Nas’ Protégé Juggles Love For Mass Appeal & Def Jam: “I Wanted To Sign [To Them]”

Written By Cyrus Langhorne

[With a promising 2015 on deck for Mass Appeal's Fashawn, the rap middleweight talks to SOHH readers about his love for Nas' record label being regionally-welcoming and not signing to Def Jam Records.]

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I would hope [the regional element] is deliberate. I’m sure with the people that are involved, with the people with power over at Mass Appeal it’s deliberate.

I think the whole name Mass Appeal is self-explanatory. But I think that’s dope, how else are we going to do this thing? We got to represent not just as a record label, but a dynasty in rap. We’re coming after all these great dynasties, and covering our bases South, the North the East and the West.

So I think we’re not only trying to mirror that, but we’re trying to take it to the next level, and take it to a whole other extent as a record label, and as a company. I’m happy to be the only West Coast representative, it’s a big deal to me, especially being under the umbrella of Mass Appeal, I feel like this West Coast district, I gotta hold that down, a 100,000%.

For the record, shout out to Def Jam, I love and respect them.

I wanted to sign to Def Jam. What kid growing up in the 80s and 90s didn’t want to sign to the label LL Cool J was on, or DMX, or f*cking Warren G for that matter. I was so confused by the notion, but what they did, I was just really confused. I don’t have no beef with Def Jam, I love Def Jam.

But I’m Mass Appeal and that’s that. They had the chance and they took it. They even invited me to the f*cking office but they told me not to do it.

This one time, I found that really confusing as a young artist. It’s just one guy, I don’t have nothing towards to the whole staff of Def Jam. -as told to SOHH writer Nikita Rathod

Be on the lookout for multiple Mass Appeal projects from Fashawn including The Ecology in 2015.

2 Comments

Written by Cyrus Langhorne

2 Comments

  1. Good move by Fashawn to sign with Mass Appeal Records. Fashawn does not need a major and also I would not want him to get shelved at the bigger labels. The days of a major label are numbered for African American artists. Many people have done well independently in all styles of music. Good move on NAS part to become a co-founder of mass appeal records with Peter Bitten-bender who has a lot of experience in the music industry.

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