''Iron Fist Global LLC'' (previously Iron Fist Records, not to be confused with the Indian-based Iron Fist Records) is an American hip hop record label, founded in 2004 by DeShaun 'Proof' Holton. Cleveland '1st Born' Hurd is the current president and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the label, Khalid El Hakim is the vice-president and

chief operations officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

Big Proof

The first release via Iron Fist Records was its founder's ''I Miss The Hip Hop Shop'' dropped on June 15, 2004. The label became well known with Iron Fist recorded

Proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a con ...

's first widespread solo album, ''

Searching for Jerry Garcia ''Searching for Jerry Garcia'' is the second and final studio album by Detroit rapper Proof of D12, released on August 9, 2005. It was the only solo album that Proof released on a major record label before his death. The album is named after Gra ...

'', which included guest appearances by the likes of

Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half of t ...

B-Real Louis Mario Freese (born June 2, 1970), known by his stage name B-Real, is an American rapper. Since 1991, he has been one of two lead rappers in the hip hop group Cypress Hill, along with Sen Dog. He has also been a part of the rap metal band ...

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

Obie Trice Obie Trice III (born November 14, 1977) is an American rapper. He was signed to fellow Detroit rapper Eminem's Shady Records in 2002, where he released the albums ''Cheers'' (2003) and ''Second Round's on Me'' (2006). Trice formed his own record ...

, now deceased rappers

Nate Dogg Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), known professionally as Nate Dogg, was an American singer and rapper. He gained recognition for providing guest vocals for a multitude of hit rap songs between 1992 and 2007, earning the ...

and

MC Breed Eric Tyrone Breed (June 12, 1971 – November 22, 2008), better known as MC Breed, was an American rapper best known for his singles " Ain't No Future in Yo' Frontin'", which peaked at #66 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and "Gotta Get Mine" (feat ...

, the whole

D12 D12 (an initialism for The Dirty Dozen) was an American hip hop collective from Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1996, the group achieved mainstream success with its lineup of ''de facto'' leader Eminem, Proof, Bizarre, Mr. Porter, Kuniva and Swift ...

band including

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

. The album reached number 65 on the U.S. Billboard 200. After

's death (April 11, 2006), 1st Born, a close friend of Big Proof became

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and president of the label.

1st Born

Proof placed Cleveland L. Hurd (professionally known as 1st Born) the helm of his label Iron Fist Records. As an artist, he appeared in videos such as

's "

Like Toy Soldiers "Like Toy Soldiers" is a song by American rapper Eminem, from his fifth album ''Encore (Eminem album), Encore'' (2004). The song received positive reviews from Music journalism, music critics, and peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100, '' ...

", D12's "Fight Music", Big Proof's "Gurls Wit Da Boom", Bizarre's "Hip Hop", and

's "Cry Now". As

and founder of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

's award-winning rap group Purple G.A.N.G. (Gettin Anything Niggaz Got), he is also credited with touring nationally three times. Twice with Eminem on his Anger Management tours featuring

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, homophonous with 'ludicrous' in American English), is an American rapper, actor, record producer and record executive. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludac ...

Ras Kass John R. Austin II (born September 26, 1973), better known by his stage name Ras Kass, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip hop Supergroup (music), supergroup The HRSMN, along with Canibus, Killah Priest, and Kurupt in 2014. He is als ...

Mobb Deep Mobb Deep was an American hip hop duo from New York City. The duo consisted of rappers Prodigy and Havoc. They are considered to be among the principal progenitors of hardcore East Coast hip hopEdwards, Paul, 2009, ''How to Rap: The Art & Scien ...

Papa Roach Papa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California, formed in 1993. The original lineup consisted of lead vocalist Jacoby Shaddix, guitarist Jerry Horton, drummer Dave Buckner, bassist Will James, and trombonist Ben Luther. After ...

M.O.P. M.O.P. (short for Mash Out Posse) is an American hip hop duo composed of East Coast rappers Billy Danze and Lil' Fame. The song " Ante Up", was released on their ''Warriorz'' album in 2000. The group has frequently collaborated with DJ Premi ...

, Executioners,

Lil' Jon Jonathan H. Smith (born January 17, 1971) better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, producer and former frontman of the rap group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz. He was instrumental in the emergence of the hip hop subgenre cru ...

Saafir Reggie Gibson (born August 23, 1970), better known as Saafir, is an emcee, producer and actor from Oakland, California. He is also a member of the rap group "Golden State Project" (formerly known as Golden State Warriors) with Ras Kass and Xzibi ...

G-Unit G-Unit (short for Guerilla Unit) was an American hip hop group formed by longtime friends and East Coast rappers 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, and Lloyd Banks. After amassing a string of self-released mixtapes in the early 2000s, the group released th ...

, and

Bonecrusher Bonecrusher may refer to: * Bone crusher, a machine used to crush animal bones * Bonecrusher (horse), a New Zealand racehorse * Bonecrusher (Transformers), a fictional robot supervillain character in the Transformers robot superhero franchise. * ...

. He was also opened up for D12 on 'The D12 World Tour' alongside Slum Village,

Guilty Simpson Byron Dwayne “Guilty” Simpson is an American rapper and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan whose recording career spans more than 20 years. He is signed to Stones Throw Records, and is known for being one of the late producer J Dilla’s favo ...

Black Milk Curtis Eugene Cross (born August 14, 1983), better known by his stage name Black Milk, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Career In addition to Slum Village, Black Milk has worked with J Dilla, Elzhi, Phat Kat, Frank-N-Dan ...

, and Fat Killahz. He has also opened shows for legendary acts such as the

Souls Of Mischief Souls of Mischief is a hip hop group from Oakland, California, that is also part of the hip hop collective Hieroglyphics. The Souls of Mischief formed in 1991 and is composed of rappers A-Plus, Opio, Phesto, and Tajai. History East Oakland nat ...

Xzibit Alvin Nathaniel Joiner (born September 18, 1974), better known by his stage name Xzibit (pronounced "exhibit"), is an American rapper, actor, television presenter, and radio personality. Xzibit began his musical career after the release of his ...

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...

Bubba Sparxxx Warren Anderson Mathis (born March 6, 1977), better known by his stage name Bubba Sparxxx, is an American rapper from Georgia. His singles include "Deliverance", " Ugly" (both featuring Timbaland), and "Ms. New Booty" (featuring Ying Yang Twins a ...

Twista Carl Terrell Mitchell (born November 27, 1973), better known by his stage name Twista (formerly Tung Twista), is an American rapper and record producer. He is best known for his Chopper (rap), chopper style of rapping and for once holding the t ...

and a host of others. In the past he has worked as project manager/marketing strategist for Fly High Entertainment/Hoopla/

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

artist. As President of Iron Fist Global he has been developing and determining market strategies for artists such as Big Proof, JerkNation, Big Dame, Azizz, J Hill, Comedian Howie Bell Spanky Hayes and DC's sensation Shif-T of Pretti Punk'd.

Issues

Iron Fist Global is committed to preserving and honoring Big Proof's legacy as pioneer, entrepreneur and leader in the music and arts industries by focusing in the areas of music, artist education, educational scholarships and mentor-ship targeting talented youth in the metro Detroit area, as well as the broader community, developing and assisting artists as well as providing opportunity artists to pursue their dreams.

People

Some of the Detroit artists who were or still signed by IronFist Records: *Purple Gang (Killa Kaunn, 1st Born, T-Flame, Young Famous) * Supa Emcee *J-Hill * Az-Izz *Ricky Rucker *IMAC *Big Dame *Sovereign T *Woof Pac (J Kid, Hostyle, Moe Dirdee) *J Lee (producer) *KenMak (producer) *Spanky Hayes (comedian) IronFist Records affiliative artists (credited as XFAM) * Hex Murda & The Almighty Dreadnaughtz * Raw Collection * Runyon Ave

Notable actions

Iron Fist Records LLC has received numerous awards for Lyricist of the year, Artist of the year, Group of the year, Album of the year and Mix Tape CD of the year honored by the Detroit Hip Hop Music awards from 2005 to 2006.

Resources

{{Authority control 2005 establishments in Michigan American record labels Companies based in Detroit Hip hop record labels Record labels established in 2005