of noise. And JayZ a musician? Please, what instrument does he play, the record player? LOL
 
sowillo14 said:
I thought I read somewhere that (c)rap was on its way out. Why would Apple want to associate itself with such a degenerate form of noise. And JayZ a musician? Please, what instrument does he play, the record player? LOL
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Nope copyrighted rap is still around. However there is a lot of crap on the radio as well.

Jay-Z is without a doubt the best rapper alive, and it's unfortunate that there is so much horrible rap to give good rappers like him and Common (just to name a few) a bad name. So there, that's my rap defense.

On another note, though Jay-Z is a respectable partner, but however rap is not. You don't even have to leave this thread to see that there is less support for rap than there is support, and there's much hatred. Yes Jay-Z is a great business man, but there's too much bad rap for rap (pun intended) that I don't know if Jay-Z's credibility can reverse the amounts of bad press Apple would get. Granted Jay-Z has large amounts of credibility, but "Apple Partners with Rapper" isn't a good headline. I'm sorry, but it's a fact that there are more rap haters than fans.
 
sowillo14 said:
I thought I read somewhere that (c)rap was on its way out. Why would Apple want to associate itself with such a degenerate form of noise. And JayZ a musician? Please, what instrument does he play, the record player? LOL
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People have been predicting the demise of Copyrighted Rap since the 80's but it's still around thanks to all the suburban white kids who buy it.
 
sowillo14 said:
I thought I read somewhere that (c)rap was on its way out. Why would Apple want to associate itself with such a degenerate form of noise. And JayZ a musician? Please, what instrument does he play, the record player? LOL
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Yeah... your definitely trying to start something bad on this thread.

thegman1234 said:
Nope copyrighted rap is still around. However there is a lot of crap on the radio as well.

Jay-Z is without a doubt the best rapper alive, and it's unfortunate that there is so much horrible rap to give good rappers like him and Common (just to name a few) a bad name. So there, that's my rap defense.

On another note, though Jay-Z is a respectable partner, but however rap is not. You don't even have to leave this thread to see that there is less support for rap than there is support, and there's much hatred. Yes Jay-Z is a great business man, but there's too much bad rap for rap (pun intended) that I don't know if Jay-Z's credibility can reverse the amounts of bad press Apple would get. Granted Jay-Z has large amounts of credibility, but "Apple Partners with Rapper" isn't a good headline. I'm sorry, but it's a fact that there are more rap haters than fans.
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Of course, something that people don't understand, and the intelligence level has decreased.

slicecom said:
People have been predicting the demise of Copyrighted Rap since the 80's but it's still around thanks to all the suburban white kids who buy it.
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Sad but true. The only way to really make money in this day and age is to get rich white people to accept it, and teenage white kids with no culture to adhere to are sucking it up wonderfully.
 
thegman1234 said:
Nope copyrighted rap is still around. However there is a lot of crap on the radio as well.

Jay-Z is without a doubt the best rapper alive, and it's unfortunate that there is so much horrible rap to give good rappers like him and Common (just to name a few) a bad name. So there, that's my rap defense.

On another note, though Jay-Z is a respectable partner, but however rap is not. You don't even have to leave this thread to see that there is less support for rap than there is support, and there's much hatred. Yes Jay-Z is a great business man, but there's too much bad rap for rap (pun intended) that I don't know if Jay-Z's credibility can reverse the amounts of bad press Apple would get. Granted Jay-Z has large amounts of credibility, but "Apple Partners with Rapper" isn't a good headline. I'm sorry, but it's a fact that there are more rap haters than fans.
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For this reason I would love the deal to go ahead. Just to see the reaction of rap "haters". Especially those on this board. I still remember when Kanye performed at a keynote a while back and the racial undertones in many peoples posts took me by surprise.
 
Digital Skunk said:
...
Of course, something that people don't understand, and the intelligence level has decreased....
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What bothers me, is people can take bad rock, bad pop, bad jazz, bad anything and put it to the side. But most people will not do that with rap. Granted I don't listen to rap that much anymore, my tastes have changed, but there is GOOD rap, and BAD rap just like in every other genre. It's a common misconception that all rap is about degrading women and killing people, it's not.
 
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