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Revision as of 04:21, 2 January 2007
Master P |
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Percy Robert Miller (born April 29, 1967 in Richmond, California), better known as Master P, is an entrepreneur, businessman, marketing expert, and rap artist. He is the founder and CEO of No Limit Enterprises, an entertainment and financial conglomerate. At one time Master P was one of the wealthiest men under the age of 40 in North America, with an estimated net worth of $400 million.
Biography
Master P was born Percy Miller in Richmond, California, on April 29, 1967. Master P lived in New Orleans' Calliope Projects in the city's 3rd Ward when he was a child. Miller shuttled back and forth between New Orleans (where he attended high school and lived with his mother) and Richmond, California (where he spent summers with his father). While Miller was tempted by the lure of the street hustling that was a part of life in inner-city New Orleans, he developed an entrepreneurial streak early on, as well as a passion for sports. Miller used his skills as a basketball player to earn a college scholarship to the University of Houston, where he studied business; in time, Miller left Houston and moved back to California, where he continued his studies at Merritt Junior College in Oakland.
In the late 1980s, Miller inherited $15,000 from his grandfather, and used the money to start a record store in Oakland, No Limit Records. Running the store allowed Miller to closely monitor what was selling in the growing hip-hop market, and in 1991 he cut his first album, Get Away Clean, under the name Master P for the tiny In A Minute label. While the first two Master P albums sold negligibly at first, he was quickly learning the rudiments of both the record business and the hardcore rap market, and in 1994, Miller observed that while major labels were shunning hard-edged "gangsta rap" in a desire to avoid controversy, there was still a large and loyal market for street-level hip hop. That year, Master P dropped his third album, the more accomplished 'The Ghetto's Tryin' to Kill Me!', on his own No Limit Records label.
Initially selling the album out of the trunk of his car, Master P avoided mainstream media outlets and instead promoted the album to independent record stores through word of mouth; The Ghetto's Tryin' to Kill Me! and its follow-up EP, 99 Ways to Die, together sold an impressive 250,000 copies without the benefit of national distribution. No Limit Records then signed a distribution deal with Priority Records, and in 1996, Master P's The Ice Cream Man debuted at number three on Billboard's R&B charts, despite receiving practically no mainstream radio or video play. Master P quickly expanded his label, first by releasing the top-selling hip-hop compilation West Coast Bad Boyz, and then by signing his brothers to No Limit, who recorded rough-and-tumble gangsta rap not unlike Master P's, under the names C-Murder and Silkk the Shocker. The three Millers also recorded together under the blanket name TRU, while rappers Mystikal and Mia-X also recorded platinum-plus releases for No Limit.
Businessman and Entrepreneur
By 1999m Master P built an empire worth $400 million in four years according to Fortune magazine, a feat which has never matched in hip hop history.
The Deal
Before Master P, Hip Hop artists had historically focused more on the artistic and glamorous side of Hip Hop while paying very little attention to the business and financial aspects. All that changed in 1996 when Master P signed a ground breaking music distribution deal with Priority Records, one where No Limit Records would retain 100% ownership of their Master Recordings and keep 85% of their record's sales while giving Priority 15% in return for pressing and distribution. Master P went on to make hundreds of millions of dollars from this deal.
Rapper as Entrepreneur
Master P was one of the first rappers to build a financial empire by investing in a wide range of business ventures. Master P invested the millions of dollars he made from No Limit Records into real estate, films, toys, a phone sex company, clothing, telecommunications, book & magazine publishing, car rims, fast food franchises, gas stations, sports management and many other ventures. No Limit Enterprises quickly became a financial powerhouse. According to Black Enterprise magazine No Limit Enterprises grossed $110 million in revenue in 1998 alone. This level of success inspired other Hip Hop artists to branch out into other business ventures and investments.
Master of Marketing
Additionally, Master P invented many innovative marketing techniques. According to Wendy Day, CEO of the Rap Coalition, "Master P had a whole marketing movement. He was the first person to market the way a corporate entity like IBM would market to their clientele." Whereas the traditional model for marketing records was to spend millions of dollars on expensive videos and air play, Master P didn't have such a luxury. As an independent artist he had to find a way to build platinum record selling demand on a limited budget. He began selling tapes out the trunk of his car in every city and town in America where there was potential demand for his music. He gave out free samples to people with expensive cars and had them playing his music all throughout their neighborhoods. This street level guerrilla marketing technique set the early foundation to build a larger fanbase for the future. After signing his historic deal with Priority P began a high volume business model cranking out as many records as frequently as possible. He branded all his albums, such that the No Limit brand became more important than the actual artist's name. Master P cross-promoted all his artists and albums inside the album covers. He also used Pen & Pixel and mafia inspired themes to make his albums stand out. He offered 20 songs per album where as most albums offered 15 or less. He turned his artists into marvel comic book like characters rather than just rappers. He made sure his artists were #1 on soundscan every time they dropped an album to build the perception of popularity. He used cheap inexpensive videos to promote his artists and cross promoted and tied them altogether. Brand image became more important than just music quality. Master P's record labels have sold 75 million records as a result of his innovative marketing strategies.
Direct to Video Explosion
Master P pioneered the direct-to-video movement in Hip Hop when he released 'Im Bout It'. The movie went on to sell 500,000 copies and made millions in sales on a shoestring budget. As a result, it is now commonplace to see Hip Hop related direct-to-video movies in video stores today.
Southern Hip Hop Explosion
More than any other southern rapper, Master P has been directly responsible for southern hip hop's popularity in the mainstream market. Besides artists like Scarface and Outkast, southern hip hop was not accepted in music mainstream or by the music industry before Master P arrived on the scene. East coast and west coast styles of music dominated the hip hop charts. In 1996, Master P and No Limit changed that by virtue of their new style of music, as well as utilizing several innovative marketing strategies. Master P and his No Limit Records led the music industry to accept southern rap artists as a viable avenue for growth.
Independent Hustle
Master P's deal with Priority changed the way artists looked at record deals. This deal, along with No Limit's level of commercial success, opened the eyes of many in the Hip Hop community. For the first time, artists could retain ownership of their own masters as well as keeping a larger percentage of the profits. The number of independent labels and label imprints after Master P's 85% Priority deal in 1996 has shot up exponentially. It is commonplace now for artists to have their own label or imprint.
The Entertainer and Rapper
Rapper
Master P began his rap career in 1991 when he released 'Get Away Clean' on In-A-Minute records. Master P later formed hard-core rap group Tru with his two brothers Silkk Tha Shocker and C-Murder. Master P left In-A-Minute records shortly after releasing his debut album and formed his own label No Limit Records. Master P and No Limit Records went on to sell hundreds of thousands of records on the underground scene right up to the moment he signed his historic distribution deal with Priority Records. With Master P as its premier artist, No Limit Records went on to release many albums from artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mystikal, Mia X, Fiend, Mean Green, TRU, Chopper, Magic, Kane and Able, Short Circuit, Big Ed, Lil Soldiers, Ghetto Commission, Ms. Peaches, Mercedes, Soulja Slim, Black Soprano, Currency,Italy, Moby Dick, King George, Skull Duggery, Sons of Funk, and Miller's siblings Silkk Tha Shocker and C-Murder and Lil Romeo and Lil V. With his in house production team, Beats By The Pound, Master P managed to blend the sounds of West Coast and Down South producers into a new unique brand of southern rap. This new sound of Gangsta Rap came at a time when many thought the genre was dead. In 2004, Master P's No Limit Records filed for bankruptcy. He started a new label The New No Limit records, but released far fewer records than his previous label. In 2005, Master P started a new label called Guttar Music Entertainment.
Actor
Master P is also an actor and film producer, appearing in both movies and television. He has made guest appearances on "CSI: NY", "Oz", "Moesha",'Dancing with the Stars, and his son's series Romeo! which aired on Nickelodeon. His film appearances include the comedy "Uncle P," "Lockdown (film)", "I Got The Hook Up", "Foolish", "Hot Boyz", "Bout It da Movie", "MP Da Last Don", "Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000 film)", "Takedown", "Scary Movie 3", "Decisions", "Hollywood Homicide" and "Still Bout It".
Accomplishments
- First rapper to be worth over $100 million
- First rapper to be worth over $300 million
- First rapper to own 100% of his Masters
- First and only rapper/CEO to receive 85% of profits in a major deal
- First rapper to make Fortune magazine's 40 richest Americans under 40 in 1999
- Has sold 75 million records as an independent ceo
- Made Forbes list of highest paid entertainers in 1998
- First rapper to own and control a clothing company
- Started the direct to video trend in Hip Hop
- In the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's richest entertainer
- Brought commercial credibility to Southern Hip Hop
- Brought marketing innovations to Hip Hop
- Inspired a new generation of rappers to become independent
- BlackEnterprise B.E 100 list
- The Source magazine's Power 30 list at #1 two years in a row
- Vibe magazine's 10 most influential artists of the decade
Discography
Solo Albums
| Album cover | Album information |
|---|---|
Get Away Clean
| |
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Mama's Bad Boy
|
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The Ghettos Tryin to Kill Me!
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99 Ways to Die
| |
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Ice Cream Man
|
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Ghetto D
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MP Da Last Don
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Only God Can Judge Me
| |
Ghetto Postage
| |
Game Face
| |
Good Side, Bad Side
| |
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Ghetto Bill
|
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America's Most Luved Bad Guy
|
Hit singles
- 1996 "Mr. Ice Cream Man"
- 1996 "Bout It" #8 US
- 1997 "Bout It II" #7 US
- 1997 "I Miss My Homies" #11 US
- 1997 "Burbons and Lacs" #3 US
- 1998 "Goodbye to My Homies" #10 US
- 1998 "I Got the Hook Up" #16 US
- 1998 "Make Em Say Uhh" #6 US
- 1998 "Thinkin' About You" US
- 2000 "Step to this" #15 US
- 2000 "Souljas" #25 US
- 2000 "Golds in their Mouths"
- 2003 "OOOWWWEEE" #18 US
- 2003 "Real Love" #20 US
- 2003 "Rock It" #12 US
- 2004 "Act a Fool" #10 US
- 2004 "Them Jeans" #6 US
- 2004 "Why they wanna wish death" #20 US
- 2005 "I need Dubs"
- 2005 "Bounce Back"
- 2005 "Cookie Money"
- 2006 "Cookie Money Remix"
- 2006 "Music for the Block"
- 2006 "Twenty Inch Remix"
- 2006 "The Definiton of "P"" (featuring P. Diddy & Styles P.)
- 2006 "TBA" (featuring DMX)
See Also
External links
- 1967 births
- African-American actors
- African American basketball players
- American basketball players
- American music industry executives
- American rappers
- Christian rappers
- American record producers
- Houston Cougars men's basketball players
- Living people
- People from New Orleans
- People from Richmond, California
- Scary Movie actors
- Rhythmic Top 40 acts
- Toronto Raptors
- Charlotte Hornets
- African American professional wrestlers
- World Championship Wrestling alumni
- US Dancing with the Stars participants
- Koch Records artists