Music Label Quotes

I think 'Interscope' always puts the artist first, and they're focusing on these artists' development. I felt like that was a part of my career that I kind of needed to focus on after having come from the radio and getting exposure that way. I wanted to grow my brand and grow my fanbase, and they have proven to be the best fit for that.

When Def Jam wanted to sign Method Man, they wanted to sign Method Man and Old Dirty. And Old Dirty wanted to be on Def Jam - everybody, that was like the dream label. But if I had Old Dirty and Method Man on Def Jam, that's two key pieces going in the same direction, whereas there's other labels that needed to be infiltrated.

Major labels act as banks in terms of how they produce and release your album. No major label is really good or bad; they just 100 per cent operate as a business, which makes sense... no hard feelings.

I don't really think of myself as a folk singer.

Music is one of those businesses in which, if you're talented and hustle hard enough, you can make it - specifically as an entrepreneur. If you look as far back as Berry Gordy, Russell Simmons, Andre Harrell, L.A. Reid, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs, there's a whole lineage of successful black entrepreneurs who have built their own companies from scratch.

Well, I had a record deal since I was 18, and it got me where I am.

It's actually one of my dreams to have my own album. My music genre is dark pop.

Even with G.O.O.D. Music, we have artists that have done very well, and we've had artists that haven't. Being attached to Kanye is only going to get you so far. You've still got to have the records and the talent and the artistry on your own to carry it.

When I was shopping around trying to get signed, I made it a point to say, 'This is who I am.' I dress the way I normally dress, and I just wanted to find a label that would accept me for that.

What made me want to become a recording artist; I was the first artist that was repeatedly asked by a label to record with them. That label was Def Jam Records.

Def Jam, they've shown nothing but love as far as supporting my records. We haven't missed yet, radio-wise, and every song that they've actually tried to support has been No. 1.

I've always been a fan of Nigerian artist D'banj. He's now signed to Kanye West's Good Music label.

The Broken Bow group is such a great family and seem like a group of tight-knit people. When I looked for a new label, I wanted to feel I could trust everybody. I wanted motivation to be at an all-time high.

If I hear a song that I like, my first instinct is to find out about who made it.

My girlfriend at the time convinced me to send these songs to Cavity Search. When they wanted to put out my record I was totally shocked.

I walked away from the Jive Records situation, but I still have a great relationship with a lot of the workers and a lot of people who were in that system that have moved on to other places. I felt like being there; it totally wasn't understood what the Raheem DeVaughn movement was about.

I remember a song I did called 'If the Good Die Young' - I wanted to have a lead guitar solo on there, and the label flipped out! It was too rock and roll. They made us go back and put fiddle on the solo.

When I was 19 I had a record deal.

I'm not with G-Unit for protection. I chose G-Unit because I felt like that's the place where the people would be more supportive of a person that is considered a rebel.

I am a pop girl! And I'm on a major label. I enjoy singing pop songs.

I recorded 80 per cent of the record in my guest bedroom; then, when 'Shine' went to number one on one of the charts, the label called and said, 'Can you do an EP?' Then, 'Can you do a full length? And can you do it in two weeks?'

I always thought that I would have a recording career.

Vertigo's always been a label that experiments with new stuff and forms of subversion.

We'd been on Geffen for a long time, and I think we felt that we needed a change. I just don't think we felt very close to the people at the label after all this time or that they understood what we were trying to do. I don't have any regrets, because at the time we signed with Geffen, it was the right thing to do.

It was important to me to find a label that wouldn't back out after a first single. Everyone's so used to hearing me with Hootie, they're going to be skeptical.