Bad Boy Records (or Bad Boy Entertainment) is an American record label founded in 1993 by rapper
Sean "Puffy" Combs.
It operates as an imprint of
Epic Records, a division of
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...
. It has been home to many artists, including
Craig Mack,
The Notorious B.I.G.,
Faith Evans
Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida, and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al ...
,
112,
Total
Total may refer to:
Mathematics
* Total, the summation of a set of numbers
* Total order, a partial order without incomparable pairs
* Total relation, which may also mean
** connected relation (a binary relation in which any two elements are comp ...
,
The LOX,
Ma$e,
Shyne and
Carl Thomas.
History
Beginnings
After his climb from a non-paid
internship
An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and gover ...
to becoming an
A&R executive at
Uptown
Uptown may refer to:
Neighborhoods or regions in several cities
United States
* Uptown, entertainment district east of Downtown and Midtown Albuquerque, New Mexico
* Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina
* Uptown, area surrounding the University of C ...
, Sean "Puffy" Combs was fired in 1993 by
Andre Harrell
Andre O’Neal Harrell (September 26, 1960 – May 7, 2020) was an American music executive and multimedia producer. In 1986, recently a rapper, he formed Uptown Records, soon a leader in R&B, rap, and their fusion, " hip hop soul" and " ne ...
and founded his own label, Bad Boy Records, later that year.
The label's first release was "
Flava in Ya Ear
"Flava in Ya Ear" is the debut single by American rapper Craig Mack, from his album '' Project Funk da World''. The original club mix single was released on 12" vinyl in July 1994 on the Bad Boy Entertainment record label, packaged with a series ...
" by
Craig Mack, followed quickly by Mack's debut album, ''
Project Funk da World'' in 1994. On the heels of these releases came "Juicy" and ''
Ready to Die'', the lead single and debut album from
The Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Biggie Smalls), released the same year. While Mack's album went Gold, ''Ready to Die'' achieved multi-platinum success. Dominating the charts in 1995, B.I.G. became one of the genre's biggest names of the day and Bad Boy's premier star. Also in 1995, the label continued its success with platinum releases by
Total
Total may refer to:
Mathematics
* Total, the summation of a set of numbers
* Total order, a partial order without incomparable pairs
* Total relation, which may also mean
** connected relation (a binary relation in which any two elements are comp ...
and
Faith Evans
Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida, and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al ...
. Bad Boy, meanwhile, staffed a bevy of in-house writer/producers, including:
Easy Mo Bee,
Chucky Thompson and
D Dot—all of whom were instrumental in producing many of Bad Boy's most noted releases during this time.
Feud with Death Row Records
The rapid success of The Notorious B.I.G., and Bad Boy as a company, raised some tensions, especially with the
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
-based
Death Row Records
Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. Dre ...
. For 3 years leading up to 1995,
West Coast hip hop
West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originated in the West Coast region of the United States. West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the e ...
, dominated by labels such as Death Row, had been preeminent in mainstream Rap.
Suge Knight
Marion Hugh "Suge" Knight Jr. (; born April 19, 1965) is a American former music executive, convicted felon, and the co-founder and former CEO of Death Row Records. Knight is considered a central figure in gangsta rap's commercial success i ...
, CEO of Death Row, held Puff Daddy responsible for the shooting death of his friend Jake Robles, allegedly at the hands of Sean Combs' bodyguard. Tensions were heightened when Death Row signed
2Pac
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
, who alleged that Bad Boy, notably The Notorious B.I.G. and Puff Daddy, had been complicit in the November 1994 shooting of Tupac in the lobby of Quad Studios in
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
.
After the June 1996 release of 2Pac's "
Hit 'Em Up", smearing Bad Boy, tensions escalated. 2Pac was shot in
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...
on September 7, 1996, and died September 13. Bad Boy issued a statement of condolences. On March 9, 1997, while Bad Boy were preparing the release of The Notorious B.I.G.'s double album ''
Life After Death'', he was killed in Los Angeles, California. Their deaths left many to speculate if the coastal hostility had been responsible for their deaths. The police investigations were criticized by public and judicial sources. Both cases remain officially unsolved.
Life after The Notorious B.I.G. and rebuilding the label
Posthumously, Biggie's ''Life After Death'' reached number one on the Billboard Top 200. Its first two singles, "Hypnotize" and "Mo Money, Mo Problems" also topped the singles charts. The album eventually sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. alone, and is one of the highest selling rap albums ever in the U.S..
In 1996, Puff Daddy had begun recording his own solo debut album. The 1st single, "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down", peaked at No. 1 on the Rap, R&B, and pop charts that spring. In response to Biggie's death, the label rush-released a Puff Daddy tribute song, "
I'll Be Missing You", which featured Biggie's widow, Faith Evans, and Bad Boy's R&B singing group
112. The single topped the charts for eleven weeks and became the hasty second single from Combs' album, ''
No Way Out'', which was released in the summer and sold 7 million copies in the U.S..
Mase
Mason Durell Betha (born August 27, 1975), better known by his mononym Mase (formerly Murda Mase and stylized as Ma$e), is an American rapper and minister. In the late 1990s, he recorded on the Bad Boy Records label alongside its founder Se ...
, Combs' newest protégé, in the meantime was immediately thrust into the void that The Notorious B.I.G. left. His own debut album, ''
Harlem World'', also released the same year, would go Quadruple Platinum. Due to the successive successes of ''Life After Death'', ''No Way Out'' and ''Harlem World'', by the end of 1997, Bad Boy as a label and brand name had hit a commercial peak. During this time, the label began to promote its latest signing
The L.O.X., who had been prominently featured on various Bad Boy releases that year. Highly anticipated, their 1998 debut album, ''
Money, Power & Respect
''Money, Power & Respect'' is the debut album by hip hop group The Lox. It was released on January 13, 1998, through Bad Boy Records and featured production from the Hitmen, Dame Grease and Swizz Beatz. The album found huge success, peaking at nu ...
'' was certified Platinum by the RIAA. Shortly thereafter, the group departed the label and entered into a long-standing publishing dispute with Combs over the latter receiving 50% of their publishing that would continue until 2005.
In 1998, Combs decided to expand Bad Boy's roster to genres other than hip-hop and R&B, and subsequently signed
Fuzzbubble
Fuzzbubble was an American rock/ power pop band from Long Island, New York, active from 1995 to 2001. It consisted of Jim Bacchi on guitar, Mark DiCarlo on vocals, Jason Camiolo on drums, and Brett Rothfeld on bass. They were signed by Sean "Pu ...
to the label as its 1st rock act.
The group appeared on the rock remix of Puff Daddy's "
It's All About the Benjamins", but parted ways with the label before releasing a full-length album.
In the years to follow, Bad Boy saw a commercial decline. In 1999, Mase became religious and abruptly retired from the business, leaving a serious dent in the company, especially since his 2nd album had just been released. Bad Boy found some success with
Shyne, a young rapper from
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...
, who garnered generally mixed reviews for his deep voice and slow flow—which many considered to be too reminiscent to, and perhaps a rip-off of The Notorious B.I.G., meanwhile, Combs' later albums failed to generate the same kind of acclaim that his debut had. In an attempt to further market himself, he underwent several name changes; from "Puff Daddy" to "Puffy" to "P. Diddy", to simply just "Diddy" then shortly Diddy- Dirty Money". But with the split of the group he abruptly returned to "Diddy".
As the 2000s emerged, Bad Boy had noticeably floundered. Many of its more noted acts would eventually vacate the label, while those who remained saw their album sales dwindle as time went on. In spite of continually releasing new material, and various attempts at building artists to the status of Bad Boy's The Notorious B.I.G., few proved as successful as the company hoped.
Southern rap duo
8Ball & MJG released an album called ''Living Legends'' to some success in 2004, prompting the creation of Bad Boy South—which would eventually house acts such as
Yung Joc
Jasiel Amon Robinson (born September 20, 1980), better known by his stage name Yung Joc, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2006 hit single " It's Goin' Down". and as a feature on T-Pain's US number-one single " Buy U a Drank (Shaw ...
. In 2002, Combs' participated in
MTV's
Making The Band 2, which spun off the Bad Boy assembled act,
Da Band. Their MTV exposure lead to a Gold selling debut album. At this time, the label also signed a rapper named Aasim, whose Bad Boy debut (as of 2013) still has not been released.
Resurgence
Bad Boy saw its fortunes improve in 2005, with the success of releases from new signees:
Cassie and
Yung Joc
Jasiel Amon Robinson (born September 20, 1980), better known by his stage name Yung Joc, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2006 hit single " It's Goin' Down". and as a feature on T-Pain's US number-one single " Buy U a Drank (Shaw ...
(both of whom would score top five singles/debut albums). Also in 2006, Bad Boy hit paydirt with
Making The Band 3's Danity Kane, whose debut album topped the charts at No. 1 (the label's first chart topping album since the
Bad Boys II soundtrack three years prior), and spun off a top five single. Their second album,
Welcome to the Dollhouse also debuted at No. 1, and contained the group's second top ten single "
Damaged
Damage is any change in a thing, often a physical object, that degrades it away from its initial state. It can broadly be defined as "changes introduced into a system that adversely affect its current or future performance".Farrar, C.R., Sohn, H. ...
". Diddy also signed
Day26 and
Donnie Klang to the label.
However, by 2009, Combs had dissolved Danity Kane, terminating Aubrey O'Day's, D. Woods', Shannon Bex's and Aundrea Fimbres' contracts. Dawn Richard remained signed working as solo artist and songwriter for Bad Boy. In March 2009, it was reported that Richard and Combs were assembling a new girl group but later formed
Diddy – Dirty Money, composed of Combs, Richard and a singer-songwriter named
Kalenna Harper. In April 2009, Bad Boy also signed Red Cafe.
In September 2009, it was announced that Combs would be leaving
Warner
Warner can refer to:
People
* Warner (writer)
* Warner (given name)
* Warner (surname)
Fictional characters
* Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, stars of the animated television series ''Animaniacs''
* Aaron Warner, a character in '' Shatter Me ...
, inking a new deal with Universal's
Interscope. Under the terms of the new deal, Combs rebooted the Bad Boy name and trademark, to be operated through Interscope. The previous Bad Boy catalog and roster, however, remains under the control of Warner.
2010–present
In 2010, Diddy offered Mase a 1-year release from Bad Boy to settle their differences after the 2009 incident with Mase wanting to be released from Bad Boy. With this Mase decided to retire from rap for good, although he was to be reassigned to Bad Boy after his year break was done. In 2011, under his new deal with
Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope Geffen A&M Records (IGA), is an American umbrella label owned by Universal Music Group, consisting of record labels Interscope Records, Geffen Records, and A&M Records.
History
Interscope Geffen A&M Records was established in 199 ...
, Diddy stated he was looking for new talent to add to his new Bad Boy roster.
Jay Electronica
Elpadaro F. Electronica Allah (born Timothy Elpadaro Thedford; September 19, 1976), known professionally as Jay Electronica (stylized as J A Y E L E C T R O N I C A), is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in New Orleans, he ...
, who had close ties with Diddy, was originally planned to be signed to the label but had signed with
Jay-Z's
Roc Nation
Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, ma ...
imprint instead.
Machine Gun Kelly
George Kelly Barnes (July 18, 1895 – July 18, 1954), better known by his pseudonym "Machine Gun Kelly", was an American gangster from Memphis, Tennessee, active during the Prohibition era. His nickname came from his favorite weapon, a Thomp ...
announced that he signed to Bad Boy/Interscope on August 3, 2011.
French Montana
Karim Kharbouch (Arabic: æɾiːm χɑɾbuːʃ born November 9, 1984), better known by his stage name French Montana, is a Moroccan-American rapper. Born and raised in Morocco, he emigrated to the United States with his family when he was 13. ...
and
Los also were announced as signees to the label in 2012.
On April 25, 2012, Mase featured alongside Diddy on
Wale
Wale or WALE may refer to:
Places
*Wale, Devon, a hamlet in England
*Wale, Tomaszów Mazowiecki County, a village in Poland
People
*Wale (surname)
*Wale (rapper), stage name of American rapper Olubowale Victor Akintimehin
Radio and television ...
's "Slight Work" remix, marking the first appearance of the Harlem rapper on record since 2010. Rumors began to start that Mase, as well as singer
Omarion
Omari Ishmael Grandberry (born November 12, 1984), better known by his stage name Omarion, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, actor and dancer. He rose to prominence as the lead singer of the boy band B2K. The group achieved success in the ...
, were both signing to Rick Ross'
Maybach Music Group. It was later revealed that Bad Boy artist French Montana was the reason Mase was making his third comeback. According to Montana, Mase is serving as an
A&R representative on Montana's forthcoming Bad Boy debut, "
Excuse My French", as well as appearing on the remix of Montana's "Everything's a Go". "I'm not sure what kind of decisions he's going to make," Montana says, "
utI would love to see him in my camp." Mase is currently resigned to Bad Boy Records but has yet to announce whether he is resigned as part of a joint venture deal between Bad Boy and MMG. He later announced he had gotten his release from Bad Boy. In April 2013, Cassie released her first full-length project seven years after her debut album, a mixtape titled ''
RockaByeBaby
''RockaByeBaby'' is the first mixtape by American singer Cassie, released on April 11, 2013, by Bad Boy Records. It was her first full-length project released since her self-titled debut studio album ''Cassie'' (2006). Following the premiere of t ...
'', to positive reception. Rapper Los announced his departure from Bad Boy Records on March 19, 2014.
On October 5, 2015, Combs announced that Bad Boy would be distributed by Epic Records. This will mark the second time that Epic president
L.A. Reid oversaw distribution for Bad Boy, having previously overseen distribution for the label 15 years earlier after being appointed president of
Arista
Arista may refer to:
Organizations
*Arista Networks, a software defined networking company
*Arista Records, an American record label, division of Sony Music
**Arista Nashville, a record label specializing in country music
*Arista (honor society) ...
in 2000. Despite founding the label in 1993, Bad Boy began celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2015 with a 20-minute mega-
medley
Medley or Medleys may refer to:
Sports
*Medley swimming, races requiring multiple swimming styles
* Medley relay races at track meets
Music
*Medley (music), multiple pieces strung together
People
*Medley (surname), list of people with this nam ...
performance at the
BET Awards
The BET Awards is an American award show that was established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate black entertainers and other minorities in music, film, sports and philanthropy. The awards, which are presented annua ...
. It stretched into 2016, starting with the label's May reunion sold-out shows at the
Barclays Center
Barclays Center is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The arena is home to the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association and the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association. The ...
in Brooklyn, and originating the Bad Boy Family Reunion Tour, starting in North America in the last week of August 2016.
Artists
Current acts
Former acts
*
The Notorious B.I.G. (deceased) (1993 - 1997)
*
Craig Mack (deceased) (1993- 1995)
*
Faith Evans
Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida, and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al ...
(1994 - 2004)
*
Total
Total may refer to:
Mathematics
* Total, the summation of a set of numbers
* Total order, a partial order without incomparable pairs
* Total relation, which may also mean
** connected relation (a binary relation in which any two elements are comp ...
(1994 - 2000)
*
112 (1995 - 2005)
*
Mase
Mason Durell Betha (born August 27, 1975), better known by his mononym Mase (formerly Murda Mase and stylized as Ma$e), is an American rapper and minister. In the late 1990s, he recorded on the Bad Boy Records label alongside its founder Se ...
(1996 - 2000; 2003 - 2006)
*
Mario Winans
Mario Mendell Winans ( Brown; born August 29, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer best known for his 2004 song " I Don't Wanna Know", which reached number 2 in the United States and number 1 in the United Kingdom. Wina ...
(2001 - 2008)
*
The Lox (1996 - 1999)
*
Black Rob (deceased) (1996 - 2010)
*
Jordan McCoy
*
Carl Thomas (1997 - 2005)
*
Shyne (1998 - 2001)
*
Dream
A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, al ...
*
G. Dep (incarcerated) (1999 - 2005)
*
Loon
Loons (North American English) or divers ( British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order G ...
(2001 - 2006)
*
Da Band (2002 - 2004)
*
Fuzzbubble
Fuzzbubble was an American rock/ power pop band from Long Island, New York, active from 1995 to 2001. It consisted of Jim Bacchi on guitar, Mark DiCarlo on vocals, Jason Camiolo on drums, and Brett Rothfeld on bass. They were signed by Sean "Pu ...
*
8Ball & MJG (2002 - 2008)
*
Boyz n da Hood (2004-2008)
*
Cheri Dennis (2000 - 2009)
*
Kalenna Harper
*
New Edition
New Edition is an American R&B/Pop group from the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a 'new edition' of the Jackson 5. The group reached its height of popularity in the 19 ...
(2003 - 2006)
*
Red Café
*
B5 (2004 - 2008)
*
Yung Joc
Jasiel Amon Robinson (born September 20, 1980), better known by his stage name Yung Joc, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2006 hit single " It's Goin' Down". and as a feature on T-Pain's US number-one single " Buy U a Drank (Shaw ...
(2004 - 2009)
*
Dirty Money
*
Gorilla Zoe
*
Danity Kane
*
King Los
*
Day26
*
Elephant Man (2006 - 2009)
*
Donnie Klang
*
Foxy Brown
*
Cassie
The Hitmen
The Hitmen is the production team for Bad Boy Records. The collective consisted of several notable producers and musicians that either worked solo or alongside Combs in composing tracks for the artists on Bad Boy as well as outside the label.
On August 20, 2015, it was announced that
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
was a part of the current roster.
Discography
Albums
Label compilations
References
{{Authority control
Bad Boy Entertainment
Bad Boy Records (or Bad Boy Entertainment) is an American record label founded in 1993 by rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs. It operates as an imprint of Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. It has been home to many artists, includin ...
The Notorious B.I.G.
1993 establishments in New York City
Companies based in New York City
Contemporary R&B record labels
Hip hop record labels
Labels distributed by Warner Music Group
Music publishing companies of the United States
Music production companies
New York (state) record labels
Record labels established in 1993
Vanity record labels