Papoose Reflects On 1.5 M Record Deal: The “Worst Mistake” Ever 

While many emerging artists would have been happy to sign a seven-figure record deal, Papoose admitted signing the $ 1.5 million early in his career was the “worst mistake” he ever made. 

The New York native signed his first major deal with Jive Records in 2007 after a few years of putting in work as a fresh emcee on the mixtape scene. Papoose reflected on the decision during a recent appearance on Big Boy’s Neighborhood. 

“It was the worst mistake I ever made in my life, taking that deal,” Papoose admitted during the candid discussion. “Because I was independent for so long. You gotta realize, I met Slay in ’04. We ain’t get a deal till ’07. We was working hard. Mixtape after mixtape after mixtape.” 

According to Papoose, he received a lot of hate for working with the late DJ Kay Slay, which negatively impacted his career.  

“My first single had Snoop Dogg on it, produced by Scott Storch,” Papoose added. “And they was like, ‘Okay, now we can finish him for real because if we don’t play this record he’s gonna look crazy.” 

He continued, “And that’s what they did, long story short. A couple other bad situations, the deal folded. So I went back to the street.” Check out the clip below and watch the interview at the end of the page. 

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However, Papoose remained determined and continued to independently release music. His drive did not go unnoticed and helped snag him the role of head of Hip-Hop at TuneCore. 

“When hiring executives I look for expertise and experience,” TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson said in a statement. “Papoose’s years of hustling and success in the industry make him uniquely qualified to advise Hip-Hop artists because he’s been in their shoes, he understands what they’re going through and he knows first-hand what works.”