Bad Boy Records CEO, Sean "Puffy" Combs is looking to move his label away from parent label, Arista when his deal with the label runs out in 2003.
Puff is already in negotiations with Arista chief, L.A. Reid and are currently talking about who will be allowed to follow Puff when he exits at the end of his contract. The Bad Boy roster may end up being cut when the move is complete as I’m sure Arista would like to keep a few of Puff’s talents after the move.
The news of Puff’s desire to leave Arista has alerted many other labels in snapping up Bad Boy records. Former Arista boss, Clive Davis seems to be the number one contender with his J Records outfit, but he will have major competition against the likes of Interscope, Sony, Universal and EMI, who recently dropped No Limit from their roster
Many people feel that if Bad Boy leaves Arista, the parent company BMG will drop the axe on LA Reid, who filled Clive Davis’ shoes when he left to start the white hot, J Records. Sources state that Reid may be out as early as the end of this year. Arista Records head of promotions Jerry Blair was fired last week. Blair, was fired after being hired by Reid one year ago. According to sources, Arista is losing money. The label released the latest by Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, which sold 55,000 copies it’s first week, charting at number 25.
The numbers put up by P. Diddy are also low compared to some of the latest releases that are out. His P. Diddy and The Bad Boy Family’s The Saga Continues has currently sold 725,000 and is resting at number 48 on the billboard charts.