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Free DJ Drama and Donald Cannon

At the beginning of 2007 I told myself that I wouldn’t blog about the the music industry on this site anymore, but this ish has got me pissed.

The RIAA and your local tax dollars have put DJ Drama and his associate Donald Cannon in jail for……….wait for it………..mixtapes. Not only that but they took everything…cars, recording equipment, and 50,000 CD’s that will be ultimately destroyed. The RIAA is doing everything they can to paint Drama (who has worked with such artists as T.I. and Pharrell and has his own deal with Atlantic Records) as a “bootlegger” when they know good and well that the dude does nothing of the sort.

The Fox News report of the whole situation got me hot and bothered about this whole thing too. The cops did not find guns or drugs in the recording studio, but they tried their hardest to draw those connections.

Most of y’all know that I personally can’t stand mixtapes, but as a music lover I’m pissed that the RIAA is trying to destroy an important avenue in hip-hop. Not only that, but everybody who is in the business of promoting music (like myself) might have to watch their back if this type of high profile thuggery becomes a trend. Personally, I see this as a conspiracy: the RIAA knows that there is money in the mixtape game and they’re going to make sure that that money stays with them.

I’m most interested to see if any hip-hop “artists” come out and respond. 50 Cent? Eminem? Speak up.

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2 Comments

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Mike Brown on January 17th, 2007 9:10 pm

I think it will be highly unlikely that you will see any “Free DJ Drama” worn by name rappers, anyone who supports Drama in this would be going against the label they are signed to. The RIAA going after mixtape salesmen isn’t anything new either - Mixtape Inc: The Movie profiled Alan Berry who’s stores sold mixtapes and got raided by the RIAA. Ultimately, Berry lost his stores, his marriage and (from watching the film) his sanity.

I guess that’s why the bigger names in the mixtape game are doing whatever they can to get away from being known as just as mixtape DJs. Green Lantern seems to be rather known as a producer while Kay Slay considers himself A&R. One has to wonder who is next - Clinton Sparks is probably trying to disassociate himself from Mixunit as I write this.

Dwane on January 18th, 2007 9:40 am

>Personally, I see this as a conspiracy: the RIAA knows that there is money in the mixtape game and they’re going to make sure that that money stays with them.

true that…..that eminem “mixtape” is platinum by now. they know that mixtape sales are outselling studio cds right now so this is how they’re gonna corner the market.

>I’m most interested to see if any hip-hop “artists” come out and respond. 50 Cent? Eminem? Speak up.

word. t.i would be NOTHING without drama, but I don’t hear a word from him. drama is signed with atlantic too to distribute mixtapes so this is fucked up

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