Puff Daddy

One only has to look at the Bad Boy roster of acts and the strong catalog to see that this is one their biggest strengths. They had early success starting in 1994 when Combs released his child hood friends album “Ready To Die”. That childhood friend was none other than Christopher Wallace a.k.a. “The Notorious B.I.G.”. B.I.G’s singles “Juicy”, “Warning”, and, “Big Poppa” took the then unknown label to new heights in the spring and summer of 1994 (Heal). Following the platinum success of Biggie and Craig Mack, other known artists clamored to have their songs graced by Combs magic touch. Artists such as New Edition, KRS-One, Mariah Carey, Lil Kim and others wanted their re-mixes done by the young entrepreneur. This being said to emphasize the power that the label had to sign other hot unknown artists. Faith Evans (now widow of B.I.G.), Total, 112, MA$E, and new artist Dream are all on the Bad Boy label. Every one of the artists has achieved gold, platinum, or multi-platinum sales. As a matter of fact “to date, all of the releases under the Bad Boy label have achieved these staggering sales figures…(AP Wire, December 5). Sales were solid for Bad Boy in 1995 and 1996, however 1997 was the year that the tiger was let loose on the hip-hop scene, and it has never been the same since. The year started off in March with what seemed to be a disaster. Chris Wallace a.k.a. “The Notorious B.I.G.” was gunned down in front of Combs outside of an industry party in L.A. What looked like a catastrophe for the label was actually a godsend. The shooting in March of 24 year-old Christopher Wallace boosted the ascent of businessman/producer Sean “Puffy” Combs, Bad Boy Records. In fact during the summer of 1997, most of the songs on the upper reaches of the music charts were either by, featuring, or about “The Notorious B.I.G.” (Cox News, Nov. 28). Combs and Wallace, joined by 19 year old protégé rapper MA$E, were at the top of the charts almost the entire year. Nothing prepared the label for the biggest selling single to come. Combs and R&B super group 112, together with Faith Evans recorded a tribute to Biggie entitled, “I’ll be missing you”. It was featured on Combs new album: “Puff Daddy and the Family”. Based on the 1983 hit, “Every Breath You Take” by the British pop group “The Police”, it went on to sale 3 million copies and garner Combs his first ever Grammy award (Color Blind, March 8.). All of the Bad Boy albums that year such as Biggie Small’s “Life After Death,” Combs own record with the Family, “No Way Out,” and MA$E’s debut, “Harlem World”—offer standard gangsta topics: songs about wealth and materialism, harsh ghetto life, the threat of violence and explicit sexuality. But each one also offers the nostalgic thrill of revisiting songs from the heyday of disco and of 1980’s pop music (Cox News, Nov 28.). Such expansive borrowing has given Puffy Combs and Bad Boy a friendly, non-threatening air, allowing their raps to be cheerful boasting, rather than the nihilistic, violence-filled raps of their California-based rival, Death Row Records (Cox News, Nov. 28). Combs attained astronomical sales figures by relooping songs from a bygone era. Bad Boy Records had a very successful year in 1998. Many of their artists albums such as Faith Evans, 112’s “Room 112”, Total’s “Kima, Keisha, and Pam” were all certified gold in 1998, as well as a best of Bad Boy compilation. He was popular enough, “to add Rolling Stone cover guy to his list of lengthy credits (AP Wire, July 15.). Combs continues to be the mastermind behind the label he started. He recently signed an unknown act from California called “Dream”. These four suburban white teen girls are his latest platinum creation. They offer a fresh sound and feel to the label that is so heavy with the stale urban fare that is prev

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