Fat Joe has always been known for speaking his mind, but in a recent story on his & Jada’s podcast, the Bronx legend peeled back the curtain on just how grimy the music business can get.
According to Joe, if it weren’t for Ludacris, Atlantic Records would have scammed him out of millions during the early 2000s ringtone era. Back then, ringtones had just been invented and were becoming a huge revenue stream—but the catch was that most artists’ contracts didn’t mention them, because ringtones didn’t exist when those deals were signed. Ludacris cashed in early and walked away with a reported $2 million. But shortly after, Fat Joe claims Atlantic Records tried to pull a fast one. While visiting the label, an assistant brought him papers to sign, saying it was about ringtones and that the label owned the rights. Joe immediately refused, telling them to run everything through his lawyer. That’s when, according to Joe, the label president himself came down to pressure him into signing.
The situation escalated to the point where Lyor Cohen, then-chairman of Warner Bros. Records, got involved. Joe says Cohen told him that all the major labels had agreed to retroactively claim ringtone rights from artists. But Joe stood firm, pointing out that Ludacris had just been paid handsomely for his. Fat Joe claims that Atlantic was forced to cut him a multi-million-dollar check—but only after making him sign an NDA so he wouldn’t warn other artists.