What will be Aftermath's legacy?

[CharlieBrown]

Up In Smoke & Anger Management tours, they appeared quite big in terms of hip hop shows/sound quality. I've only been to ones with turntables, mics, DJs, MCs & shitty sound systems.

If in the future their unreleased catalogue gets released, that could be a good legacy. Especially if Dre keeps 'updating' it when new equipment/techniques become available to him or whoever he leaves the masters to. Hopefully more than just rich people would be able to listen to it.

[Lord Funk]

Anyone who thinks Aftermath will leave a lasting legacy is confusing the label with the individuals Dre, Eminem and 50.

Dr Dre, without question, will go down in the hip-hop history books. It's a pretty sure thing that Eminem and 50 will too. '2001', 'The Marshall Mathers LP' and 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'' will all probably stand the test of time.

But when - if - anyone thinks about the label behind those releases, they'll think of Interscope, not Aftermath.

What made labels such as Death Row, Bad Boy and No Limit were that they were movements as much as companies. When you think of any one of those names, for better or worse, you think about more than the music. Think Death Row, think Suge Knight and the logo swinging on chains; think Bad Boy, think a new era in commercial hip-pop and Puffy's shift into mass market culture; think No Limit, think of Master P's relentless work ethic and 'conveyor belt' approach to releasing music. You can argue that none of those labels put out a record that impacted hip-hop as much as '2001', but from a corporate perspective they changed and broke the rules about how a hip-hop record company functions.

What does Aftermath have in that respect? Little. It's essentially a vanity label for Dre that he's now largely sold back to Interscope from what I understand. It's not a movement, it's not a name that gets regularly shouted out by artists on its records. It's a logo. Three great albums don't make a great label - they just make three great albums.

That's not neccessarily a bad thing. Dre doesn't need Aftermath to have as a legacy. He's Dr Dre.

[djkoast]

As far as mainstream goes it has to be up there in terms of impact.  I wouldn't put it higher then vintage Def Jam or Deathrow but it's up there that is for sure.

Think about some of the biggest mainstream albums since 1999....Chronic 2001, Slim Shady LP/MMLP, GRODT.

[No Compute]

Anyone who thinks Aftermath will leave a lasting legacy is confusing the label with the individuals Dre, Eminem and 50.

Dr Dre, without question, will go down in the hip-hop history books. It's a pretty sure thing that Eminem and 50 will too. '2001', 'The Marshall Mathers LP' and 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'' will all probably stand the test of time.

But when - if - anyone thinks about the label behind those releases, they'll think of Interscope, not Aftermath.

What made labels such as Death Row, Bad Boy and No Limit were that they were movements as much as companies. When you think of any one of those names, for better or worse, you think about more than the music. Think Death Row, think Suge Knight and the logo swinging on chains; think Bad Boy, think a new era in commercial hip-pop and Puffy's shift into mass market culture; think No Limit, think of Master P's relentless work ethic and 'conveyor belt' approach to releasing music. You can argue that none of those labels put out a record that impacted hip-hop as much as '2001', but from a corporate perspective they changed and broke the rules about how a hip-hop record company functions.

What does Aftermath have in that respect? Little. It's essentially a vanity label for Dre that he's now largely sold back to Interscope from what I understand. It's not a movement, it's not a name that gets regularly shouted out by artists on its records. It's a logo. Three great albums don't make a great label - they just make three great albums.

That's not neccessarily a bad thing. Dre doesn't need Aftermath to have as a legacy. He's Dr Dre.

great post, +1

[UCC]

Damn, has everyone gone insane? Aftermath is probably in the top 3 greatest HipHop labels ever, and they're easily one of the biggest selling, Eminem, Dre, 50 Cent - those are three of the biggest HipHop artists ever! Who sold big AND are critically acclaimed

Aftermath has sold more records than Death Row by a large margin - 50 sold about 25 million, Eminem about 45 million, Dre sold 6 million of 2001... compared with Death Row selling 3 million of the Chronic, Doggystyle 4 million, and 2Pac about 15 million
Death Row had more 'classic' stuff, though only thanks to Dre anyway... and Eminem's first two records, 2001, and 50's first record are all highly acclaimed

Bad Boy sold a lot, but is a 99% a joke in terms of credibility (apart from Biggie), same with No Limit, they don't have any really classic stuff

The only label that probably beats both Aftermath and Death Row is Def Jam just because they have so many classic records and had such a huge influence in getting HipHop onto the level it is now


I'm probably forgetting some labels off the top of my head, but Aftermath is definitely up there

nah i'm just being totally honest.

if you compare aftermath ( as a business ) with Ruthless Records (before it got out of hand) then i'd say aftermath is a joke.


there was some good music being made, but i wouldn't really credit the label for that.

Though I'd have thought as a business, that's where they were really, really good - they sold as much or more than anyone else, and from fewer albums!

Anyone who thinks Aftermath will leave a lasting legacy is confusing the label with the individuals Dre, Eminem and 50.

I actually agree with a lot of what you said in your post, but I'm gonna play devil's advocate for a second and argue against you

What made labels such as Death Row, Bad Boy and No Limit were that they were movements as much as companies. When you think of any one of those names, for better or worse, you think about more than the music. Think Death Row, think Suge Knight and the logo swinging on chains; think Bad Boy, think a new era in commercial hip-pop and Puffy's shift into mass market culture; think No Limit, think of Master P's relentless work ethic and 'conveyor belt' approach to releasing music.

This is true, they were more movements and Death Row gets points because it was the first to do that kind of crime family thing on a big level. Although, Death Row's legacy is that it was a great label that crumbled very quickly and became a joke for several years, with the only famous guy on the label being a guy who doesn't make music (Suge), Death Row's legacy is leaving other labels a lesson in what not to do... it's legacy is "how to really fuck up a great thing by letting someone non-musical be in charge of musical decisions"

Bad Boy's legacy is Biggie Smalls, and a load of terrible Puffy produced records, it's legacy is "how to get a jump start as a label by having one of the best MCs ever, and then putting out only flash-in-the pan hip-pop records for the remainder as your time as a label

No Limit's legacy is "hey, 2Pac died and there's no one out there to fill the 'thug' persona role he created, let's cash in now! And then churn out a million mediocre or awful records". The problem with both Bad Boy and No Limit is they're both seen as hack labels run by people who are good businessmen and know what sells, but who aren't musical geniuses

What does Aftermath have in that respect? Little. It's essentially a vanity label for Dre

Not really, it was a new model based on the mistakes of Death Row... it let Dre be in charge of the music and Jimmy be in charge of the business. Instead of Dre being pushed into the role of house producer while Suge makes deals to do soundtracks with a bunch of filler and puts tracks from one project onto another project and keeps signing more and more people, it let Dre choose who came to the label, and it let him be in control of the musical side of the projects

it's not a name that gets regularly shouted out by artists on its records.

It's shouted out a lot on Dre's record, and 50 and Eminem often shout out Aftermath and Shady

Aftermath's legacy is showing how if you take one musical genius, give him most of the control over the actual music and sign people he thinks are talented, then you will all make a lot of money and become the biggest artists in the world

[Dre-Day]

Damn, has everyone gone insane? Aftermath is probably in the top 3 greatest HipHop labels ever, and they're easily one of the biggest selling, Eminem, Dre, 50 Cent - those are three of the biggest HipHop artists ever! Who sold big AND are critically acclaimed

Aftermath has sold more records than Death Row by a large margin - 50 sold about 25 million, Eminem about 45 million, Dre sold 6 million of 2001... compared with Death Row selling 3 million of the Chronic, Doggystyle 4 million, and 2Pac about 15 million
Death Row had more 'classic' stuff, though only thanks to Dre anyway... and Eminem's first two records, 2001, and 50's first record are all highly acclaimed

Bad Boy sold a lot, but is a 99% a joke in terms of credibility (apart from Biggie), same with No Limit, they don't have any really classic stuff

The only label that probably beats both Aftermath and Death Row is Def Jam just because they have so many classic records and had such a huge influence in getting HipHop onto the level it is now


I'm probably forgetting some labels off the top of my head, but Aftermath is definitely up there

nah i'm just being totally honest.

if you compare aftermath ( as a business ) with Ruthless Records (before it got out of hand) then i'd say aftermath is a joke.


there was some good music being made, but i wouldn't really credit the label for that.

Though I'd have thought as a business, that's where they were really, really good - they sold as much or more than anyone else, and from fewer albums!

i'd give interscope credit for that, not Aftermath.

What does Aftermath have in that respect? Little. It's essentially a vanity label for Dre

Not really, it was a new model based on the mistakes of Death Row... it let Dre be in charge of the music and Jimmy be in charge of the business. Instead of Dre being pushed into the role of house producer while Suge makes deals to do soundtracks with a bunch of filler and puts tracks from one project onto another project and keeps signing more and more people, it let Dre choose who came to the label, and it let him be in control of the musical side of the projects

on that part Dre doesn't have full control.

[Matty]

aftermath will be remembered for releasing a few really dope albums and not very much else. those who follow the situation closely will know that aftermath is more of an exclusive club where artists sit on the shelf and get all excited about working with dr. dre then never drop an album and leave the label (after several years). this aint neccesarily dre's fault directly but its a fact that the label has never put out any decent quantity of albums in any one prolonged spell.

so releasing records to the public isn't much of a concern but if a project is somehow worked on endlessly enough and is actually gonna get released, its only gonna get butchered by jimmy anyway (ie busta). this wasn't always the case but these days its dried up massively. for that reason it seems like a bit of a pointless exercise, especially as new artists keep getting brought in. theres no doubt that lot of good music is made, theres just a slim chance of us ever hearing much of it...

[Black Excellence]

it doesn't have that raw uncut talent that death row(92-96)had. if he had kept king t,and signed niggas like knoc turn al, timebomb, xzibit,jayo felony,snoop dogg,tha dogg pound and kept rbx he woulda exceeded death row and would have a legacy. he just need to get rid of the clutter over there and start fresh(artist wise). i'm waiting to see what he's gonna do wit the d.o.c.'s upcoming album.

[Jimmy H.]

I think beyond all the BS, Aftermath will be in the history books. Dre isn't a businessman and he's fairly quiet with his. For all the noise they make and major deals they broker, how many Eminem's and 50 Cent's have Jay-Z and Diddy brought to the table in the last 8 years? For a guy as big as Dre is to not be the biggest artist on his label says something. He's much more of an artist than Puffy but he doesn't try to play the spotlight. Eminem and 50 Cent are bigger stars than Dre. I'll give Jay-Z credit for Kanye but Jay was still the bigger star. Aftermath has 4 Eminem albums that pushed millions, 50's debut was the biggest one in rap ever, and Game did major numbers on his. If Interscope could have got that kind of buzz without Aftermath, they would have. There's a reason Jimmy paid Dre a fortune for those shares. People might throw out all these artists who've been shelved and dropped as some kind of counterpoint but every label does it and none of them can match the results with what's been put out. Strictly on artist-based success, you take Diddy, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, and these other artist/producers running labels and whether it's joint venture with another label or on their own, how many of them have used their own name value to push a star up higher than they were? Not many examples I can think of.

[Jimmy H.]

it doesn't have that raw uncut talent that death row(92-96)had. if he had kept king t,and signed niggas like knoc turn al, timebomb, xzibit,jayo felony,snoop dogg,tha dogg pound and kept rbx he woulda exceeded death row and would have a legacy. he just need to get rid of the clutter over there and start fresh(artist wise). i'm waiting to see what he's gonna do wit the d.o.c.'s upcoming album.

Disagree. West Coast fans would have loved that roster no doubt but the critics would have dismissed it after awhile as being the same shit he did at Death Row. He had a heavy hand in Xzibit's career as it was for a couple years. Of those rappers you named, none of them would have been Eminem or 50 Cent as far as sales go. People can argue that sales aren't everything but Eminem and 50 are a huge part of the reason that people are still checking for Dre outside of the L.A. area.

[corner_boy]

Anyone who thinks Aftermath will leave a lasting legacy is confusing the label with the individuals Dre, Eminem and 50.

Dr Dre, without question, will go down in the hip-hop history books. It's a pretty sure thing that Eminem and 50 will too. '2001', 'The Marshall Mathers LP' and 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'' will all probably stand the test of time.

But when - if - anyone thinks about the label behind those releases, they'll think of Interscope, not Aftermath.

What made labels such as Death Row, Bad Boy and No Limit were that they were movements as much as companies. When you think of any one of those names, for better or worse, you think about more than the music. Think Death Row, think Suge Knight and the logo swinging on chains; think Bad Boy, think a new era in commercial hip-pop and Puffy's shift into mass market culture; think No Limit, think of Master P's relentless work ethic and 'conveyor belt' approach to releasing music. You can argue that none of those labels put out a record that impacted hip-hop as much as '2001', but from a corporate perspective they changed and broke the rules about how a hip-hop record company functions.

What does Aftermath have in that respect? Little. It's essentially a vanity label for Dre that he's now largely sold back to Interscope from what I understand. It's not a movement, it's not a name that gets regularly shouted out by artists on its records. It's a logo. Three great albums don't make a great label - they just make three great albums.

That's not neccessarily a bad thing. Dre doesn't need Aftermath to have as a legacy. He's Dr Dre.

great post, +1

Preach!

i really couldnt have said it better myself. 

[MisterX]

Aftermath will be remembered as one of the greatest hip-hop labels of all time.

[lost_assassin]

em -dre-fifty all at their best, but im afraid that era was quickly vanished. apperantly now ''lil wayne is the best rapper alive''

[Lazar]

Will be remembered as Dre biggest mistake, if nothing good happens in the next couple years. Damn, they really fell of hard after "2001"

[me1]

I'm a little surprised at how little love the label is getting in this thread.

Take a look at this link:

http://www.aftermathmusic.com/vs2008/_store/index.html

Those are the releases associated with Aftermath.  That list doesn't include Devil's Night (indisputably classic in my opinion), Obie's two releases (also classics in my opinion), G-Unit's Beg For Mercy and T.O.S. (best group efforts in the industry, I'd have to say, in many many years).  Also, Bank's first and second LPs (has there been a better mainstream single that's got a heater for a beat and is more lyrical than I'm So Fly), Buck's first and second LPs....and say what you want about Yayo, there are a couple bangers on his LP (I Know You Don't Love Me, So Seductive, Live By The Gun).  Also, Game might never have seen mainstream release and the recording budget he got without Aftermath (and let's be real, 50 providing the song structure he needed to blow).  So without the label we might never have seen Doctor's Advocate and now LAX.

Also, the label embraced the mixtape game via 50 who singlehandedly resurrected it.  Does everyone remember Invasion 1,2 and 3 that Green Lantern dropped?  You had Aftermath artists (50 and Eminem, primarily, D12 to a lesser degree) revolutionizing the quality of mixtape music available for the public ear for free.  And they brought it to their enemies on those mixtapes...even going as far as LETTING YOU HEAR THE OPPOSITION'S DISSES ON THEIR OWN MIXTAPE so you could compare the two.  That's sick. 

There hasn't been a more successful run by any rap label, bar none.  That's just my 2 Cents. 
That's one hell of a 9 yr run.  I bump all that sh*t.