One time for my brother Vice. Happy Holidays to you and the family.
Check out this video, these dudes have some serious skills.
Hip-Hop Since 1979!
Buju Banton faces drug conspiracy charges
Wow, this was shocking news for me. How does a righteous Rasta man and one of my all time favorite artists get locked up for “Conspiracy” to posses with intent to distribute cocaine. Something doesn’t sound right. A Conspiracy case covers a lot of ground and really doesn’t need much evidence for a conviction just a couple of rats trying to get sentence reductions or some other form of setup. Keep your head up bredren while in the belly of the beast.
MIAMI — Federal authorities say Jamaican reggae star Buju Banton attempted to buy cocaine from an undercover officer in Florida.
Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, has been in U.S. federal custody in Miami since Thursday. He faces a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine.
According to court documents, Banton and two others contacted a police informant last week about buying cocaine in Sarasota. Drug Enforcement Administration agents say Banton negotiated the purchase and was observed inspecting cocaine offered by the undercover officer.
The other men were arrested Thursday when they allegedly attempted to buy the drugs.
An e-mail to Banton’s independent record label was not immediately returned Monday.
Buju Banton, the Jamaican reggae star whose anti-gay lyrics have drawn international criticism, is in a federal lockup in Miami, facing drug conspiracy charges.
Drug Enforcement Administration agents say Banton, real name Mark Anthony Myrie, has been in custody since Thursday and will soon be transferred to Tampa, where the U.S. Attorney is charging him with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilos of cocaine.
Banton has homes both in Jamaica and Tamarac.
While legions of dancehall reggae enthusiasts view Banton as one of the most prolific voices of Jamaica’s poor masses, critics say he’s a gay basher whose lyrics incite violence by calling for attacking and torturing homosexuals.
His song Boom Bye Bye, a dancehall hit released in the 1990s, advocates shooting gays in the head and setting them on fire.
As late as September, Banton’s local management told The Miami Herald that the criticism of the star was unwarranted because he had stopped singing the song years ago. The song remains a hit among reggae DJs.
Still, such lyrics have made Banton one of the more controversial reggae artists, with angry gay activists this fall forcing the cancellation of a string of concerts by the artists during a U.S. tour that included a Halloween night concert in Miami.
Recently the firestorm ratched up after the Grammys announced that Banton’s album Rasta Got Soul, released earlier this year, was up for an award.
Gay Men of African Descent and the National Black Justice Coalition joined with the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation in a petition drive protesting the nomination.
What is a 360 Deal?
Definition:
360 deals are contracts that allow a record label to receive a percentage of the earnings from ALL of a band’s activities instead of just record sales. Under 360 deals, also called “multiple rights deals,” record labels may get a percentage of things that were previously off limits to them, like:
Concert revenue
Merchandise sales
Endorsement deals
Ringtones
In exchange for getting a bigger cut from the artists they represent, the labels say they will commit to promoting the artist for a longer period of time and will actively try and develop new opportunities for them. In essence, the label will function as a pseudo-manager and look after the artist’s entire career rather than only focusing on selling records.
360 deals are controversial for a lot of reasons. First of all, they’re often seen a cynical money grab by labels that are facing dwindling sales and high overhead. The charge is that labels have survived a long time without these kinds of deals, so it would seem that they’re suffering from a failure to manage their businesses and react appropriately to the changing industry – asking the bands to foot the bill hardly seems fair. Other people object to the whole “band branding” notion that makes 360 deals so potentially profitable for labels. A great example is The Pussycat Dolls. Sure, the branding has been a huge success – but where exactly does the music fit into the picture?
Labels counter that these deals let them sign different kinds of artists because they don’t have to be so focused on recouping their investment from album sales. They can stop chasing the instant number one and work with artist in the long haul because they don’t need to rely on big sales figures alone to make signing the artist profitable.
Controversial or not, 360 deals are becoming increasingly common in major label contracts.
Also Known As: Multiple Rights Deals
RiP! A Remix Manifesto
Filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores issues of copyright in the information age, mashing up the media landscape of the 20th century and shattering the wall between users and producers.
