In my city and in others I’ve traveled to, some promoters put on what they call, talent showcases. Most of these lame shows are put together by letting any rapper perform who pays an entree fee. On top of that, the artist is given a number of tickets that he must sell to his friends and supporters. These are the only group of people usually cheering for him during his performance because no one is there to see anyone else but the artist they came to support.
Anybody can get in and perform if they have the money to pay. These showcases are stacked with well over a dozen artists performing 3 songs each sometimes. It’s a good, lucrative hustle because there are a lot a motherfuckers who desperately want an opportunity to perform. After each artists performs, they leave and take their group of friends with them. The crowd thins out as the night progresses, so the last dude is usually performing in front of his friends and the stage crew who are breaking the set down while the rapper is yelling “ya’ll feelin me out there?” If you’ve never witnessed one of these events, trust me, it’s some sad shit to see.
Sometimes the promoter books a headlining act and charges local acts to be the opening performers. I’ve seen these slots start at $700 each sometimes, and artists line up to grab em. I went to see a headlining hip hop group and sat through 12 local acts who mostly sounded like crap before the headliner performed. This is that “get the money, fuck everything else”mentality. Who gives a shit if these artists are good? They paid so they play.
This infectious behavior has spread in other places too. DJ’s have their “pay for a slot” mixtapes. Some of them apply no screening process at all. Hot or not. You pay, you get on the mixtape. There should be an law to force them to put that disclaimer on them so I’ll know not to waste my time listening to it. If you’re a DJ I expect you to put me up on hot music. Not involve yourself in the musical pimp shit, further saturating the universe with bad artists.
Some blogs do the same pay for a post bullshit too. And you get garbage. You can say what you want about the artists I post but know this; I only post artists I like! You may not like my taste, and that’s fine. I get emails reminding me of that sometimes and that okay. But I do not and will not post for pay or favors.
This is what fucked up radio. Now you have these new, small gate keepers or trolls charging you to cross the bridge. Don’t complain that the swimming pool is foul if you’re one of the people pissing in it.
Magazines are only putting artists on the cover who pay for it. Since when did the cover become ad space? I know times are hard and money is tight but really, you’re poisoning the well you have to drink out of. What would you think of your favorite basketball team if they only allowed players on the court who had the money to pay to be there, and they were not judged by their athletic ability? That would fuck up everything right? Who would watch that?
I’m a music producer and I make it a practice not to post my own shit here. That just feels like some Source, Benzino shit to me. Remember The Source before he fucked that up? Some of you need some kind of code of ethics also.
We all want to get cheddar. Don’t fuck around with the music though. Try offering advertising. I suggest something like this. Start your mixtape with: “This mixtape was brought to you by Leroy’s Bar and Grill on 43rd street”. Then maybe put a 20% off coupon in the jewel case along with a small packet of Leroy’s special mild sauce . Whatever you do, just stop pissin’ in the pool!!
