by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton
July 9, 2024
The producer said the billionaire helped him get out of a bad publishing deal he had been stuck in for nearly 20 years.
In a recent episode of “The Shop,” music producer Hit-Boy talked about how Jay-Z helped him get out of a publishing deal he had for nearly 20 years, calling the rapper’s involvement “life-changing.”
The 37-year-old hit boy had a publishing deal with Universal Music Group at the age of 19. Like many artists before him, the little money he was offered was a lot of money for a poor man with ambition.
“I'm actually still in my publishing situation,” he admitted. “…The way it was regulated was just outdated terminology in the contracts.”
But thanks to Jay-Z and Roc Nation CEO Desiree Perez, the deal is on the verge of collapse.
“You know, thanks to Desiree and Jay-Z and people like them, I'm really at the point where I am now and have an end date. But before that, I worked my whole career without having an actual end date – we really make our money by releasing, you know what I mean?”
Hit-Boy, meanwhile, is looking forward to more freedom in his business dealings.
“This is going to change my life, you know what I mean?” he said. “As a grown man, having any freedom at all, I couldn't do other business or get advances like my colleagues. I eat very well, but I know what it really should be.”
Despite the onerous contract, Hit-Boy's career has taken off. The exceptional producer has worked with everyone from Nas to Drake to Beyoncé and was nominated for a 2024 Grammy for Producer of the Year. And he's rapping on his own. It will be interesting to see what he does when he's officially free of that contract.
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