Apple & Jay-Z: the follow up

Now that you’ve heard the news, we thought it was time to break things down and add a little more of what we know. When we said Apple and Jay-Z were starting a record label, it doesn’t mean that Jay is running it. It just means they are doing it together. What we think will happen is Jay will be on as an "urban" artist, and Apple will go out and make similar deals with other rock and country artists. But Jay-Z has 2 albums left at Def Jam, right? Well, he’s going to develop and attract artists like he did at Def Jam as president. Jay has the power to get artists on the radio, get them media ops, etc. Having him on board for urban artists is the ultimate stamp of approval, and makes total sense. We see this working as a straight distribution model, with little, but some marketing support. I guess Ringles weren’t enough to satisfy the fans…

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Jonathan S. Geller