In the 70 and 80s, the founders of Death Row and Bad Boy are coming of age. In the Los Angeles neighborhood of Compton, a young Dre is spinning records before he even learns to read. Dre desperately wants to be a hip-hop DJ, but Los Angeles barely has a hip-hop scene. In New York, on the other hand, rap is popping off. And an 18 year old called Sean “Puffy” Combs has B.I.G. plans for the Big Apple.
They don’t know it yet, but their struggles and successes have already begun to shape the egos and sounds of their multi-million dollar tug of war.
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a note to listeners. This episode contains adult content and language.
it's late. Ninety ninety, to rally north
like Biggie small, has a recording deal on the horizon for his very own record. At least that's what puppy
promised him, but Biggie
The deal will ever go through puppy,
Biggie wrapping on remixes he's running out his talent to other artists to sell their records.
Making forever for beg you to get pay and when the
money does come. It's never enough
Peggy needs more right. Now
these twenty years old, and he
I found out that his girlfriend is pregnant, that
why he's in North Carolina he's gotta make money fast
and the only way he knows how at this point in his life is by selling drugs, but he can't let
Puffy know what he's up to
we're Carolina is far enough away from New York City that puff won't find out before
He even dared to think that he might be able to earn a living is wrapper.
He made a living is a street corner dealer in Brooklyn.
bridge day. He would make a couple hundred bucks tops
in North Carolina Biggie, doesn't have
to stand on a corner. The customers drive to him.
From far and wide, and they buy is much care
as they can get their hands on costs
style bulk he and his
nor are bringing in thirty grand every two weeks, but one morning the phone rings its puffy. But what do you know what? I thought I told you about that shit. What I know why you down- and you don't need to be- I just got a call from the Loi deals: clothes man,
to check waitin for you ready the cash right, he don't risk alike on their shit. You can have everything you want this life, if you just trust me Biggie thanks.
Moment for years, all he's known is dealing in hustling, but now he's being offered away out were word
Finally, Biggie sees a future for himself and his family
There's no need to risk jail time or death on this corner. He plans to
back to New York right away.
but puffy hasn't given him, the full picture and the
Police department has other
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From wondering I'm David Brown- and this is business wars.
in our last episode. Doktor drain
This partnership night joined forces defined
death row, in LOS Angeles, to create a West Coast rap label to run
the EAST in New York.
Sean puffy Combs found massive success as a twenty one year: old, New York record executive,
only to be fired by his mentor
with no shortage of confidence,
he goes on to start his own label, bad boy,
but before this rivalry picks up real momentum, members of both labels were first
to dodge the law and bypass
optical record exacts. This is.
For so three in our series death row versus bad boy records ready to die? It's ball! Ninety! Ninety three Brooklyn
biggie in puffy face each other in a booth, juniors restaurant, a neighborhood, join
Flatbush Avenue famous for its cheesecake bra.
Promise me all this shit and now you're fired with affordable
most do now. Don't worry, I'm take care of you.
biggie shoulders slop Annie.
Down at his hands. He feels
manipulated the moment. Puffy called
hop to train from North Carolina to New York where he was
acting on a new recording contract. It might not
feel like it at this moment, but Biggie got lucky. He skipped town just out
before his drug house was rated by the police. Biggie tagging
clean, still has a record contract with uptown records, but after puffy got fired
rub staging his boss. Well, there's no
one there to champion big ease, edgy rap, debut big he's got
bunch of song sitting on the shelf, but now they might
ever hit the airwaves and he's
a family to support and its growing I've gotta dotted now
you gotta make this work, could HEP Quick
A visionary big on no
the blow. But you have to trust me. I trust you just make it happen
Bobby leaves the booth, juniors and steps in
Was Bmw, pork right out front the fancy
in car feels like a souvenir from his brief time on top day. I I'm to make this happen fast.
The ships into gear and begins the long drive north to New York cities. Distant scars, Dale suburb
here were here a few trusted friends like him
selves and puppies home.
day and night to keep the bad boy dream alive
they ve gotta, make shift recording studio and a strict eight. A m wake up, call not easy for those accustomed to the club. Seen puffy roles,
that first.
Rises shot. We got work to do.
come on. Man
you to fix your energy big
and up and coming r B artists, like faith Evans, trick north to the house and scars Dale for frequent sessions in the recording studio debate,
staff, share a single computer and puppy
that's a meeting after meeting with the titans of the recording industry, trying to find
boy, a new home
Nineteen ninety three long
The days when the internet transform the music. This
If that boy wants to reach listeners on a huge scale, well,
there's only one way to do it at a distance
you should deal with one other
major labels without that
they might as well just be hawking demos to tourists in times square. This
no small task, because puffy has an unprecedented list of demands.
Not only does he want to massive signing bonus for himself, he wants full
creative control over bad boy. He can
risk. Another exec screwing up his vision,
His lawyer gets puffy a meeting with music giant the am I a label with a kind of reach,
turn Biggie smiles into a sea,
restart
but puffy refuses to compromise on a single point
he sits down with the labels top executives
and doesn't hold anything back.
Guys in the room with awe them suits, and you can decide what you gonna pay puff. Just
We get to a number that you think he's gonna make puff happy decreased,
on top of that and when you there are what we call
in a cherry on top
the bosses laughed, but puffy isn't. Joking keeps
away. I don't want to think about the much that
shouldn't be an issue goodbye
yeah, my comes back with an offer, but it's not too perfect liking. He keeps hunting and soon
He gets exactly what he wants. He finds it
deal for bad boy with legendary music industry, executive, Clive Davis and his company Aristotle,
Davis became an hour and be legend after signing Whitney Houston and like puffy. He thinks
our core hip hop will be huge and
willing to bet big on it here,
Puffy a one point: five million dollar bonus, but more importantly, puffy gets complete,
creative control, bad boy, Bobby's next day
is to ditches usual hip out here for a business there,
He calls in all hands meeting at Aristotle he's
is flag,
letting them know that bad boy has arrived
I'm bringing my hip hop to the streets year. One is gonna, be big.
Paved the way for the army acts, the area.
staff is impressed. It's cool
that puffy doesn't just want to sell more albums. He wants to completely
dominate the industry but Disney
You sure, from a major labels, secure biggie
can finally go all in on finishing his element, but at this point
in eighteen. Ninety, three bad boy and puffy are just well funded one of these,
the real momentum is in LOS Angeles, where death row rules hard core hip.
While Biggie still working on his album affair.
and gives him in advance copy of what death rose been up to its door.
Is unruly solo, album his
It puts on a sample of. Let me right
but upon the bundling, take back vague things. The other party track doesn't sacrifice the gritty swagger of gangster ramp. Let me run
I'd samples, seventies font, classics from parliament bill withers
and James Brown plus the traditional
beer ritual song swing down sweet chariot, its black
History and musical for reference
the past
paving the way for hip hop. Future biggie is blown away.
It's ninety ninety two years before Biggie hears. Let me right for the first time
a party raging doktor Drain mansion in the Hills West of LOS Angeles Dray has a few hundred friends and fans there. But the only thing on his mind is the one person whose missing
gray is a twenty six year old, who has
Everything to help
goods a giant house and now
he's the head of his own record label with death row he's fine.
the free to make exactly the music he wants to make
But what is missing is a talented wrapper.
drain always been serviceable on the mind, but he's not a virtuoso lyricist like ice cube, that's proving to be a bigger problem than he thought
drew wants his next project to be the greatest thing he's ever done, and he wants it to be a doctor, Dray solo, but to make it happen,
he's a robber who can match graze brilliance as producer
in purred that one voice. Yes, they will back his beat an elevator
doktor, Dray solo album into the stratosphere,
until he finds that voice death row
wasn't going to have a single product to sell then
he meets a laid back: twenty euro,
by the name. Snoop dog, eat dog
the first time Dray here, Snoop RAP
tells a friend snow,
as a fucking diamond in the rough when
I get snoop in the studio wrath
he knows that his solo, album is gonna shine like polish diamonds, together
create a fresh, sound.
fuses, raise edgy funky, but Chris producing, unlike the EAST coast, scratch yourself with
easy draw that makes the rough streets of L a sound dangerously appealing even to white teens,
drain already got a name for the album to a nickname for potent
we that snoop is particularly Fonda. Your call it the chronic.
The album spur single is nothing, but a g thing
No dog eat dog impact. The dragon, though I did. I make it so bad go left because it will be given a microphone. So much was dry and smooth
live and breathe the chronic
day and night. There supported by a cast upon
red death, row, collaborators who bear
the early enough to buy lunch.
grace process is like that of a film director. He's the creature,
the visionary overseeing a team of talented artists. His writers churn out lyrics Dray, wrapped some of them
Gives others to snoop the tracks evolve?
the work goes nonstop for more than eight months.
it's late. Ninety, ninety, two and weather
Up in the studio, perfecting lyrics and beats the outside world is shifting
jury acquits poor White, LOS Angeles policemen, the brutal
being Rodney King and this
treats of valet Explode
an uprising that last several days,
and George W Bush responds to restore order right now,
our three thousand national guardsman on duty in the city of LOS Angeles, another twenty two,
We stand ready to provide immediate support to supplement
the revolutionary fervors baked into the chronic songs.
we'll get avoid pulse with calls for the younger generations of black Americans taken
of their future. The song higher power is a blood so poem about the violence that swirls all around LOS Angeles. When the outcome is finished
drain knows he's created a masterpiece. Now
All they need is a distributed. The fact that their
looking for one at this moment of social upheaval. Could
the outgoing, too big of a risk, turns out there's an even bigger problem.
dre and death row. Cofounder should night visit label after label month after month.
And all the meetings go, the same way
sure again sit down across the desk of a label executive dray, his play on the chronic
Sometimes the exact recognises how good it is. Sometimes you does it
but the response never changes. The problem is dry
We ve been hearing from your own label ruthless records. They say, there's no way they're letting out of those contracts. It turns out.
eggs, alleged extortion, attempt on easy e, wasn't very effective
threatening easy with baseball bat to release dray from his deal. Wasn't exactly legal
lay the distributors. Lawyers see it dry
still contractually obligated to ruthless records and end w way. Besides with right
a king gangster rap just to sensitive right now. It's
just the political atmosphere ever
Strays younger brother was murdered in the streets of Compton and nineteen. Eighty nine
he's been drinking heavily and rack.
assault charges, including
accusations of beating women
accusations as dark is any of industrial waste, massage mystic, lyrics dreams.
Will eventually admit to one incident: it's all over the media while drunk it apart
in eighteen. Ninety one,
brutally assaulted tv hosting Wrapper De Barnes in twenty fifteen
You'll finally offer a formal apology,
Couple years later, you call it
major blemish on who I am as a man, but at night
ninety two dray feels like it
Practically read the executives minds when the meetings are over. The sub text is clear to the suits
he's, not a musical genius he's the
sick, Outlaw who recorded fuck the police
It feels like he's put so much time, money and sweat into making his masterpiece the chronic and just
when it seem like all the pieces had finally come together,
It's all on the verge of falling apart. You know some things I just liked it
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Each ninety. Ninety two lost
jealousy drain should give set up. Yet another meeting and inner scope records
hopes of finally landing distribution for death rose first, offering Dray solo album the chronic
demand their meeting is me
royalty. Jimmy Ivy I,
the UN is the producer turn Mega executive behind the biggest stars and music John Lennon Patty Psmith Bruce Springsteen
Stevie Nix you to Tom Parry. The list goes on and on dry
should be drooling at the chance to meet iodine, but all the rejection
is made. Him started out himself he's in it
alcohol fuelled downward spiral, but I
He doesn't care about all the contract, disputes and criminal charges weighing Dray down. That's
after the lawyers to work out. He just wants to hear the chronic
As I have been listening to the island, he tried
is to keep his head from body to raise being snoop dogs Robbins
ok turn it off
being stairs straight at the twenty seven year old dry.
Who produces album volume on the producer
and who engineered it me now. I mean only has one thought on his mind:
and it's not about the politics of gangster rap or about
raise legal troubles. I've been thinking. This kid is going to be a fucking superstar,
I have been able to do what no other executive was willing to. He said
down with ruthless records and by
you re out of his contract by giving them a cut of the album sales. Then he too
his attention to getting the chronic radio play
up until this point not having radio play has been a major barrier to hard core wraps commercial success, ivy,
encounters the same resistance when he brings it up with radio execs. He complains to a colleague,
the radio guys think is just a bunch of black eyes. Cursing you wanna, kill everybody I having
how's that once listeners get a taste the clamour for more
Oh, he decides to leap frog over radio station managers who might have censorship on their minds and goes
eight to their audience.
he buys an add on fifty radio stations across the country is no intro. Now
identifying information. The adage
a one minute, Potty MAO
free sample of the chronic the track Grady, which tells
violent vignette from the street
but with slang and vernacular. Most radio executives of the time would
today, this body does not come across at the thought of his wife. A tactic works.
Sinners jam. Radio stations phones with requests for the song, and now the entire entertainment industry is collude in
Mtv has drain snoop in heavy rotation
stone puts death row on the cover and the chronic
is on its way to selling six million copies most crucially the chronic.
Officially brings hard core ran into them:
stream. Now
it can be considered a peer of the other artists with him on the airwaves like Whitney Use,
guns in roses
when I have been looks Dray peace,
he's the next Mick Jagger a guy
scares. You provokes you,
draws you end with his music backing allay
snoop and re, or racking up time and death row studio and now it snoops turn for a hit solo album. They call it doggie style.
When it drops it shatters. Any remaining doubt of death rose dominance dog
style cells, more than eight hundred thousand copies in its first week at the time
its the fastest selling debut album and history, not just for our rapporteur export any artist
It even out cells, the chronic every
upper in America.
to recreate the successive snoop Andrei, its official, the west
Most is the center of the Hip hop universe and that
not sit well with puppy,
I'm wondering this is episode three of death row versus bad boy for business wars.
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Transcript generated on 2021-09-15.