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THANKS, CONS!



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WWW.VIBE.COM PREVIEW OF THE MURDA INC. ARTICLE. LET'S SEE IF THEY STILL GOT IT:

Will The Inc. rise again? Read an exclusive excerpt from our June feature on the label that changed it all

From 1999 to 2003, the record label and clique known as MURDER INC. dominated. Launched by the vociferous, hard-partying Irv Gotti, Murder Inc. made Ja Rule a superstar and produced megahits for Fat Joe and Jennifer Lopez. But despite blows from 50 Cent, a falling out with Ashanti, and the trial of Gotti’s life, Murder Inc. is born anew. Today, Gotti and his family are reality TV stars, Ja is back in the studio, and The Inc. is aching to rise again. Thomas Golianopoulos puts the pieces together.

Money was raining from the sky - literally. In billing, I did like $120 million two years straight. Anything I wanted, I was getting. I didn’t hear ‘no’ much back then.

IRV GOTTI TOOK HIS BEATING LIKE A MAN. It was June 2000, and he’d just finished playing what would become Ja Rule’s sophomore album, Rule 3:36, for his Def Jam bosses, Lyor Cohen (the label chairman at the time) and Kevin Liles. Cohen and Liles were experienced king- makers, helping launch artists like Run DMC, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, and Jay-Z.

But they weren’t feeling 3:36, a turn to lighter fare after Ja’s hard-edged debut. The insults started flying Gotti’s way. “It’s soft. It’s wack,” said Liles, who did most of the talking. “This isn’t even hip hop.” And, worst of all (to the suits), “You wasted our money.”

Gotti was shocked—the young A&R star wasn’t used to having his ears questioned, even back when he was choosing beats for his fi rst artist, Mic Geronimo.

By the turn of the century, he had been instrumental in bringing Jay-Z and DMX to Def Jam (both in ’97), and he’d delivered Ja’s platinum 1999 debut, Venni Vetti Vecci. Not to mention, according to Irv, “All the bitches in L.A. was loving [3:36].” At the end of the meeting in Lyor’s swank office, Liles ordered Gotti to make an entirely different record.

What did he change? Not a thing. Def Jam eventually provided Irv with 10,000 pieces of vinyl for the lead single, “Between Me & You”— a very modest roll-out—and Gotti started calling his radio connections. “I whored Ja out basically,” Gotti says now. “I was like, ‘Please, if you like it, just play it.’ And, boy, did they play it.”

Rule 3:36, a reference to a Bible passage from the Book of John, eventually sold more than three million copies and initiated one of the most successful runs in hip hop history. All told, between 1999 and 2005, Murder Inc. released eight platinum albums through Def Jam and conquered the Billboard charts. In 2002 alone, Gotti produced nine Hot 100 Top 20 hits. He did it by keenly merging R&B with street rap. It seems obvious now, but Gotti godfathered an entire subgenre: gangsta pop.

Irv and his crew also pissed off a lot of people, from rival rappers to executives. But most notably, he caught the attention of the federal government, which put him on trial for money laundering. Now, through a series of interviews (see THE PLAYERS below), VIBE chronicles the highs and lows of the controversial label that made its own distinct sound, made friends, made enemies, but most importantly, made history.

IN THE MID-1990S, IRVING DOMINGO LORENZO was a young cat from Hollis, Queens, known as Magoo for his signature Mr. Magoo squint. But in the music world, he was a producer known as DJ Irv who’d just cut ties with Queens MC Mic Geronimo. Irv says, “He wasn’t fucking with me the way I needed him to.” Mic says, “I didn’t sign to his production company [Top Dog Productions], and I think he was counting on that.”

Irv eventually linked up with fellow Hollis native Ja Rule, a rapper he’d followed since Ja was part of the failed TVT Records group Cash Money Click. Gotti always envisioned running a rap empire, and, thanks to his success with Jay-Z (see sidebar), he scored a serious sit- down with Def Jam President Lyor Cohen for an A&R position. He aced it, and soon thereafter, Gotti’s ascension from brash, cocky A&R to brash, cocky CEO was underway.

Russell Simmons: This guy comes into my office saying, “The only way niggas is going to dance again is like this.” And he started bouncing. Because that was the [musical] vibe DMX and Ja Rule had.

Mike Kyser: Irv came in with a chip on his shoulder. He was ready to change the whole system in a week. Irv was like, “We need some new blood.” He brought this guy named DMX to the building.

Julie Greenwald: Gotti plays me [DMX’s] “Get at Me Dog” and is like, “It’s going to sell five million.” I’m like, “Irv, you’re out of your mind.” [DMX’s 1998 debut, It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot, went on to sell just short of four million copies.]

Chris Gotti: They were like, “Irv, [DMX] barks. He’s a fucking dog. Who’s going to want to buy that?” They used to laugh at Irv.

Irv Gotti: In 1998, [then Sony vice president] Dave McPherson, was like, “I want to give you a label.” That’s when Lyor was forced to give me a label deal, which he didn’t even give me. [Universal CEO] Doug Morris gave it to me. [Despite numerous requests, Cohen declined to be interviewed for this story.]

Simmons: Irv graduated to a label...quickly. It didn’t take long. How long did it take for the white guy who signed Britney Spears to get a label?

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HA HA HA... GOTTA BE FAKE INTERVIEW WITH THE SUPPOSED KNOCK-OUT KING OF SUGE KNIGHT:



SOOOOOOOO FUCKING HILARIOUS. RAP IS OUTTA CONTROL!

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THE NEW X-FILES TRAILER, FEATURING XZIBIT, LOL:



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THE NEW G-UNIT VIDEO. THIS SONG IS WEAK. THEY NEED TO DO BETTER TO MAINTAIN SUPREMACY:



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GHETTO LOVE: NOTHING LIKE IT!

Remy Ma's wedding called off when hubby-to-be Papoose smuggles in key

Remy Ma's jailhouse nuptials were abruptly called off Monday when her rapper groom, Papoose, showed up with a most curious wedding present: a handcuff key.

"A wedding was scheduled today and a visitor to that wedding service was found to be in possession of jail contraband so the wedding was canceled," a correction official told the Daily News.

"The key that was found today easily opened handcuffs that we and other law enforcement officials use," the official said.

Now the 29-year-old Brooklyn-born Papoose - real name Shamele Mackie - won't be able to see his fiancée until November.

"The visitor was sanctioned by not being able to visit Rikers Island again for six months," the official said. "He was asked to leave."

So was Papoose trying to break out his rap queen, whose real name is Remy Smith, from the joint?

Neither his or her camp were saying - but Remy has every reason to be eager to get cut loose.

The 26-year-old Terror Squad rap princess faces up to 25 years at today's sentencing for shooting her friend Makeda Barnes-Joseph in the stomach last July outside a Meatpacking District club.

Papoose was not charged after he voluntarily surrendered the key to authorities.

He was quickly ushered out of the jail and never got to enter the prison island's Rose M. Singer chapel in which the two were set to say their "I do's."

WOW.

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DO YOU WANT A SONG BY KURUPT PRODUCED BY PETE ROCK? HERE U GO:

http://sharebee.com/9f5b6fee

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T.I. VS. SHAWTY LO BEEF. WHAT UP WITH THIS? I BARELY CARE:

Despite house arrest and facing prison time, rapper T.I.'s involvement in the rap game is as strong as ever. The Atlanta native, who was convicted earlier this year on weapons charges, is still making TV appearances, recording albums, and is even involved in a rap beef with rapper Shawty Lo.

The self proclaimed King of the South recently called Baltimore radio station 92Q Jamz and commented on the feud, comparing Lo to a dog.

"That dog don't even know why he's barking and howling at the moon. The moon don't care. The moon is so far away. The dog can't touch the moon. The dog can't shut the moon off. He just sits there. Eventually, the dog will get tired of barking, and he, too, has to admire the moon as it shines. Just let the moon shine, dog," he said.

Lo was quick to respond, saying "He ain't no moon. I feel like he ain't no Jay-Z or nobody like that. He's the clouds, but I ride through clouds every day. He gotta meet me eye to eye. I can't beat him at arguing. He's like a girl. A girl will win an argument every time," he replied, according to MTV.

As Shawty Lo tells it, the beef began when T.I. rejected an offer to appear on a track. The two rappers are both from the Bankhead neighborhood of Atlanta, GA.

"He did put Bankhead on the map. I can't take that away from him. But he ain't from Bankhead," Lo said. "He ain't no real street n---a. We been letting him get away with it for a long time. Tell him to come to Bankhead like he went to [Houston neighborhood] Cloverland with [Lil] Flip," he added.

Shawty Lo says he's got no plans to battle T.I. on his records.

"I ain't gotta respond. I ain't trying to get in no battle rap with T. Lie. That's what he do; he's a rapper. I'm a street n---a. I'm a trapper. I really lived it. I got 28 arrests, four convictions. My name is Carlo Walker — look it up."

T.I. recently appeared on BET in a special interview program titled "T.I. Speaks." Click here to watch the rapper talk about taking responsibility for his recent troubles, and about the paranoia of fame.

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SUGE KNIGHT STORY UPDATE. WHOA!

According to TMZ.com, who obtained pictures of the incident, Marion "Suge" Knight, controversial founder of Death Row Records was assaulted last night in Shag Nightclub in Los Angeles last night.

Knight was seen by witnesses arguing with a man, reportedly screaming "I want my money!" According to the reports, Suge and his entourage began assaulting the man, when Suge was struck in the face by the other party, and knocked out.

The pictures on the website [click here to see], show Knight, covered in blood, being escorted from the club, en route to the hospital. Just as the case with the night of Tupac Shakur's murder and the shooting several years at Kanye West's MTV Awards party shooting, Knight did not cooperate with police.

UPDATE: An anonymous witness contacted HipHopDX, claiming to have been in Club Shag Saturday evening. According to the report, Suge Knight was not assaulted by the initial man he was arguing with.

Although the witness confirmed that Knight screamed "I want my money," before allegedly attacking a man with his entourage inside the club, the publicized incident was independent. According to the reports, a third party was video-taping the beating with a cell phone. Knight witnessed this, and attacked the video-taper. The Death Row Records founder put the man in a headlock and took his phone inside the club.

Following the incident, the victim reportedly left the club, went to a vehicle, and opened the trunk. The man removed an unidentifiable object, and as Suge Knight stood outside the club, struck him in the back of the head. The attack left "a large gash" on the back of Knight's head, prompting the blood seen in the pictures provided by TMZ. The hit to the back of the head left Suge Knight unconscious on the sidewalk for a period of about 10 minutes. The attacker reportedly fled the scene.

While on the sidewalk, a female in Knight's entourage reportedly vacated the scene to get a car. Upon pulling in front of the club, the woman wrecked into several vehicles. This incident added to frenzy, that eventually led Knight to a Los Angeles hospital.

When asked by members of press about the incident, Knight has opted not to file a police report, stating that he would deal with the incident internally.

HipHopDX will remain updating on this incident.

www.hiphopdx.com

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EXCERPTS FROM THE 'HIDING IN HIP HOP' BOOK. WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?

WHO IS THE GAY RAPPER/ACTOR HERE?

I am certainly not into decoding code. Read these excerpts from Terrence Deans’ book, Hiding In Hip-Hop. Who is his talking about? There are three key people.

1) Lucas, a megastar actor

2) Eli, a popular multiplatinum rapper and actor

3) Corey, a singer-songwriter has been on MTV’s “The Cut,” been an opener for Jay-Z. He signed to Eli’s start-up label in the 90’s.

At a party. "There were two male celebrity actors standing a few feet in front of us. They didn't notice us because the club was dark. Both men are young and very attractive and have starred in some comedic and dramatic films. One of the actors, ‘Junior,’ is a tall, muscular, brown-skinned brother who got his start in television and is known for his comedic roles in films. He never married, but has a couple of children with a girlfriend. The other dark-skinned actor, "Fritz," has been in a few movies and has starred in a popular television drama."

Sound like somebody you know? "The lead was ‘Lucas,’ who is a megastar. No matter what film project he was attached to it was bound to be a box office smash. In Hollywood, he is considered a golden boy and very bankable. However, there were already many rumors swirling about his sexuality, and even though he married, it was hard for him to shake those pesky gay rumors."

The greatest? "Eli was a force to be reckoned with. He flew out the gate with his debut album and would become a mainstay in the ever-changing Hip Hop industry, where many rappers are one-hit wonders. He has been hailed as one of the greatest rappers to bless the mic."

Corey and Eli were having sexual relations – on the DL. "Up until that moment I had never heard anything remotely close about the rapper being gay. Eli was a burgeoning superstar who parlayed his marketability into television and movie credits. He even had a promising clothing line. But every man's got needs and Eli's needed tending to."

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO HMMMMM.....

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on that note, I'm going to fix my life. I didn't get the 2-bedroom artist apartment... dang. Thanks anyways, Karen!
Time to hustle HARD.
love, Mindbender