Introducing The New Owner of The Death Row Records Catalogue
It’s this gal.
Her name is Lara Lavi and he’s a 48-year old singer/songwriter who lives in Toronto. Her company, WIDEawake Entertainment Group, posted the winning bid for one of the most successful collections of music in hip-hop. According to media reports, Livi paid $18 million for the whole ball of wax.
The price paid for the collection, which posts an annual revenue of $3-4 million just off of royalties and other existing licensing agreements alone, will likely be the final nail in the coffin for Death Row, as the IRS is into them for $11 million, which doesn’t leave a lot for anyone else.
Now, lest you think that Ms. Levi, a self-described “Jewish Soccer Mom” will just sell off the catalouge to the Wal-Mart bargin bin for a quick buck, you’d be wrong. According to local media reports, she will be looking to craft a legacy for the music that is comparable to Motown’s.
For her part, Levi seems to be coming at it for the right reasons and with the right attitude:
“I never had Oprah’s issues with the messaging,” concedes Lavi. “I understood the Ebonics, the vernacular, and the culture. Of course there were a few bad apples in the bunch. I’m not in support of beatings, or even drugs, let alone misogyny.
“But if you strip those elements away this is the oral history of an important part in the history of black music, hip-hop and pop culture. The semantics were brought on by anger and fear. I’ve never been fazed by the surrounding realities.”
Well, there you go. The collection also apparently includes some unreleased Dre tracks, which Levi plans to use in the future (she is rolling out R&B singer Sean Jones later this year) once she gets the samples scrubbed.
I wonder when Suge Knight was laying flat out on that club floor after getting knocked the hell out last year, he was wonder where his legacy would end up. Apparently, in the hands of a folk singer from Canada. Ah, karma.
Tags: Auction, Death Row Records, Lara Lavi
