?uestlove: “[Def Jam] don’t know we shot the “Rising Down” video”
The homegirl Hillary Crosely spoke with ?uestlove about the saga The Roots have been going through with Def Jam.
He says the group operates far below the radar of Island Def Jam chairman Antonio “L.A.” Reid.
“He has no idea that ‘Birthday Girl’ isn’t even on the album,” Thompson says. “They don’t know we shot the ‘Rising Down’ video. They just know they approved an (electronic press kit) budget.”
Reid had no comment…
That’s funny, but sad. So why are they even still bothering with the major label system you ask? ?uesto broke it down during his recent interview with OnSMASH:
My survival depends on us being on a major label and receiving major label funding. ‘Cause even in this sort of low-level room that we’re in, you still need somewhere between half-a-million to a million dollars to even do low-level work, for promotion, for recording, you know there’s a lot of people on this record. We still need funding. It’s not like the “friends and family discount†is in effect.
I guess reality just sucks. So I wonder if he misspoke and actually meant to say “they don’t know about the “Rising Up” video,” or if he was actually letting the cat out the bag about a possible Roots/Styles P/Mos Def video?
April 28th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
I LIKE TORTLES
April 28th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
DEF JAM IS SUCH A WACK LABEL.
April 28th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Man I wish I was signed……
April 28th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Just copped Rising Down on my lunch break, first three tracks are the joints we’ve alreaday heard (Rising down,75 Bars, the one with Peedi), and theyre’ all fucking amazing. But the next three (including the joint with Saigon) were pretty fucking weak on first listen. Bol’s review isnt seeming that far off at this point. I’ll chalk it up to my listening environment and give it proper play tonite, but it aint looking good…
April 28th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
yo yo yo
April 28th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
smh@stupid artists like the roots. talk shit about the system when their whole lifes depend on it
April 28th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
more like..
I WUV TORTLES
smh @ anyone being surprised at this shit.
April 28th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
smh @ anyone using a Bol review for reference points.
Ya gotta download before you buy nowadays but this joint is copped. They can subtract $9.99 from that 3.1 deficit lol
April 28th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
if this was happening 4 months ago there would be over 100 comments sayin its hovs fault and fuk hov and shit like that
where all the haters at now?
April 28th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
heard a preview … definitely worth my dough.
April 29th, 2008 at 12:07 am
i will download this before buying..sounds iffy, but i’m a roots fan anyways
April 30th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
I was on pandora and put a lupe fiasco playlist together and some roots’ joints from Game theory came thru…they were all bangers…so i went to itunes…took soem 30 second listens…and bought it…I love game theory…u saying…”dog…we talking bout rising down”…well…DOG…I bought rising down because of game theory and I love them both and i’m happy to see the roots doing so well and producing quality music as usual!!! banging beats…great lyrics…now all they need is more exposure…and its a rap