0 0
Read Time:3 Minute, 30 Second

In 2008 I released my debut album through my record label, Ghetto Breed Entertainment. This was my labels first release. At the time even though I’m from New Jersey, USA, since I recorded the album in Canada with the help of Canadian producers, engineers, background singers and featured artists,  I made the decision to promote and distribute the album from Canada.

Ghetto Breed Ent. hired a Toronto based label known as Soul Kiss Entertainment to promote and distribute the album in Canada. Soul Kiss Entertainment produced documents showing us that Dep and Universal Music Canada distributes them in Canada. However, Soul Kiss Ent squandered the budget allocated to the project and proved wholly incapable of promoting or distributing anything outside of the internet. According to Brian LaRoche, CEO of Soul Kiss Ent., they were going to spread the album in stores like HMV and Music World.

Photo credit: GB Ent

National distribution meant the HMV store at Dundas St. and Young St. in Toronto because a third party connected Mr. LaRoche to that particular store. He turned out to be very untrustworthy when it came time to deliver on his contract. Brian’s national marketing, promotion, and distribution agreement mostly implicated Universal Music Canada. It named them as parties who benefit from sales of the album when they never distributed it as contracted. LaRoche met all queries with extravagant promises to further mislead Ghetto Breed Entertainment.

Mr. LaRoche was able to supply the album to some college radio stations across Canada and place an ad in Urbanology magazine at an exorbitant expense to Ghetto Breed ENT. The album went on to chart at #1 in some college radio stations in Canada lasting up to three weeks on the charts. But LaRoche attempted to sell the album secretly on CDBaby while misleading Ghetto Breed Entertainment that Universal Music Canada and dep were selling the record on behalf of Soulkiss Entertainment.

Photo credit: GB Ent

LaRoche did not pay any of the 70% royalty which the contract stipulated as Ghetto Breed Entertainments’ earning. He never presented Ghetto Breed Entertainment with sales invoices or shipping records and was complacently nonchalant to scrutiny. In fact, after Mr. LaRoche received the ten thousand dollars payment from Ghetto Breed Entertainment, he immediately went and changed his crappy cell phone for a brand new blackberry and took one of his girlfriends on vacation to a Caribbean Island.

These actions breached his contract with GBE. After his failed effort, we made the decision to sever the agreement. From then on Ghetto Breed Entertainment went into damage control. We spent additional funds counting in the thousands to promote the album. And we pumped more money into the distribution of the album which was now solely Ghetto Breed Entertainment’s problem. Up till this day, Soul Kiss Entertainment still owes Ghetto Breed Entertainment for money it squandered as well as royalties from sales of the album on the internet. After Ghetto Breed Entertainment terminated their arrangement, Soulkiss Entertainment continued to sell the collection.

Photo credit: Reed Photography

The album featured the singles City Boy, How Would I Know feat. Jay NY, Animal, and Strangers. It later went on to sell 4000 physical units independently after Soul Kiss ENT was canned. The album was well received throughout the tri-states of the United States, some parts of England and West Africa during the months that came after Freddy Will, CEO of Ghetto Breed Entertainment, gave Soulkiss Entertainment the boot.

The album was revamped, remastered and previous singles – City Boy, Animal, and Strangers were remixed. Several new tracks were added, including Look At Me Now, While I’m Still Young II, Ghetto Breed, and Franklin, Providence – feat. Carvin Winans. It was then repackaged and set for re-released as While I’m Still Young – The Talking Drums 1. 2v on August 11th, 2009 [Freddy Will’s birthday]. This new album saw Freddy Will’s first book, ‘My Book Of Chrymes’ being published under his given name, Wilfred Kanu Jr.

Photo credit: Reed Photography

Both the new album and the book are available for sale at several outlets including freddywill.com along with Amazon, Soul Asylum Poetry & Publishing and Freddy Will’s online bookstore. Links to these outlets are embedded in the artworks above and can be accessed by clicking on the desired artwork.*

www.freddywill.com

About Post Author

Wilfred Kanu Jr.

Wilfred Kanu Jr., known as Freddy Will, is a Sierra Leonean-born American author, music producer, and recording artist. He writes on history, philosophy, geopolitics, biography, poetry, public discourse, and fiction. He resides in Berlin, Germany, mixing hip-hop music with jazz, calypso, dancehall, classical, r&b, and afrobeat.
Happy
Happy
0 %
Sad
Sad
0 %
Excited
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
Angry
0 %
Surprise
Surprise
0 %

Average Rating

5 Star
0%
4 Star
0%
3 Star
0%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%

2 thoughts on “MY FIRST AND SECOND ALBUM RELEASE

  1. FYI: My spouse and i tried copying the actual BlogWealthMaker web link and Development Micro clogged this a new malevolent website consequently beware!

  2. “Documents For you to Go” is yet a great iphone app to get moving as well as modifying Place of work documents. Use it as well as “Dropbox”.

Leave a Reply