How Nipsey Hussle went from Atlantic Records rejection to signing with them
Record labels passing on artists who go on to be superstars is all too familiar. Whether it’s a business mistake or a decision based on a musician not being quite ready, it’s a story as old as time. Nipsey Hussle spent the majority of his career as an independent artist, but crossed paths with major labels during the beginning and end of his career, up until he died in 2019.
The Crenshaw rapper was once signed to Epic Records through Cinematic Music Group, the label famously behind artists such as Joey Bada$$ and Smoke DZA. His time with Epic was short-lived. When the label experienced financial difficulties in 2010, Nipsey decided not to renew his contract and continue his career on his own.
Around that time, Nipsey revealed Atlantic Records passed on signing him. On the song ‘Keys 2 the City’, which appeared on his The Marathon mixtape, he rapped, “Hussle, Hussle, Dre passed, Def Jam, Capital, Atlantic too/ Thought that I’ll be dead or doing life, ’cause what I rap is true.”
Despite being rejected by the label, Nipsey had no hard feelings towards them. He went on to sign a deal with Atlantic for his debut album, Victory Lap, released in 2018. The project debuted at number four on Billboard 200 and climbed to number two after his death, with features coming from Kendrick Lamar, Diddy, YG, and others.
Unlike many record deals, this one fully partnered with Nipsey’s own label, All Money In, with various terms to suit him. With the power of Atlantic, he was able to push his foundation to a bigger level in terms of radio and retail, with plenty of experienced staff members behind his vision.
“I always respected Atlantic, for a lot of reasons,” Nipsey told Complex. “Craig [Kallman, Atlantic’s Chairman/CEO] been there for 15 years, and I think one thing that turned me off about the Epic deal—back then; Epic’s a different company now—was that I got signed by Charlie Walk, and then he left in the middle of the rollout. That’s how the game go, I understand it, but I didn’t like how that felt.
“So I didn’t wanna ever go into a situation where the decision makers believed in me and then they left, and then a new team of decision makers came in that wouldn’t get credit for my success, ’cause they didn’t sign me. You could fall into politics like that.”
Eventually, Atlantic had no choice but to want to partner with Nipsey, having grown such a huge brand on his own. He was inspired to join forces with the label for several reasons, but particularly due to the input they had on the growth of T.I. and Wiz Khalifa.
“So by Atlantic having one chairman for 15 years, and then the legacy of Atlantic from Ahmet [Ertegun, Atlantic’s founder] and what they did, which is that era,” he said. “And even seeing what they did with Grand Hustle and T.I., and what they did with Wiz [Khalifa] and Bruno Mars.” After speaking to those in charge, he was convinced they weren’t trying to screw him over.