Music Exec Says The Industry Is 'Done' If Drake Goes Independent

Drake is carrying the music industry in 2020, says music executive Steve Stoute, who has previously worked at Sony Music and Interscope Geffen A&M.

In a conversation with Russ at SelectCon, Stoute made the surprising remarks when discussing whether or not artists should sign with record labels. "If Drake goes independent, the music business is over," Stoute told Russ during the two-day virtual conference, per Variety. "If Drake goes independent, the music business is done."

Drake, who recently dropped two DJ Khaled collaborations, is currently signed to Cash Money via Universal Music Group-owned Republic Records, but the rapper's deal is said to expire soon, which would give him to opportunity to go independent and deliver music directly to his fans. "I said this before, Drake is about to come out in the next six months, Drake is about to get the biggest bag in the history of the music business by far," the industry vet continued in the chat. "Both A and B, they don’t want that to happen. Because the day that happens, they might as well close the business down."

Russ, on the other hand, advocated for seeing what would happen if Drizzy did indeed go independent. "Drake uploads ‘God’s Plan’ on a digital distributor so whatever money it is: less than $10 dollars, right? Fine, pay for the beat—$10K, $20K, $30K, $40k, whatever the f**k it is—and to get mixed: four racks. So you’re all, $50K tops," Russ explained. "That song, you owning it forever and getting paid weekly on it, you’re making a million dollars a week off that song. It’s different. If Drake goes independent, this whole industry gets turned upside down. That’s why I’m independent, putting out music independently. I'm gonna f**k this whole industry up."

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