Finally, my manager negotiated a deal where I got to produce my own records.
Do you have a record contract? I have a recording agreement. What's the difference? One is an agreement and one is a contract! I am a man who deals by ear.
You don't want to get stuck with a record that you've done with someone that you feel obligated to put out - that's not really dope, just because you made an effort to get together and work.
Make sure you know what you are signing when you sign a recording contract.
I wanted out of my record deal with EMI. They wanted me to record one type of album; I wanted to record the type of music I wanted to make.
Every musician in the known universe has signed a bad piece of paper, myself included. But it's really very simple. You're the artist. It's your picture that's going on the CD cover, nobody else's. Protect yourself. Get a good lawyer. You'll kick yourself later if you don't.
I guess I've learned that there's really no such thing as a bad label, there is only a bad contract.
So why sign your name in blood for more? It seemed like a sensible arrangement for me. I didn't sell large numbers of records and the record company paid advances they rarely recouped.
Bun E.'s a member of the band, but he's not touring, and he's not recording... We've had our differences, but we're all settled up now, and hopefully we can forget about that era. These decisions that Cheap Trick makes, Bun E. is part of.
So you have to just be really careful and make sure that when a deal comes along, that it's like the right deal for you... not necessarily the most money, because you have to pay the record label that back in like record sales and stuff.
I was talking to different labels: Columbia, RCA, Epic. I decided not to sign with Epic even after L.A. Reid offered me a crazy deal.
I stand in support of royalty for singers, but sometimes things happen all of a sudden and you have to sign a contract.
