This one-click generation and their one-listen music culture keep disrupting everything.
Audio streaming, video streaming and caller ring back tones (CRBT) have disrupted the Alaba distribution model. Social media has disrupted mass media and questioned the relevance of gatekeepers and middlemen.
Rapper Olamide has already disrupted the system in his own way, his album-every-12-months campaign has compelled some of his colleagues to shorten the wait period between their projects, but could his 24-month YBNL record contracts have a similar impact on a business bereft of ideas on how to retain talent for the long term?
Today, YBNL announced the signing of Temmie Ovwasa as its “first lady”, while rapper Lil Kesh announced that he had parted ways amicably with the label a week before. Temmie has joined what seems, on the outside, to be an efficiently run business on the inside.
When Olamide says he signs 2 year contracts with his artists and builds them up to stand on their own afterwards, what I hear him say is that YBNL Records is a hybrid of an apprenticeship and a venture capitalist that sets clear, short-term exit points for its apprentices.
Saying Kesh or Viktoh or anyone else is going to leave me is kind of shitty. I want these guys to be great, not to be slaves or dependent..
All the guys I signed just (do) two years contract and when they are independent, my prayer is for them not to sign any deal with a record label (again)
However, with Lil Kesh transitioning from being signed to and being managed by Olamide, to only being managed, what I now hear him say is that the short term strategy feeds into a longer term plan.
Lil Kesh’s YBNL Discography
It’s a singles-driven market, everybody knows that but folks like YBNL Records and Foston Musik (Patoranking) seem to understand this more than most. Rather than treating singles like landmarks on the way to Destination Album, each single is treated like a destination in itself. Most of Lil Kesh’s singles were given the video treatment, “Shoki” remix breathed life into the original and “Cause Trouble” had a second version possibly to broaden its appeal.
As long as their singles continue to impact in the way these have, YBNL Records should be able to benefit immensely through digital distribution revenue streams that are constantly maturing. Take CRBTs for instance, analysts tell us that CRBTs and other non-SMS services will soon make telecom value-added service (VAS) providers $500 million richer every year , if it doesn’t already. But the Pareto principle tells us that 80% of that projected revenue will come from only 20% of the market. So VAS providers are relying more on Lil Kesh and Adekunle Gold to sell one million CRBTs of “Efejoku” and “Ready” than a million Young J’s to sell two hundred “Shake your ass”.
It is a great time to have a hit single.
Adekunle Gold’s YBNL Discography
Pareto also tells us that in order for YBNL Records to remain afloat, all it needs is for 20% of its roster to be able to carry the weight of its operations and not 100%. I know Wizkid didn’t particularly love this part of the EME business model, but I didn’t make the rules.
Olamide and Adekunle Gold now make up this 20%, and their continued success could reduce the pressure on Chinko Ekun, Xino or even Temmie to be immediate successes like Kesh was. So if their contracts come up for renewal before their accounts with the label turns green, YBNL is in a better position to either play the waiting game or cut its losses.
Speaking of losses, it’s not all green arrows for Olamide and crew, YBNL Records has relinquished a significant percentage of its equity in Lil Kesh, from creative control to publishing to his overall career direction and just how involved they’ll be in the young rapper’s YAGI movement remains to be seen. However, YBNL should still be involved enough to protect its initial investment in Kesh’s brand and 10, 20, 30 % of N100 is greater than 100% of N0,000,000.00, isn’t it?
Clever, but let’s not act like YBNL have invented the cure for AIDS either. They aren’t the first to give short term recording contracts and they aren’t the first to give 360 deals. To my mind, what they have added is a well-defined, staggered exit plan. Without one, labels will continue to struggle to fit the catfish that their artist grows into inside the goldfish bowl that they were first signed to.
The tendency is to renegotiate when this happens and renegotiate when it happens again. This worked very well with Kennis Music and 2Face Idibia but not as well with EME and Wizkid. Chocolate City however has been more creative by rewarding long term servants M.I. Abaga and Iceprince with executive positions – President and Vice President respectively.
I applaud @olamide_YBNL for being a visionary leader and wish @lilkeshofficial the best of luck on his new journey. #Growth
— Yung denzL (@MI_Abaga) April 26, 2016
But if there are question marks about Iceprince’s status on the label less than 1 year after his promotion, is this truly a winning long-term strategy? Plus, does Choc City have enough executive positions for Ruby Gyang, Victoria Kimani and Koker if they too become big, long-serving artists?
The YBNL model seems ideal for a country where contracts are generally not respected, new songs are forgotten once the dance move they ushered in fades away and publishing is only a figment of COSON’s imagination (for now). So as long as the majority of our music continues to remain disposable, we really do not need nondisposable contracts to protect it.