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Perhaps most importantly, without Dash, the world would likely never have heard the name Jay-Z at all. With the above resume, you'd have to assume that today Damon Dash must be worth hundreds of millions of dollars and is presiding over a dynasty that rivals Russell Simmons , Diddy or Dr. Unfortunately that is not the case. Today Damon Dash is not only broke, but he owes millions of dollars to the IRS and has had several properties seized through foreclosure.
How did this happen? After getting expelled from three different high schools, Damon Dash fell into a bad crowd and began selling drugs.
Dealing earned him plenty of cash but it came with a price. Damon quit the drug game after seeing too many friends end up dead. Thankfully, Damon quickly discovered that he was a born promoter. He and a group of friends launched a mini business throwing parties and promoting clubs.
One night, he announced that the first girls in line at a club opening would get free bottles of Moet Chandon champagne. A line around the block formed hours before the doors even opened, and while Damon actually lost money on the promotion, he solidified his reputation as the hottest promoter in New York. Soon Damon decided he could be just as successful promoting musical acts as he was clubs.
Through his cousin's step father, Damon landed his first management client, a rap group called Future Sound. It was Rodolfo who, in , first alerted Dash to an ambitious former drug dealer from Brooklyn who was looking to launch a rap career. That rapper's name was Sean Carter, soon to be known as Jay-Z. Jay-Z was unlike anyone else in rap at the time. He was the fastest rapper Damon had ever heard and he didn't write anything down, instead reciting every rhyme straight from memory.
Jay-Z's lyrics tended to focus mainly on living a lavish Playboy lifestyle filled with girls, money, boats, cars and champagne. At the time, Jay-Z was a bit of an underdog in the music industry. He had tried and failed for years to secure his own record deal but was rejected for being too old or not appearing hard enough. Jay didn't fit the mold of fellow typical Brooklyn rappers who wore gold teeth and sang exclusively about dealing drugs and killing people.
The name was a play on oil tycoon John D. The name was also a nod to a famous Brooklyn drug dealer named Rocafella who Jay-Z idolized as a young hustler. Damon wanted Jay to film a music video as fast as possible but there was just one problem. Roc-A-Fella Records had no money. To raise cash, Damon sought an investment from a well connected street hustler named Kareem "Biggs" Burke.
Burke also arranged for Jay and Damon to have access to a wealthy local kingpin's mansion and speed boat for the video:. The gamble paid off and soon Roc-A-Fella record's only artist was getting courted by all the major record companies. Unfortunately, none of the major labels would agree to one of Damon's outrageous demands. Owning the master would turn out to be a brilliant financial decision as Jay-Z's back catalogue still sells millions of units, even almost 20 years later.
Only one record company was willing to acquiesce to such insane demands, a little known label called Freeze Records. Rocawear is an American clothing retailer based in New York.
Chris Brown, Memphis rap collective Three 6 Mafia, radio personality Ebro Darden, Toccara and Rich Boy were amongst the other celebrities who were part of the campaign. Jay-Z will retain his stake in the company and will continue to oversee the marketing, licensing, and product development.
In March , Rocawear launched its first social networking site, offering style news, music, fashion, and cultural connections. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved 20 May Down To 98 Problems Yet? Archived from the original on March 9, Hard Knock Life Vol. Life and Times of S.