In the pursuit of a music career, many artists seek label deals. But in recent years, the luster of a record company alliance has perhaps faded slightly. Indeed, ample artists find that many of the things a label can do for them are now measures they’re empowered to take for themselves. Toronto rapper and R&B artist benny mayne has found that signing with both management and a booking agent have so far sated his industry appetite.
“I’ve been doing music for the past 10 years,” the artist explains. “Having that experience helps. I released one song that I was a feature on and Prodigy [Artists] discovered me through that. For me, it’s all about how big a fan they are and how well you like dealing with them.”
Mayne collaborated with fellow Canadian artist jute$ on the hip-hop single “Either Way” in mid-2017. His performance attracted the interest of Prodigy Artists and a short time later booker Paradigm. But he still remains unattached to a label. “We’re not signed to a label right now, which is great because it gives us time to pick our team,” he observes. “It gives us the freedom to choose who we want; who we vibe with the most.”
The artist’s latest single “bounce” dropped on Jan. 19 and in just shy of a week, it earned nearly 80,000 SoundCloud listens. Mayne’s aim now is to release a song a month, including “lucky,” which dropped on Valentine’s Day. “This is a singles-driven industry,” he asserts. “I want to put stuff out consistently.”
All of his releases are by way of his own label FI$H BOWL, which is distributed through EMPIRE. The R&B singer reveals that he has enough material recorded for two full-length records, but he’s happy to stay the entrepreneurial course for the moment. “I feel that if artists can stay independent, it’s a beautiful thing,” he says. “I’m all about picking my team. [But] I’m not anti-label. I think they work when they work.”
Date Signed: N/A
Label:FI$H BOWL, distributed via EMPIRE/Paradigm
Type of Music: R&B/Hip-Hop
Management: Will Runzel, Steven Haddad, Prodigy Artists, [email protected]; [email protected]
Booking: Cody Chapman, Paradigm Talent Agency
Legal: Brian Schall - Wolf, Rifkin, Shapiro, Schulman & Rabkin, LLP
Publicity: Kamil Kwiatkowski, [email protected]
Web: instagram.com/bennymayne
A&R: N/A
