Can Rawkus make a real comeback?

(Exclusive: newest Rawkus release included below.)



Anyone who calls himself a hip-hop fan today knows Rawkus Records. In the late 90s, when it seemed hip-hop was doomed to drown in the bling/plastic rap of Bad Boy and Cash Money, among other gold-grill and sequin-suit icons, Rawkus emerged as a commercially viable salvation to the industry. They helped break and distribute artists like Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Company Flow, Pharoahe Jurassic 5, Hi-Tek, and Big L.

But soon after the name Rawkus established itself through multi-volume compilations Soundbombing and Lyricist Lounge, the label encountered typical difficulties that an independent success faces. Their parent label, MCA, fell apart, and when Interscope/Geffen bought them out, they turned the brand in a different business direction, one that matched Interscope’s grander goal of mainstream profit. In 2004 they split with Geffen, and in 2005, under RED Distribution, Rawkus released Best of Decade 1: 1995-2005 in an effort to remind the hip-hop world of their accomplishments and suggest a return to their glory day philosophy of artist control and “true hip-hop” product.

Rawkus’s credibility and reputation plummeted in the 2000s, and it seemed we would only see the iconic Rawkus logo again in the form of a tombstone. Company Flow MC and underground giant El-P openly condemned the label in his first solo album: “Sign with Rawkus?/ I’d rather be mouth-fucked by Nazis unconscious” (from “Deep Space 9mm" on Fantastic Damage). They let highly anticipated MC Last Emperor’s debut album fizzle and leak onto the internet. Most troublingly, their staple artists have moved on, many to OkayPlayer, where they seem content, and the new-age underground scene is saturated by bigs Rhymesayers Entertainment, Chocolate Industries, Definitive Jux, and Babygrande, among others.

But the company is active again, and clearly is making an effort to re-market itself as the independent force it once was. But is this return feasible? They are yet to shake the scene with that contemporary, groundbreaking release that the old Rawkus could be trusted to provide.

My take is that, yes, it’s possible – shit, if R. Kelly could do it, anyone can – but I think it’ll be extremely difficult. To recreate the elite status Rawkus once held, it will have to reconnect with the savvy audience it used to reach through grassroots marketing, word-of-mouth promotion, both things that seem ridiculously difficult when I consider Rawkus’s current image. Their trademark artists – Talib, Mos Def, and Pharoahe Monch – are long-gone and would need a solid reason to return, or at least endorse their former label. They’ve signed the acclaimed group The Procussions, who have released their single, Miss January featuring Talib Kweli (.mp3), which is a step in the right direction, but I think that brings them only a foot closer in the miles they’ll have to walk to reinstate their dominance over conscious hip-hop. The question is, will hip-hop fans forgive their turn to the dark side and embrace their new efforts, or have their faulty business turns buried the Rawkus brand?

According to HipHopSite.com, Rawkus is currently working on a project to promote the next 50 up-and-comers in the hip-hop world, called the “Rawkus 50.” This will be an interesting test to see if the world – artists included – is ready for a new Rawkus.