Indie Rap Is Still Fertile Ground For Success

Independent hip-hop labels have long served as fertile ground for burgeoning talent. Over the years, such labels as Sleeping Bag, Tommy Boy, Wild Pitch, and a number of others have taken chances on artists that the majors weren't ready for. As a result, acts like De La Soul, Gang Starr, and the Wu-Tang Clan have been brought to the forefront of hip-hop music. Today, the indie hip-hop scene has taken on a life of its own, with artists and entrepreneurs assuming the reins and controlling their own creative and financial destiny.
"The beauty of indie hip-hop is that there is a listener out there for you," says Zion, one-half of Ground Control/ Nu Gruv Alliance recording act Zion I. "As an independent artist, we try to search out and connect with the people that appreciate our music. Once you do, you have to capitalize on being in touch with them as much as you can."
Indie hip-hop labels seem to be doing just that. In 2001, the indie market share as a percentage of all rap sales increased by nearly two points, from 11.7% in 2000 to 13.6%, according to SoundScan.
"[Major-label] artists that came out a year or two years ago were selling twice as much in their first week as they're doing now," explains Bob Perry, owner of Quincy, Mass.-based Landspeed Distribution. "That means that some of the crossover fans that were into certain artists have moved on. That doesn't really affect the independent market share as much because our people are the hardcore fans -there are no casual fans, no MTV viewers, no pop people who are picking up our music."
For labels like New York-based Sub Verse Music, the recent success has to do with the label's approach.
"When we approach things, we approach them with the full vision of quality," says Bigg Jus, co-founder/ creative officer of Sub Verse Music. "It's not based on the bottom line or trends, we just do what we do."
do it yourself
With any number of indie labels springing up everyday, the do-it-yourself approach is becoming more and more common for a variety of reasons.
"We're not bringing you a singing and dancing act that's going to make you millions, we're bringing you the whole sound of the culture," says Jus, who founded the label with co-founder/chief marketing and international officer Fiona Bloom. "It really doesn't make sense to hook up with somebody unless that person understands that there is a full vision here and they're buying into it.
"We're overachievers-to tell you the truth, I almost feel that we're not playing in the little leagues but the intermediate level," Jus continues. "We can shine at a larger level, so it doesn't make sense to continue to do it at this level; but because of buy-ins and everything like that, we're still outside of the major corporations. They have to accept the fact that the indies really come with the talent, and they have to look to us for the true source of talent."
Many indie hip-hop label chiefs, like Domino, CEO of Oakland, Calif.-based Hiero Imperium Recordings, home to Del tha Funky Homosapien and Souls of Mischief, used experiences with the major labels to start their own imprints. "We had just came off a bad experience with a major, so we were sour to that idea," Domino says. "We felt like for all that we accomplished-we got some props and sold some records-but we didn't have anything. It was like we were expendable. So we thought if we were going to do this again that, at the very least, we should have ownership."
Anticon Records CEO Tim Holland's prior major-label experiences also led him to the indie world. "People in the industry were telling us there was no market for the music we made, and we believed otherwise," says Holland, who also records under the moniker Sole. "I felt that indie hip-hop was being watered down as soon as corporate America got its bloody hands on it and wanted it to be the next grunge music, and we didn't want to be a pawn in a machine that didn't care for us-we prefer to be a parasite to it."
Stones Throw Records owner/artist Peanut Butter Wolf says, "My experience being signed to a major was a bad one, and it scared me from wanting to go that route again. I'm not opposed to major labels, just opposed to changing the sound of the music I believe in."
Many artists find that unless you're in New York, Atlanta, or Los Angeles, there is little opportunity to make a name for yourself. That's why many acts, like Jasiri Media Group's Source of Labor, decided to delve into the arena.
"We're from Seattle, so there isn't really an established industry here," says Source of Labor's Wordsayer, "so the choice for us was to either move somewhere else or build our own. We chose to reinvest in ourselves and build our own. We were forced to pioneer. When you think of Seattle, you may not think of hip-hop but that's only because we have to broaden and reclaim our own intellectual property. We only think of hip-hop as what we're told hip-hop is, but when you think beyond the box, you know that creativity exists wherever we exist. There could be somebody right now getting busy in Alaska or South Dakota that we may never hear because they're not in these Oprimary markets.' For us, it wasn't a matter of choice. If we want to be heard we have to do this shit for ourselves.
"The ultimate goal is to create an industry within the industry," Wordsayer adds. "It's a matter of being as self-sufficient as possible within this industry."
David Paul, founder/owner of San Francisco-based Bomb Hip-Hip Records, found the indie scene to be his quickest way into the industry.
"I was always interested in music and record labels," Paul says. "As a kid, you really don't know what you have to do to start a label. From doing radio and my magazine [Bomb Hip-Hop], I learned enough about the industry to do a label. For independent labels, it's a learn-as-you-go thing. You teach yourself.
"I doubt a major label would come along and pick us up," he says of the label's DJ-driven sound. "Plus, major labels used to pick up whole indie labels; but nowadays they'll just pick one artist from an indie label. They'll pick up a Mos Def, or a Dilated [Peoples], or a Blackalicious rather than taking the whole label."
While many indies are content to remain that way, there are those that believe moving up to a major-with the right deal-is a logical progression. David Walis, owner of New York-based Bronx Science/Fully Blown Records is among them.
"To be honest, in order to be successful, I fully believe that you do need to sign on with a major at this point in the game," Walis says. "It's extremely difficult to remain independent, so we're out there on a regular basis trying to take that next step-but the major deal has to make sense. We firmly believe that with both labels we are able to establish that fan base and be in a situation where-if we can get 150,000 units scanned-we can come into a major and get the backup and support that we need, rather than coming in with nothing. Without the correct support from a major-that's almost worse than being independent. If you can create enough of a story as an independent, I believe that it can be beneficial to a relationship that's necessary with a major."
crossing over
There are those acts, like Capitol's Dilated Peoples, that have been able to make that transition on their own terms.
"It's good when [the majors] are able to take the artists to the next level, the way Capitol did with Dilated," Paul says. "They're actually still working with ABB [Records, its original indie base], because they issue [Dilated singles and full-lengths on vinyl], so I think that's a good marriage right there."
Wordsayer, whose group recently toured with Dilated, agrees. "They were cognizant of wanting to maintain that balance. They spent years in the underground, so they had a foundation which they were able to grow upon."
For his part, Evidence of Dilated Peoples notes that the band had experienced its own trials with majors and used those experiences to the group's benefit this time around.
"We had landed a deal with Sony and watched it not work out," Evidence says. "We also watched a lot of our friends go up and come down, so because of that we weren't really gassed on the industry. When it came time to do a deal, we made sure we did a business deal rather than a typical recording contract. We figured we'd let them come to us.
"We put out our own records through ABB, and we just created light for ourselves," Evidence adds. "So when we did the deal, it wasn't a color-by-number deal. We got a lot of the terms that we wanted, like keeping our vinyl released through ABB-that was a way of saying Othank you' to the people who have gotten us this far."
Blackalicious, another veteran indie act, recently signed a deal with MCA after recording for indies Quannum and Solesides.
"The goal has always been to get our music out there," Blackalicious' Gift of Gab says. "MCA came along at the right time, and it felt like the right thing to do. It gives us a chance to get our music to a broader audience. We've been doing what we've been doing, and now it's our opportunity to use MCA as a vehicle to get our music exposed to people who we wouldn't have otherwise been able to reach."
Evidence believes that the major's acknowledgement of indies is something that will continue.
"I see it happening all the time," he says. "It's a beautiful thing when you see people who've been in it for a long time finally getting their due. Once you get the machine working behind you, that's when it all starts to come together."
Lately, the opposite has also happened, with several former major-label acts finding success on indies. For example, Landspeed Distribution recently scored a hit with an album from former Def Jam artist Cormega.
"They invested a lot of money establishing him as a brand-name artist and we were able to capitalize on that," Landspeed owner Bob Perry says. "Landspeed and Cormega did really well off of that project, and it was supported by the fact that he was on a major for a few years and got a lot of tour support. I think it's good that we can offer an option to artists. In this climate, unless you have the potential to go gold, there aren't really a lot of options out there right now."
Although the indie scene offers more opportunities to artists, the recent boom in imprints and titles has created a glut in the market.
indie overkill
"In '97, you could go into [small indie chain retailer] Fat Beats and there would be a section for indie hip-hop," Domino says. "Now, it's half the store. Anytime that you have more and more people, the quality of the music goes down and there is an overall saturation. We're all hurt by this, because any time there is an oversaturation of stuff, people tend to pull away from it."
Some point to the recent advancements in recording technologies as a possible culprit. "I don't think there are too many indies, but too many mediocre indie artists," Zion says. "Back in the day, before the independent rush, cats were paying their dues in the studio. So, when they came out, their sound was refined. Now you have cats who have home equipment doing stuff at the crib on 4-tracks, which is cool, but they're making multiple albums off of that. After three or four albums, that sound wears thin."
Walis says, "It's become too easy for guys to produce records. It's become too easy for anyone to grab a mic and say they're rappers. It's become too easy for guys to just press up their own records. It has caused a tremendous amount of product in the market. It's become very difficult to differentiate what product is good and what product is not from a sales perspective."
Tommy Boy Records chairman Tom Silverman sees it as simple supply and demand. "In the earlier years, the demand for hip-hop was significantly greater than the supply," he says. "Indie labels were 45%-50% of all of the hip-hop business. Now, they're 10% or less. So now the supply of hip-hop artists is much greater than the demand. But in the first 10 or 12 years of it, it wasn't.
"Hip-hop is now a business that has an oversupply, and demand is waning," Silverman adds. "It's no longer [the] kids' music. It doesn't piss off parents anymore."
the future
While the future for indie hip-hop is anyone's guess, all seem to agree that a change is coming.
"The music is going to expand," Domino says. "For the most part, the stuff that goes indie is stuff that doesn't need a mainstream push-like underground hip-hop. I think that the pool of fans that are checking for independent records like that will grow to other genres of music, maybe even to R&B and neo-soul-stuff that, generally, couldn't survive without massive exposure. Other types of music may follow suit, putting out independent records, and there's going to be an audience for it.
"There's ultimately going to be more doors opening up for us as well," Domino adds. "Because of what we have accomplished, I think that certain majors are noticing, and as soon as they begin to take a chance on indie groups, or indie-sounding groups, I think it's going to help open doors."
On the business front, Bomb Hip-Hop's Paul believes that in order for indies to survive, they will have to "keep a low overhead, avoid a lot of returns, and focus on what they do well."
That said, Ground Control Records/Nu Gruv Alliance GM Richard Collins thinks that the future looks bright for indie hip-hop. "The content and the quality of mainstream hip-hop has reached this plateau where people are looking for something that's new and fresh," says Collins, whose imprint serves as label home to Cali Agents, Zion I, and EdO.G.
"Therefore," Collins observes, "underground has an opportunity to have the same kind of impact that alternative music did in the early '90s. You had all these new acts coming out of Seattle that strayed away from what was going on at the time. A lot of people are drawing those same comparisons to contemporary hip-hop. You have this infatuation with style and glamour finally reaching a plateau, and fans are looking for something that is an alternative to that."

Additional reporting by Wes Orshoski in New York.