Run It Up Records seeks JA talent
Jamaican artistes are being considered to join American music label Run It Up Records.
The independent company scored viral success last year with rapper YungManny’s hit single, Clap For Em.
Boss Life Lito is artiste and repertoire (A&R) manager with Run It Up Records, which was launched in 2017 by Stanley Atwater. He explained the decision to work with Jamaican artistes.
“I feel I grew up on reggae and dancehall; I was going to the sound clashes, I was listening to Mr Vegas, Bounty Killer, Capleton, and Lexxus and others. And, with my prior knowledge of what the music was, I think we can get it back to where it needs to be,” he told the Jamaica Observer in a recent interview.
He also spoke to what makes Run It Up the stable for cutting-edge talent.
“I feel like, first, it starts with educating the artistes with what’s new and different. It’s not the same system that it was 10 to 15 years ago. I do happy music, dance music, so whether you are 60 years old, 70, 20, 15, or 12 years old, it all resonates and connects with the people,” he said.
Assisting Boss Life Lito is his mother, music industry veteran Camille Evans, who has taken on the marketing role with Run It Up Records.
Evans, who started at Sony Columbia, has worked with Jamaican artistes including Super Cat and Bounty Killer. She also did stints with Universal Motown, Capitol, Arista, and Jive Records.
She shares her son’s vision.
“I’ve been in the music business for about 27 years and I have worked at seven major US labels, and one of the labels that I worked at was TVT/Blunt Recordings. And, while at TVT, Bounty Killer was on the roster and one of the artistes that I had to work with.
“So, that was kinda shifting the paradigm for music for me, because I have worked with artistes like Outkast, T.I., Toni Braxton, Cash Money, and Lil Wayne, and so I had a plethora of great R&B and hip hop artistes that I’ve done marketing for.
“I’m a lover of reggae from I was 13 years old, and the culture was always my culture as well,” said Evans, who has both Panamanian and Jamaican heritage.
Run It Up Records has major label support through Universal Music, particularly Republic Records.
Boss Life Lito disclosed to the Observer that he is renegotiating a deal with Republic Records. However, he is tight-lipped about the prospective Jamaican artistes on his radar, but made one thing clear.
“I’m not chasing the next Michael Jackson or Prince. It’s about making money; it’s about doing shows, making numbers, we all about the balance and real things that exist in real life.”
“I don’t like to spread myself thin,” he said, “however, I wanna work with somebody who’s super-talented and someone who wants to work with us.”
He spoke confidently about how careers are made: “I’m not the one that’s gonna make you rich. But if you work and you put in the work with me, if we don’t see progress in the first 90 to 120 days, there’s probably no progress to come. I also want a superstar, we just gonna build one big strong team.”
