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[Catacombs]

I came across this on MacRumors.com.  I thought it might be an interesting topic to discuss here.  It's the whole article:

Starting in April 2007 there were rumors from MediaTakeOut that rapper Jay-Z was leaving the Def Jam Recordings record label to create a new "super label" with singer Beyonce.
In an exclusive interview, MediaTakeOut.com spoke to a key person involved in creating the new label. And according to that insider, the new label will launch early next year. Tells our insider, "It's a done deal. [Jay Z] already has Beyonce and [Mathew Knowles] on board ... She'll be finishing up her contract [with Sony], and I expect that she'll sign on to the new label shortly afterwards."

Jay-Z is a popular rapper and current president and CEO of Def Jam -- a record label owned by Universal Music.

At the time, Jay-Z was reportedly shopping this new "super label" around with the major record labels "and to Apple - who [was] very interested in doing business".

Now, Moli.com is claiming that "an inside industry source" says that its a done deal.
[Jay-Z and Beyonce] will move to Apple to run a new music division. It sounds rather incredible: [Jay-Z's] already got a pretty good job, running Def Jam, and [Steve] Jobs may be too smart to get into the tanking recording business (as others have said). Of course, if it is true, my guess is this would be a new, revamped record biz, one based on digital distribution, not boring old physical products.

Coincidentally, Universal Music recently let their long term contract lapse with Apple for iTunes music distribution and have gone on a short term "at will" distribution deal.

Do you think the company will be successful at all?  Will other artists be drawn to it?  OPINIONS!

[Kai]

It will be successful because it's Steve Jobs amirite


More seriously:

It might. It might not. It really depends more on the music they record and put out more than anything. Or if they have the money to get it on the radio, if you want to be a tad cynical, and being it's Steve Jobs and Jay-Z I don't think the money will be any sort of issue. As for financially successful, if they go the online distribution route, it would cut a lot of costs of printing and mass producing, shipping, all sorts of little costs. Cut out not only the middleman but the entire front and just switch it to a different place.

That being said, mp3s are pretty LAME (oh look at me I made an encoding joke rofl) and I really love to own a physical copy of an album, but in this day and age of ipods, where you can take a massive amount of music with you, amongst many people the idea of owning an actual copy of an album just doesn't have the appeal.

[iliketodraw]

Isn't Jay-Z kind of dead to hip hop nowadays? I know i wouldn't sign myself up to any label associated with him.

[Kai]

some rappers like money more than not hanging out with Jay-Z


you just have to weigh your priorities, see

[iliketodraw]

I was thinking more along the lines of apple investing in a seemingly dying artist.

[KharBevNor]

Isn't it more Apple teaming up with an experienced, successful record company executive with a marketable brand and shitloads of cash?

[iliketodraw]

You guys win, but i still dislike Jay-Z.

[SleeperCylon]

Jay Z is quick on the road to becoming an antique as a recording artist, but as a record producer, that might be different.

He attracts big name artists and streamlines stuff straight to iTunes with special deals and such, he could make a big mint.  Beyonce is one of the first people to really figure out the new music market.  The game is constant market oversaturation and a new single the second people start to get bored of the old one.

I still like owning the physical album, but if I couldn't go to Amazon or Newbury Comics and get records for 30% less than they sell at crap places like FYE, I'd probably switch over to mp3s.  I still think an album should be a whole product that you listen to all the way through, and not just a bunch of unrelated singles.

[Johnny C]

Jay-Z also has a knack for nurturing artists who sell dizzying numbers of records. (See: Rihanna.)