Independent women are hard to find these days and Megan Thee Stallion is one of the few real indie hot girls left. Through all the adversity and red tape, the Houston rapstress has finally dropped off her sophomore album titled Suga and it packs all the buzz we have been anticipating.
Megan Thee Stallion wins rights to release music
48 hours ago, the very thought of Megan Thee Stallion getting the green light to release Suga was laughable.
The 25-year-old was recently caught up in a legal dispute with her record label, 1501 Certified Entertainment that threatened her freedom to release new music.
A detailed breakdown of the shoddy contract with 1501 Ent.
The story of Megan’s recording contract with the Houston-based label, owned by former Major League Baseball (MLB) star Carl Crawford, is a tricky one.
The 25-year-old signed with Crawford’s label (it operates as a production company) in February 2018, in a deal that would see Megan (real name Megan Pete) deliver five albums.
In the contract, Megan was given a $10 000 (around R156 000) advance and a royalty split between 1501 Ent and the rapper divided at 60/40 “with all recording costs seen as advances fully deductible ‘off the top’ prior to the distribution of royalties.”
The label’s affiliate publishing company also received an undivided 50% cut in the artist’s masters and was deemed the exclusive administrator of the rights to her music.
Crawford’s label also banked ‘net monies’ from Megan’s other streams of income.
This means that 1501 Ent. had the right to take 30% of the rapstress’ non-recording sources of income including:
- merchandising;
- sponsorships;
- endorsements; and
- every conceivable version of a live performance: concerts, clubs shows, hosting, and tours.
Moreover, with respect to merchandising and live performances, the contract gave 1501 Ent. exclusive rights to “use Megan’s “name (both legal and professional), approved likeness, approved picture and approved portrait in any manner whatsoever, and in perpetuity”.
A court ruling that will change the landscape of recording deals
At the time she inked this shoddy deal, Megan could give two flies about the scams that were hidden in this contract.
However, after she hauled her management over to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, the 25-year-old was struck with a hard pill to swallow: she was being robbed by her own family.
Getting Crawford and 1501 Ent. to accept renegotiated terms was never going to be easy and as expected, things went left for the star when she brought up these issues with her label.
A lawsuit that is still ongoing will birth a landmark ruling should things go Megan’s way and possibly redefine the way new artists do business with record labels.
For now, though, Megan’s early victory in getting permission from the courts to release her music is all the energy we needed. Suga is Megan’s second official album and the nine-track LP is jampacked with independent hot girl sh*t. So, let’s break it down for you.
Megan Thee Stallion Suga album: Download and tracklist info
What’s special about Suga is that it was not supposed to come out on Friday 6 March.
However, like a vicious dog breaking from its chain, Megan found a way to lock her grip on the game, as she has done so for the good part of the last 12 months.
The album is currently out and available to stream on every digital streaming platform.
The tracklist includes the hit-single B.I.T.C.H which was accompanied by the official music video, and appearances from Kehlani and Gunna.
Social media reacts to Megan’s new album:
Social media has been abuzz with the 25-year-old’s label situation. On Friday, though, it was all about Tina Snow (Megan’s alter ego) and Suga. These are some of the best reactions we picked:
