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Penalty is an American
record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
and entertainment company, founded and run by CEO
Neil Levine Neil Levine is an American music industry executive. He is best known as the founder of the hip-hop label Penalty Recordings, and is currently the CEO of its successor company, Penalty Entertainment. Levine helped to launch the careers of artist ...
. The company was founded in 1995 as a record label specializing in hip-hop music. The original Penalty label was acquired by its distributor, Tommy Boy, in 1999. A second version, Penalty Associated Labels, was operated by Levine in association with
Rykodisc Rykodisc is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, operating as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance. History Claiming to be the first Compact Disc, CD-only independ ...
from 2002 to 2006. The third and current incarnation was established in 2014. Artists on Penalty have included
Capone-N-Noreaga Capone-N-Noreaga (also known as C-N-N) are an American hip hop duo formed in 1995 from Queens, New York. The duo features East Coast rappers Capone and N.O.R.E. History In October 1995, Capone-N-Noreaga appeared in ''The Source'' magazine's ...
(as well as both Capone and Noreaga/
N.O.R.E. Victor James Santiago Jr. (born September 6, 1977), better known by his stage names Noreaga and later N.O.R.E., is an American rapper. Born and raised in Queens, New York, Santiago first rose to prominence as one half of the East Coast hip hop du ...
as solo artists), Lord Finesse, Ali Shaheed Muhammed of
A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip
, and
The Beatnuts The Beatnuts are an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu (born Jerry Tineo on December 14, 1968) is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les (born Lester Fernande ...
, among others.


History


1995–1999

After a career as an independent marketing professional, Neil Levine founded Penalty Recordings, launching it in 1995 as a joint venture between himself and
Tom Silverman Tom Silverman is an American entertainment executive. He is most notable for founding the pioneering hip-hop and electro-funk music label, Tommy Boy Records, now known as Tommy Boy Entertainment. Early life and education Silverman grew up in Whi ...
. Silverman was the founder and original owner of
Tommy Boy ''Tommy Boy'' is a 1995 American buddy adventure comedy film directed by Peter Segal, written by Bonnie and Terry Turner, produced by Lorne Michaels, and starring former ''Saturday Night Live'' castmates and close friends Chris Farley and Davi ...
, a division of
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
which served as Penalty's distributor. In 1996, Silverman re-purchased half of the interest in Tommy Boy, which continued as Penalty's distributor. Specializing in Hip-Hop music, The initial releases on Penalty included the single "Crime Saga" by
Shabazz the Disciple Shabazz the Disciple, also known as Scientific Shabazz, born David Collins, is a rapper from the Red Hook Houses of Red Hook, Brooklyn. He is an original member of the Sunz of Man and Da Last Future. Biography Shabazz appeared in the 1994 Gr ...
and both the single "Hip 2 Da Game" and the album '' The Awakening'' by Lord Finesse. Other early Penalty artists included
Crooked Lettaz Crooked Lettaz was an American hip hop duo from Jackson, Mississippi, composed of Brad "Kamikaze" Franklin and Lavell David Banner Crump. In 1998, Crooked Lettaz signed to independent label Penalty Recordings. Later that same year, the duo's fi ...
,
Blackjack Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fami ...
,
Foesum Foesum is an American hip hop group whose members included T-Dubb, MNMsta and DJ Glaze. They recorded an album on Penalty/Tommy Boy Records called ''Perfection'', released on October 22, 1996. History In 1986, DJ Glaze and MNM created a DJ cre ...
, and the group
Capone-N-Noreaga Capone-N-Noreaga (also known as C-N-N) are an American hip hop duo formed in 1995 from Queens, New York. The duo features East Coast rappers Capone and N.O.R.E. History In October 1995, Capone-N-Noreaga appeared in ''The Source'' magazine's ...
, whose first release on the label was the single "Stick You" in 1996. The Capone-N-Noreaga album ''
The War Report ''The War Report'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Capone-N-Noreaga (C-N-N). The album features the singles " L.A., L.A.", " T.O.N.Y.", " Illegal Life" and " Closer". Tragedy Khadafi appears on more than half of the album's so ...
'' followed in 1997, which reached a peak of #21 on The ''Billboard'' 200 album sales chart. Between 1997 and 1999, Penalty released albums by artists such as Skull Duggery,
Crooked Lettaz Crooked Lettaz was an American hip hop duo from Jackson, Mississippi, composed of Brad "Kamikaze" Franklin and Lavell David Banner Crump. In 1998, Crooked Lettaz signed to independent label Penalty Recordings. Later that same year, the duo's fi ...
(
David Banner Lavell William Crump (born April 11, 1974), better known by his stage name David Banner, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Born in Brookhaven, Mississippi, Banner's family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, where he was raised. Ban ...
and Kamikaze),
Half a Mill Jasun Wardlaw (April 6, 1973 – October 22, 2003) better known by his stage name Half a Mill, was a Brooklyn-based American rapper. Career Half a Mill was considered an underground rapper in the early 1990s. His mainstream breakthrough cam ...
, and
187 Fac 187 Fac, was an American rap group from Hayward, California, with two members: Den Fenn (Alvin Dennis Thomas, Jr.) and G-Nut (Gregory Savoy Brown, Jr).Business WireArticle: "Hip-Hop Duo DenGee Debuts First Single, 'VIPStatus' on 'The Box'" AllBu ...
. It also released the first two solo albums by Noreaga. The first, N.O.R.E., reached a peak of #3 on The Billboard 200 and featured the Top 40 hit "
Superthug "Superthug" is a song by New York City rapper N.O.R.E. (a.k.a. Noreaga) with background vocals from Tammy Lucas during the song's hook. It was released as the second single from his debut solo album, '' N.O.R.E.''. At the time, it became Noreaga' ...
", one of the earliest hits produced by
The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos, ...
(
Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...
and
Chad Hugo Charles Edward Hugo (born February 24, 1974) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter. With close friend Pharrell Williams, he formed the production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he has prod ...
). Levine sold the remaining 50% of Penalty to Tommy Boy in 1999, staying on long enough to complete the transition before moving on to eventually become Vice-President of Urban Marketing and Artist Development at
TVT Records TVT Records (Tee-Vee Tunes) was an American record label founded by Steve Gottlieb. Over the course of its 24-year history, the label released 25 Gold, Platinum and Multi-Platinum releases. Its roster included Nine Inch Nails, Ja Rule, Lil Jon, ...
. The artists on Penalty became Tommy Boy artists following the close of the acquisition.


2002–2006

In 2002, Levine reestablished Penalty in partnership with Rykostar. a company for which Levine would also serve as the general manager of. The re-established label featured
J-Live Jean-Jacques Cadet (born February 22, 1976), better known by his stage name J-Live, is an American rapper, DJ, and record producer. Life and career J-Live released his debut studio album, '' The Best Part'', in 2001. It featured production by ...
,
The Beatnuts The Beatnuts are an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu (born Jerry Tineo on December 14, 1968) is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les (born Lester Fernande ...
,
Ali Shaheed Muhammad Ali Shaheed Muhammad (born August 11, 1970) is an American hip hop DJ, record producer, and rapper, best known as a member of A Tribe Called Quest. With Q-Tip and Phife Dawg (and sometimes Jarobi White), the group released five studio albums ...
,
MC Eiht Aaron Tyler (born May 22, 1971), better known by his stage name MC Eiht (pronounced MC eight), is an American rapper and actor. Many of his songs are based on his life in Compton. His stage name was partly inspired by the numeral in KRS-One's na ...
, and
Zion I Zion I was an American hip hop project founded by MC and producer Baba Zumbi (real name Stephen Gaines) in Oakland, California. K-Genius and Amp Live were also project members. Career Originally formed as a group, Zion I released the debut s ...
among its roster, many of them with their own imprints on Penalty. Three of its key releases during this period between 2002 and 2006 were ''Milk Me'' by the Beanuts, ''Shaheedullah And Stereotypes'' by Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and ''The Hear After'' by J-Live. Penalty was also one of the partners involved in producing and marketing the AND1 Mixtape Tour series of DVDs, featuring gameplay and interviews of
streetball Streetball (or street basketball) is a variation of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules. As such, its format is more conducive to allowing players ...
players. The label closed in 2006, when Levine became the head of Imperial Records for EMI Music.


2014–present

On January 21, 2014, Penalty was reactivated as an independent label distributed by
RED Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...
, in 2014. Among its 1st signings were Penalty alumni Capone-N-Noreaga, who released a new album ''
Lessons A lesson or class is a structured period of time where learning is intended to occur. It involves one or more students (also called pupils or learners in some circumstances) being taught by a teacher or instructor. A lesson may be either one ...
'', in 2014. The label has also put out releases by
Lil' Mo Cynthia Karen Loving (born November 19, 1978), known professionally as Lil' Mo, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, television and radio personality. She is best known for her 2001 single " Superwoman Pt. II", featuring then-unknown rapper ...
, Joell Ortiz, BeatKing, Hi-Rez and EMC, which includes
Masta Ace Duval Clear (born December 4, 1966), known better by his stage name Masta Ace, is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He appeared on the classic 1988 Juice Crew posse cut " The Symphony". He is noted for his distinct voice ...
,
Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...
and Strick. Penalty released BeatKing's album ''3 Weeks'' on October 30, 2015, with upcoming releases by Statik KXNG (
Statik Selektah Static may refer to: Places *Static Nunatak, a nunatak in Antarctica United States * Static, Kentucky and Tennessee * Static Peak, a mountain in Wyoming **Static Peak Divide, a mountain pass near the peak Science and technology Physics *Static e ...
& KXNG Crooked) and
Trina Katrina Laverne Taylor (born December 3, 1978), known professionally as Trina, is an American rapper. She rose to prominence in 1998 with her appearance on the Trick Daddy single "Nann Nigga". Trina has been described by '' XXL'' as "the most ...
set for release before the end of the year.


Current artists

*
Capone-N-Noreaga Capone-N-Noreaga (also known as C-N-N) are an American hip hop duo formed in 1995 from Queens, New York. The duo features East Coast rappers Capone and N.O.R.E. History In October 1995, Capone-N-Noreaga appeared in ''The Source'' magazine's ...
**
Masta Ace Duval Clear (born December 4, 1966), known better by his stage name Masta Ace, is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He appeared on the classic 1988 Juice Crew posse cut " The Symphony". He is noted for his distinct voice ...
* Joell Ortiz *
Lil' Mo Cynthia Karen Loving (born November 19, 1978), known professionally as Lil' Mo, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, television and radio personality. She is best known for her 2001 single " Superwoman Pt. II", featuring then-unknown rapper ...
*
Trina Katrina Laverne Taylor (born December 3, 1978), known professionally as Trina, is an American rapper. She rose to prominence in 1998 with her appearance on the Trick Daddy single "Nann Nigga". Trina has been described by '' XXL'' as "the most ...


See also

*
List of record labels File:Alvinoreyguitarboogie.jpg File:AmMusicBunk78.jpg File:Bingola1011b.jpg Lists of record labels cover record labels, brands or trademarks associated with marketing of music recordings and music videos. The lists are organized alphabetically, b ...


References

{{Authority control American record labels Hip hop record labels Record labels established in 1995 Joint ventures