Written by Jay Billion
Well honestly, the real question is who is the next king of which Roc? That is now that we have the revival of Roc-a-fella records making an appearance on July 13th with the debut of rapper Curren$y, and then we have RocNation which is ready to debut the highly anticipated rapper J. Cole. Both labels have big shoes to fill considering the original Roc-a-fella changed what is to be a rapper. The roster included Kanye West, Jay-Z, Dip-Set, Cam’ron, Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Just Blaze and more on the label, who all made Hip Hop history. From music to fashion, to liquor and movies, the diamond sign was thrown up all around the world.
Dame Dash and Jay-Z have had an interesting relationship throughout the years. Jay first met Dame in the early nineties while Dame was managing a group called Original Flavor. The two became friends and then Dame became Jay’s manager. After being unsuccessful at landing a major label deal, the two along with silent partner Kareem Burke created the legendary Roc-a-fella records. Long story short, together they built an empire that generated hundreds of millions of dollars and a plethora of great entertainment. They were able to continue their reign for 8 years, before a fallout created tensions that have yet to be resolved.
Fast forward 7 years and the two moguls have no relationship and just a lot of bad blood. Most of the artists from the original Roc, with exception of Kanye and Memphis Bleek have exited the label noticeably disgruntled. When Jay-Z left Roc-a-fella’s parent label Def Jam, he left the door open for Dame Dash to take back the reigns as the president of the label. Jay-Z then developed a 360 deal with Live Nation, creating the all new RocNation.
Both labels have highly anticipated artists ready to hit the ground running. The question is who, if either of these artists (Curren$y, J. Cole) that are leading the next generation of the Roc, will have the impact of the groups who originally built the first empire. I am a fan of both artists. RocNation’s Cole who is a Fayetteville NC native has a similar flow of a young Jay-Z or Nas. Roc-a-fella’s Currency has a smooth laid back flow, indicative of his New Orleans background. Truthfully I would love to see these artists work together. It may the closest thing we will ever see to an actual Roc-a-fella reunion.
Dash spoke in an interview with MTV about how the revival of Roc-a-fella came about – “I think we just having fun, really,” said Dash, sitting in his office at DD172 next to Curren$y. “[Curren$y] inspired me to dust off the chains. We brought
