By Jay Anderson
The hip-hop industry has spawned its fair share of executives to whom the label “mogul” might be ascribed. Some of these moguls come from the world of business, others are artists who have paid their dues and risen up the ranks in a more unusual manner. Despite the amount of hard work involved in making it to the top, these hip-hop moguls often possess the same sense of entitlement and self-importance of your typical Fortune 500 CEO, which sometimes manifests itself in some questionable behavior. (Just in case anyone gets it twisted, yes, we know, successful white guys act equally crazy too. That’s true, but their stories just aren’t as entertaining.) And with that, we present to you, 7 Hip-Hop Moguls who have behaved very badly. Despite their fame and success, these millionaire black men still sometimes go off the deep end.
1. Kevin Liles Ditches Pregnant Wife in Labor For Obama Fundraiser
The birth of a child is typically one of the most memorable days in most people’s lives. It’s also one of the most nerve wracking, so what better a way to get your mind off the impending labor than to skip it altogether and go hobnob with President Obama for a few hours. The NY Post reports (via Mogulite) that Ex-Def Jam honcho Kevin Liles apparently did just that earlier this week, dashing back and forth between his in-labor wife and a $71K/per couple fundraiser for the president’s re-election campaign. Thankfully, common sense prevailed when the President himself told Liles, “You have served your country” — and to please leave and go back to your wife, already. Amen. Thankfully wife and child are okay. Liles’ reputation? Not so much.
2. Russell Simmons Unleashes the RUSH Card on Po’ Folks
In an effort to promote financial literacy, ex-Def Jam head Russell Simmons introduced the Rush Card a few years back. The prepaid Visa card was supposed to help those with iffy credit re-establish themselves, as Simmons’ comically awful basic cable commercials asserted. What those ads didn’t mention was the litany of fees levied when the card is used for basic activities like online bill paying and checking your balance via ATM machines. So egregious were these fees that they became a target of the 2010 financial regulation bill, aimed at capping the fees retailers pay banks to process debit-card payments. To Simmons’ credit, he successfully lobbied and won an exemption from said legislation, citing that his products were “essential for low-income people who can’t afford checking accounts or would be turned down for credit cards.” Uh, yeah, okay Russ. Some people disagree.
3. Birdman Gets Inexplicable Head Tattoos For Botched Business Deal
Cash Money Records co-founder Byran “Baby/Birdman” Williams made waves in 2010 with what appeared to be a serious power move. Williams formed an oil and gas exploration company, Bronald Oil and Gas, LLC. To commemorate the occasion, Birdman did what any logical businessman might do: getting a “pumpjack” tattoo on the side of his head. As details emerged, the venture seemed to be less than legitimate, leading Williams to infamously state “I got pumps and Shyte that are getting money monthly” in his defense on some song. We’re not sure what happened to Bronald Oil and Gas, LLC. The company’s website is not longer operative, but the Birdman did cover up the pumpjack tattoo with an equally inexplicable red star tattoo, and added 3-4 more elsewhere on his head, just for the sake of symmetry. But hey, he’s still making money off Lil’ Wayne, soooo…
4. Diddy Assaults Steve Stoute With a Champagne Bottle
Lots of terms have been used to describe Sean “Diddy” Combs over the years, but “gangsta” isn’t one of them. One notable exception would be the Bad Boy CEO’s puzzling 1999 beatdown of Nas’ manager Steve Stoute (see above together in happier days). Combs was apparently unhappy when Stoute reneged on a promise to edit out a questionable scene in Nas’ “Hate Me Now” video, and so took matters into his own hands, literally. Combs allegedly went to Stoute’s office and “administered a street-style beat-down,” during which he “punched Stoute repeatedly, and beat him with a telephone and champagne bottle.” You can’t make this up. Combs was hit with a felony assault charge, but beat the rap when Stoute agreed to settle out of court for a reported half-million-dollar payout . Take that, take that!
5. 50 Cent Hits Rick Ross Below the Belt & At His Heart
While most rap beefs are handled (and often resolved) on wax, G-Unit mogul 50 Cent chose to take the low road in his 2009 beef with Rick Ross. While the two did indeed exchange verses, more people will probably remember 50 for putting a sextape of one of Ross’ baby mothers (NSFW) on his website, and inviting another to New York where she was wined and dined in a series of increasingly deplorable viral videos. Perhaps the biggest gut punch came when 50 released a video of himself and Floyd Mayweather with Ross’ son at Mayweather’s Vegas mansion. 50’s out-of-bounds insults backfired however, when Ross refused to indulge him anymore and just stuck to making better music. While 50 struggles to remain relevant, Ross is arguably the biggest hitmaker in the game today. Bawse!
6. Suge Knight Dangles Vanilla Ice Over a Balcony
Depending on whom you ask, this is either an urban legend, or a testament to just how fearsome the Death Row Records CEO was in his heyday. Rumor has it that Ice was scared into signing over a portion of the copyright to this smash hit “Ice Ice Baby” when Knight literally shook him down by hanging him over a hotel balcony. While he admits to being intimidated into signing over his rights, Ice denies the “dangling” aspect of story to this day, but doesn’t deny that Knight used the profits from the song to start Death Row Records. Too cold.
7. Jay-Z Ruins Def Jam Records
In 2004, Jay-Z became President Carter when he took the reigns of iconic rap label Def Jam Records. His reign on the top was shortlived, however, as Carter stepped down three years later leaving a roster of disgruntled artists in his wake. While Jay can rightfully take the credit for launching the careers of R&B artists Ne-Yo and Rihanna, his impact on the hip-hop side of the ledger was less than impressive. Yes, he “discovered” Kayne West, Young Jeezy, and Rick Ross, but artists like Ghostface Killah, LL Cool J, Method Man, and Beanie Sigel would probably remember President Carter’s term a bit less favorably, asserting that Jigga was more concerned with advancing his own career. These stories are crazy, but I am sure there are more. Leave ’em below!
