This is the breakdown on Roc-A-Fella Records. Founded in 1995 by the trio of Shawn “Jay Z” Carter (the talent), Damon “Dame” Dash (the promoter), and Kareem “Biggs” Burke (the silent partner), it became one of hip-hop’s most iconic labels.

The label took time to develop. Jay’s debut album, Reasonable Doubt, is now seen as a certified classic, but took time to get that recognition. It wasn’t until 1997 when Def Jam acquired a 50 percent stake in the label and The Roc went to that next level.

Roc-A-Fella then created Rocawear, Roc Films, and went on an unprecedented arena tour across the country — rare for rappers at the time. Other artists like Cam’Ron, Kanye West, Beanie Sigel, and Freeway joined the squad..

Despite the success, the founders grew apart, which led to its infamous split. To break it all down, I was joined by my friend and Jay Z biographer, Zack O’Malley Greenburg. Here’s what we covered:

1:25 Roc-A-Fella origin story
4:30 Reasonable Doubt
9:32 Friendly rivalry with Bad Boy Records
12:38 50-50 deal with Def Jam
15:05 How Roc-A-Fella’s deal compared to others
18:28 The Hard Knock Life Tour’s impact
27:23 Expanding the brand beyond Jay Z
29:51 Why Dame and Jay’s split was inevitable
39:00 Artists taking sides
43:19 Best Roc-a-Fella signing?
44:30 Best business move?
47:20 Darkhorse move?
52:14 Missed opportunity?
55:20 Will Dame and Jay ever make up?
1:00:23 Who won the most from Roc-a-Fella?

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