Knowing that his contract will expire by the end of this year, the succesful American rapper announced on Monday, December 24, that he will step down from his position in the record company.
- Dec 26, 2007
AceShowbiz - Jay-Z will give up his position as the president of Def Jam Records when his contract ends this year. The renowned hip-hop artist made the announcement accompanied by Universal Music Group on Monday, December 24.
In the released statement, the 38-year-old rapper said, "It's time for me to take on new challenges. I am pleased to have had the opportunity to build upon the Def Jam legacy, helping to move the company into a new era of artistic success." Still, despite stepping down from the in Def Jam Records, he will still record his music through Roc-A-Fella, the label he co-founded in 1996 and owned by Universal Music Group.
Regarding the music mogul decision, the chairman and CEO of Island Def Jam Music Group, Antonio 'L.A.' Reid, released a statement saying, "Jay made it clear to us that he feels the time has come to take on different challenges in his life. While we regret his decision to move on, we certainly respect it ... While he will continue to be one of our signature artists, he will nonetheless be missed in this executive capacity."
In earlier interview with Bilboard, the 'Crazy In Love' hitmaker had dismissed the speculation that the decision of his future with Def Jam might related to money. He said, "It's really about trying to invest in the future, trying to invest in maybe coming up with a new model. Because going in hard making records with artists and throwing those records into a system that's flawed is not exciting for me."
The long-term boyfriend of Beyonce Knowles then added, "It's not the music; people ingest music the same way. It's just that the model of selling CDs has changed. So doing things the typical way is not in the best interests of anyone and not exciting for me. My whole thing is, how do we invest in the future? If everyone is committed to doing that, then I'm sure there's a deal to be made."
