Slaughtered House
GENERAL By David D. on August 20, 2009 at 11:43 pm
Dear You,
Way to go internetters. Pat yourselves on the back. Run laps of joy. You have now officially exiled yourselves from marketplace relevance. Slaughterhouse sold 18,000 records last week.
Congrats, you are a nobody.
Gotty™ warned you ragamuffins about your dependency on free downloading, and did anyone listen? Nope. You had a chance to prove yourselves and the Slaughterhouse album flopped. Plain and simple it did Brooke Hogan numbers.
The Interweb has been going bonkers since Mouse, Royce, Joell and Crooked announced they would join to form a blogger’s Wet Dream Team (ll). Fuckery, fights and misspellings aside, Slaughterhouse has seemed to be able to do no wrong, which is rare considering that they’re swimming in a thinktank of scrutiny and angry commenters. Almost every bar has been met with e-oohs and ahhs. And the album is dope. 4 Cigs dope.
Still. 18 stacks?
Slaughterhouse is an Internet phenomenon. It is full of MCs that have gained recognition via the blogs and produced an album catered completely to the sites & their visitors without even a dream of a crossover hit. And out of the tens of thousands of Internet Hip-Hop fans that frequent TSS, Nah Right, etc. all we could muster up was 18,000 purchases - much lower than the already measly 23-25K the album was expected to sell. And I know you got the album. It’s been all anyone could talk about for the past two weeks. And despite how dope you thought it was, it still apparently wasn’t purchase-worthy.
Ladies and gents, you have now reserved the right to shut the fuck up. No more complaining about Wale making songs with Gucci Mane and Lady GaGa. No more grumbling because Wayne has too many “Ms. Officers” on his album. Zip it. Why would a label care what you think? You’re not affecting the marketplace and in the grand scheme of things, the 18,000 albums you’re going to buy are just a drop in the bucket compared to the sales that “selling out” provides.
For these execs, money = power and our reliance on Rapidshare has squandered any perceived power the net had left. This shows that no artist can be completely sustainable on Internet support alone. Trust, the labels were watching.
This was a test.
Your grade? F. A big fat F to everyone.
Previously Posted — “Lyrical Murderers” - Review Of Slaughterhouse’s Self-Titled Album
Posted in GENERAL, SMOKE BREAK, THE NEW MODEL — Tags: Crooked I, Gucci Mane, Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Lady GaGa, Lil Wayne, Royce Da 5'9, Slaughterhouse
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114 Comments
It didn’t sell because is was garbage. The beats sounded so fake and plastic. I prefer the type of tunes that were on Joell Ortiz’s album. I think Ortiz is the best on the planet right now and I still only gave that album one spin.
It’s too bad Budden isn’t cool with Prodigy’s team of producers. Imagine if the Slaughterhouse album was done by Sid Roams, Havoc, Alchemist(i know there’s one on there, best one at that) and Jake One! Shit would’ve been fire and I would have bought for sure.
Damn D. Tell them why you mad.
Even though some folks complained that retailers didn’t actually have the Slaughterhouse album…I doubt that one.
Still, when an indie artist like Dorrough can come up with almost 10,000 copies and he’s just a TX/LA fixture - what does that say about the ‘House who had the internets goin’ nuts? (c. Paul Wall)
Well said, David. That pretty much sums up everything you can possibly say on the subject.
Bring on the autotune!!
Sure it was a good album but all of that murder, kill, death, homicide gets tiring after awhile.
As radio show hosts we also tried to express the importance of Slaughterhouse doing well to the listeners. The low numbers of sales for the Slaughterhouse project will have some very serious effects for other talented artists on the comeup. It wasn’t about just Slaughterhouse but protecting the future for other lyricists on the rise.
^exactly. with the internet confusing everyone…all of these sales are being watched closely. This is a bigger deal than people may think
I can’t help but feel like I’m on the receiving end of this… my bad quality music. my bad.
but then again I haven’t purchased music in about half a decade… i would definitely go to a show though.. does that make up for it?
for the record this cd isnt as good as you internuts make it out. I spent my hard earned money on Maxwell’s CD last week
And I don’t need no hook for this hit.
but then again I haven’t purchased music in about half a decade… i would definitely go to a show though.. does that make up for it?
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I’d say most definitely…in a way. Imagine everyone shared that philosophy. How would they know who to book and what size venue?
You can like or dislike Slaughterhouse, that’s beside the point. If you downloaded an album and listened to it enough to peel the paint of your iPod, you probably owe the artists, producers, graphic designers, engineers your $8.99.
It shouldn’t be a big deal to support good music.
Hilarious you see haters when truth is told.
To be frank it needed to sell at least 100K in a year, in my personal opinion to even be a success, and by the looks of things the way scans and graphs go, this wont even do a quarter of that.
I copped the record for the sake of it being one of the best releases this year, like any album it’s download, review, decide: buy or pass… there’s no way in hell that only 18 thousand people saw this as a buy if that structure is anything to go by.
That said, I suffer at the direction of slurs my way because I predicted such high hopes for this record… now watch Drake go gold.
Oh, I’m still buying it. As soon as it hits $9.99 and not $11.99 somewhere.
I DLed it, sure. I also know that first-week sales aren’t everything, and I have no problem waiting and comparison-shopping to save a couple bucks.
Does it make me a failure to have DLed it? Not yet, I’d say.
Their single was mad cheeeeeese too. To me it sounded too put-together and forced. Needed more of an organic feel to it. Give me the Mos Def - The Ecstatic or Blu’s last mixtape any day.
“It didn’t sell because is was garbage. The beats sounded so fake and plastic. I prefer the type of tunes that were on Joell Ortiz’s album. I think Ortiz is the best on the planet right now and I still only gave that album one spin.
It’s too bad Budden isn’t cool with Prodigy’s team of producers. Imagine if the Slaughterhouse album was done by Sid Roams, Havoc, Alchemist(i know there’s one on there, best one at that) and Jake One! Shit would’ve been fire and I would have bought for sure.”
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Something strangley wrong with that
preach, david. great post.
this is why ghostface got heated & dissed his myspace friends cuz big doe rehab had skimpy sales but he has hundreds of thousands of “friends.” as i’ve said, maybe rap is ass-backwards & confused cuz the fans are ass-backwards & confused.
@Work the Angle- yup, sid roams is a beast on the beats.
I don’t know what the hype is all about, that album was garbage and not worth supporting in stores……the promo songs made before the release of that album were far better
Obviously “Work the Angle”, then this post wasn’t talking to you. But I know a lot of people on the net have had nothin but good things to see about the album. And like stated in another comment, buying this album was/is not just about supporting these specific artists. This horrible turn out is gonna be a meter or gauge for labels to apply to other “internet” emcees. Add to the fact that its a group of vets that all have their own seperate fanbases, for only 18K people to support the album is pathetic.
excellent piece..
what the fans have to realize is that hip hop is a dying art mainly because the artists that work so hard to sustain it can’t make a living off of their own music.. therefore the artists have to find other means to make a living which in turn results in less time to create good music.. as an mc myself, i’ve often battled with the idea that i am in a losing war against the internet.. sure, it’s been an incredible tool to get myself out there and i have established a solid fanbase through it but zshare links don’t equal money in the bank.. one of my songs gets 4000 hits on zshare? great.. but did i make anything off of that? nope.. meanwhile guys like bow wow and soulja boy make a killing because their music fell into a market of people who were willing to purchase their music on itunes and through other mediums.. so basically my message to all the fans of real, genuine, authentic hip hop music out there is this..
$20 out of your pocket for your favorite artist’s album is like insurance.. everytime you purchase a record consider yourself buying into that artist’s stock and ensuring that they will have the means to make another one..
record sales=future albums
The album is dope. Very dope. I would call it a near classic. And this is a group that NEEDED to be supported, and their internet fans fucked up big time.
But guess what? I haven’t bought the album yet either. I checked for it the day it came out. And the next day. And two days after that. And today. Still nothing. I have been to FYE, two Targets, two Best Buys, and I have not been able to find it. I live in Minneapolis, and I can’t find that shit anywhere. And there have been complaints from around the country about not being able to find this shit. I can’t even imagine how hard it is to find it in Europe (where many of the internet fans are).
I’m telling you, E1 (formerly Koch) fucked this shit up. Even if the distribution was legit, the sales probably would have been disappointing because of internet “fans” who don’t support good music. But with the fucked up distribution, I think they probably lost close to half of their prospective sales. At least when it was Koch they could get their albums into major music retailers.
I’m going to end up ordering the shit off Amazon in the next couple days, which I probably should have done in the first place. And anybody who had the same problem as me should do the same. Even though their label fucked them, Slaughterhouse doesn’t deserve to go wood.
Hey, I bought a copy on iTunes. Does that count?
Buddens should have never dissed the WU! fuck daughterhouse!
Hmmm…
Plugs Sid Roams, Alchemist Prodigy and Havoc…
Dislikes Joe Budden…
Is that you Un Pacino???
Sorry TSS didn’t give a damn enough to review/make one of these posts for Product Of The 80’s. Better luck next album HA!
^ well said WEB. I would quote the whole thing but cats can read it for themselves.
I’ve already said my piece on this issue. If you don’t put your dollars where your mouth is, eventually “good” music is going to become obsolete & obscure…and there’s nothing the internet will be able to do about it.
Promotion is not a business model.
Cats still have to learn that just cuz you get love from blogs doesn’t mean you’ve connected with folks.
Look at what Reznor and Saul did. Look what Coldplay and Radiohead did. They allowed the audience to set the price (free/donations/$5, etc.)
But Eighteen bones an album? For real? 1990 called—they want their pricing structure back.
Reznor, Ani DiFranco, etc all did more interviews, had more of a community beyond just their label sending stuff out randomly and the occassional vlog post.
They game’s still early and some folks are gonna eat, others will starve just for tryin.
Slaughterhouse needed to really connect beyond just having bloggers say, “what if MC1 got down with MC2?”
Also, hiphop in general suffers from a lack of quality live acts. Conversely, pioneers who’ve gotten this right are great live. Saul Williams is a beast live. Coldplay? Monsters on tour. Radiohead live>>> than any 10 emcees combined. And let’s not 4get Prince who pioneered online communities when we were busy laughing at that scribbling on his cheek–is Top5 DOA live.
You can’t build a web community if you suck/are uninspiring live. it just makes you seem that much more contrived and made up. There’s no incentive to see you or care about you.
And no incentive to buy your music.
you people need to get your heads out of the bags you are burying them in, this album is not worth the debate about sales….if you have a copy of that garbage and love it farewell to you, but you can’t convince a number of people to believe 1 track from that album is classic……
lol for labeling it classic and not owning a copy
I have to say the album is just okayish. The thing is though it caters to internet heads and rapper lovers who traditionally dont buy albums. But its just okay. The lyrics INCREDIBLE. The songs not so much.
I didn’t expect the album to do a spectacular job…but I expect more than 18,000.00. Now the only reason I knew the album even came out was a random e-mail from Amalgam Digital in one of my throw-away e-mail accounts. Haven’t listened to it yet, but if I like it I’ll buy it.
Basically Internet Soldiers really got taught a lesson in real world marketing strategies
I went to the release party at Canal Room where they gave out copies of the album so I did my part…
@ Gotty- thanks homie.. i’ve actually contemplated leaving music alone many times because of EXACTLY what happened to slaughterhouse.. personally, i don’t think it’s well-rounded enough to be considered a classic but it’s still far superior to any album that came out in hip hop in 2009 (thus far).. i just think that as fans and artists we somehow along the line became spoiled.. there was far too much access granted on both sides and we began to disrespect the artist/fan relationship.. i mean.. can you imagine if we heard all the records that didn’t make the cut for illmatic or reasonable doubt? or if everything nas and jay said early on in their careers was broadcasted onto the screens of fans across the world? they would definitely not have the iconic status that they have today.. we are in an age of disposable music and disposable artists.. point, click, download, digest and shit out all within a 24 hour period.. and that’s why great music in hip hop is few and far between.. i give it up to royce, joell, joe and crooked for making an incredible album and maintaining such a heavy presence on the blogs.. it takes a lot of work to keep people interested nowadays..
and that alone is worth the purchase..
It’s not the internet fans mann. Getting almost 20000 records sold when there was not a single fuckin commercial. not one billboard in all of hollywood. Not one spin on Mtv. Not one fuckin BET video? Not one spin on the damn radio? u gotta be fuckin kidding me? why sign a group if u dont give a fuck what they put out? fuckin pathetic marketing. its not like the product is shyt..there is little kids out there that will buy this shyt too. just like i was 11 buying DMX’s grand champ. like i was 10 buying the Marshal mathers LP. this was the powers that be saying, “suck my dick, we outcherre sellin soulja boyz n jerks, eat me”
did my part…blame the broke niggas
Ok for everybody “hating’ on the album…two questions: What albums from 2009 have been better? have you purchased those albums?
no i haven’t bought the album ….yet
*closes ProTools*
*Gets back to online classes*
the guilt induced by this post is almost enough to compel me to cop…which, if I did, it would probably stay in the plastic.
funny thing is, this & Gotty’s post from before has a sense of urgency that connects with me more than the album this post is about.
for what it’s worth, I copped a $25 Slaugterhouse t-shirt at Rock The Bells, lol
“Ladies and gents, you have now reserved the right to shut the fuck up.”
Damn a right. That should be a law. lol. And I did buy it.
did my part…blame the broke niggas
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In reality, this is why i don’t purchase music. I’m a broke college student and when it comes down to it… I unfortunately can’t afford to pay for something that i can get for free. It isn’t right… but buying music gives me the same sick feeling I get at the bar when my double comes to like $10…
A show is something I can’t get for free.. if all music was free and shows cost a little more it would promote and support the good music and not those artists seeking number 1 on the itunes singles list.
I rarely open the albums I buy nowadays. It has to have the promise of a chick in the booklet
^ a la IPATTG II
“But Eighteen bones an album? For real? 1990 called—they want their pricing structure back.”
AH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!
So funny because I remember those days!
Fuck i could give a shit about this group, their album, their music - whateverthefuck.
I couldnt even be arsed DOWNLOADING the thing, let alone actually spending beer money on it.
Fuck that shit.
Just for this topic im going to go buy another Gucci Mane t-shirt.
If the musics not good enough you’re not going to make any money from it. Get it through your thick skulls / thin skins.
Internet soldiers stand up! SMH
Stupid. Do you dudes listen to music or do you just skim through it? Bunch of internet assholes commenting on this shit. Complaining about how there’s no real hip hop but can’t see how incredible the 4 of these guys are. This is why hip hop is truly dead. It’s the fans’ fault. Period. Slaughterhouse only sold 18k cuz I bought 17,999. Shit was dope. Fuck you. If you can’t afford 10 bones, you don’t deserve to listen to the good shit. Download the dumb free shit and come back when you earned the right.
Download the dumb free shit and come back when you earned the right.
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terrific. i have to have “earned the right” to hear good music? Artists only have to be as good as the marketplace’s willingness to compensate…
Well, thanks for clearing that one up for us.
Wanna tackle healtcare, education, or any geopolitical issues, Brother Bigbrain? We could use you on those as well.
poor slaughterhouse. they make an album and it doesn’t chart like black eyed peas! this is street level shit, they won’t give a fuck. they make their money touring….thats how the industry works for 99.9% of cats these days. and to be honest, thats how it should be. a real job. don’t just sit back and let the $$$ flow in…go out, entertain, and collect your cheque. those cats are doing alright, they seem to be fitted out in some nice shit.
regardless of how many units they ship…they are making a living making music!!! thus, reading your strongly worded complaint to us listeners is a bit hard to stomach. sure, its regrettable that black eyed peas sell more units, but everything is relative!!! life is unfair in many ways, and the varying succes of various artists on the charts ranks down at #50492 in importance for me…
To the 18k internet soldiers who did their duty,,,,at ease
For the AWOL cats - you need to do some pushups
My broke ass bought the digital copy via Amalgam 2 days after the release date…so I don’t really see the complaints about record label stocking (or not stocking) physical copies….I figure most folks on this website are in possession of some personal music player and at the very least a CD burner………so why the hell, haven’t more folks gone the online store route (cheaper) uploaded the purchase to their ipods/zunes and burned a copy for their rides etc?
Budden, Royce, Ortiz and Crooked put out a shit ton of free dope product and provided internet weeks of heated conversation …..
so $8.99 is the least I could do
step it up people
@ hydro
Only reason why BEP is charting more is because the fans that like the music are getting off their asses and compensating them for their efforts — hence the meaning behing this “strongly worded complaint.”
If they reduce this CD to £4 then I can almost certify that it will fly off the shelves, and will go on to shit over 100,000 units (at least).
I just purchased The Incredible Hulk Steelbox (2 disc set) they were originally retailing it for £20 but now it’s reduced to £6 and that in my books is a good price.
They should apply a similar principle with CDs, sell more for less and that way costs can be re-couped and a little profit made on top. Sure beats the concept of hardly shifting any units and taking a loss.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Hip Hop is a very fickle mistress indeed, one moment the fans got your back the next they turn on you, then they got your back again and the cycle continues. The fan base got excuse galore, this, that and the third.
I feel for these artists, because not all of them have got major label backing and they sometimes fork out the budget out their own pockets or by taking out borrowings to fund their project. In return and because of the internet and leaks that stuff gets downloaded for free, and the artists sales are affected and they can’t recoup the costs. How do you eat off that?
That’s why I’m always saying, folks is better off investing those monies in other ventures and eating off that. Because this world right here, they’ll smile in your face and have your back as long as you giving it away for free, but when it comes to paying for it, well it’s a different story. No such thing as a free meal.
By the way I’m not making the aforementioned statement for the major label players, but for those artists who are doing it independently and trying to put out quality music.
Peace out.
This castigation seems kinda funny coming from a site that gives away a rar file full of music every day. I kow, alot of it is promo material and whatnot but Im saying. You’re not exactly doing your part to not condition people into being members of the free-rider, dowloading culture.
Nice blast you went on. Unfortunately Slaughterhouse is shit music! I prefer to support quality releases, and there have been plenty this year. I’m not going to waste a cent on this Slaughterhouse crap. It’s just garbage
Most places have new releases (ie., Best Buy) for $9.99 and online retailers have them for $1.00 less.
Another note if you order online Best Buy guarantees the release in your mailbox day of release.
Billboard doesnt chart online purchases, so that’s 18,000 physical copies sold. Their is no way on earth B.O.B., Wale, or any other “internet” rapper is getting a release date. I’m not a fan of anybody in the group so I didn’t cop, but you have to spend that 10 if your a fan. I know they have more than 18,000 fans between the four of them.
Very good point. Is it strictly the internet soldiers’ fault? Not strictly… promo was terrible, I went to my local Best Buy and they didn’t have it 3 days later=terrible distribution, and yes, people didn’t buy the album.
Does this mean it stops? Naw, Rome wasn’t built in a day, but a modest living can be made making music if you make the right moves. I’m convinced of that.
And if you didn’t like the album or their live act, that’s your opinion. Go back to feelin sorry for yourself and cop the Dorrough disc.
i dont’ even like rap like that anymore and i bought this shit….
move on is still my joint…
By the way, cop the Fresh Daily joint… I copped it off dope emcee status. That album goes HARD.
@cbloom - “Move On” was one of the better joints this DECADE!! Yea I said it…
Man… this is why I LOVE TSS!
Look at the conversation this sparked!
Always good to spark meaningful convo!
Holla back when International sales(CDN) / digital sales are included in these numbers.
Shit i just got my paycheck TODAY, Homie, I’m trying to put food
on the table; Gimme a break. Shit, Id rather buy another Slaughterhouse T Shirt AFTER i paid $30+ to see em live
“there was far too much access granted on both sides and we began to disrespect the artist/fan relationship.. i mean.. can you imagine if we heard all the records that didn’t make the cut for illmatic or reasonable doubt? or if everything nas and jay said early on in their careers was broadcasted onto the screens of fans across the world? they would definitely not have the iconic status that they have today..”
-WEBB
you took the words right out of my head. i’ve been thinking about that a lot lately. the internet, as good as it can be for an artist, also can simultaneously destroy that same artist. at one point it was good to see that your favorite rapper was human like you. or your favorite movie star, or rock star, or porn star.. whoever. but now it’s to the point where we see them in their everyday lives… and that kinda takes the mystery that was once shrouded over the artist. the mystery kinda left room for interpretation and imagination. with that gone, the music (at least for me ) isn’t as interesting to listen to. for example i bought e.1999 eternal when i was 9 years old. the tone of the album was dark as hell, and every time i listened to it i was able to paint a certain picture. even to this day. if that album had dropped amongst the youtube videos and news stories about those dudes that are out now.. it probably wouldn’t have had the same effect. make sense?
slaughterhouse did their thing on that album. i bought it and i got it on rotation. i’ve been a fan of royce for years. budden too. what it was is that they connected with their internet fans via these blogs and video blogs.. but nobody else could hear them. but “The One” did have a video in rotation and i know a bunch of white girls that loved it!!!! only problem is they didn’t know the album dropped.
oh well.
tell these rappers stop posting videos of themselves doin shit on the internet.
This article is spot on - but equally the album just isnt very good.
@ Gotty YEAH!
I know that everyone wants to feel like a celeb if their name jingles a few cursors on the internets, but truth be told….the world is big. regardless of what your perception is…….The best mc’s will never be heard( theire dead, in jail or on the streets without $$$ or a gay manager who can get their name out ther by sucking corporate dick……..You can hide out on the web and “feel” popular, but at the end of the day Reality sets in. It’s still all about the real world.
You can flirt with every hot myspace,facebook,twitter freak you want and feel fullfilled jacking off to free pron or you can use the web in moderation and bone real females in real life….I’ve always chosen the latter
I agree that one shouldn’t be inclined to purchase any CD that drops, but at the same time CDs have never been cheaper.
After their initial release period say 6-7 months down the line CDs and DVDs are reduced megafold.
On average these reduced CDs cost like $4 or £3 English pounds.
Even Blackout 2 is now only £7 in many retail outlets around my way.
This is cheaper than £14.99 on average they used to charge during the mid 90s.
If the argument is gonna be well out of the 15 or so joints 2 were slammin the rest was garbage.
Why don’t artists go back to the day of CD maxi singles, you got the album version, clean edit, a couple of remixes and another bonus track.
Maybe that will get the punters interested again?
The internet is killing things, me personally, I ike the idea of removing the plastic seal off the CD or DVD casing, appreciating the art work, holding the disc and reading the liner notes and booklets.
But at the same time, I don’t like to purchase garbage either.
I pay for quality music. I spent $40 on the “Brooklynati” survival kit, b/c I believe in their movement, and the shit was bonkers. This is AFTER all of the *free* press I gave them on my own site, and on others.
I didn’t buy Slaughterhouse. I did download it. I didn’t like it. How you gonna blame me for them losing b/c their album wasn’t something I’d cop? I’m not about buying CDs I won’t listen to just to prove that “the Internets can do it”. Niggas are quick to shit on the Internets for anything - oh they leaked my shit, I failed. Nah, good music survives no matter what. And TBH, Joe’s fuckery as of late has to have hurt their initial sales. Had to.
That’s my $0.02, for free.
Wow… when the grass is cut, the snakes will show. Look at all of you pretending like the album wasn’t dope. All I have to say is if the album was available in Canada it would have been 18,001. I peeped 3 stores last week… nada.
Yo, to the lot of ya…Cheers!
Just wanna say ya’ll are what make TSS what it is. Keep em comin…
With that said, this is really the first post we’ve done that has had negative comments about Slaughterhouse. Check the review. 38 comments and 1 said something bad about the album. Check most articles/posts/shouts across the net. It’s pretty much been like that. Obviously if you thought the album was bad you did not need to buy the album. And I’m definitely not calling Slaughterhouse the e-Messiahs. It’s just the internet community’s enthusiasm over them was overwhelming. These guys were the internet music’s posterchild whether you liked it or not. I really feel like the same people that said it was dope are mighty quiet in these here parts right now (except, y’know the folks that copped it lol)
@David D - isn’t that the point? The ‘Net was fucking HYPE, but when I look at it - all the tracks that leaked prior to the full CD leaking were arguably the best tracks from it (Cukoo, The One, etc). The *idea* of SlaughterHouse > the execution on “SlaughterHouse”, IMHO of course.
The Internets is overrated… If Slaughterhouse only based their marketing plan only on the Internets entusiasm there is no surprise… Radio, Tv the Street still play the main role…
Anyway the score was predictable they got no money for paying ads, payola or 106 and parks and I don’t think unless Rock the Bells they would have toured the states…
I really feel like the same people that said it was dope are mighty quiet in these here parts right now (except, y’know the folks that copped it lol)
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*hangs head in shame*
David went in on this one and he’s absolutely right. I bitch about the current crop of Hip-Hop fans but I’ve grown to realize that I’m as responsible as the cats I’m coming down on (stop it).
And SMH @ You cats saying the album was wack.
Lies. All lies.
I’m going out to cop this one and not because I’ve been guilted into by this article but because as someone who considers themselves a lover of Hip-Hop, it’s only right I support good music, especially from acts that are really representing the best that Hip-Hop has to offer.
I honestly thought they would’ve sold more albums than that. “One” is a really good single, so I dont understand why it didnt catch fire. Just goes to show you that most of these cats who claim to be “heads” [II] dont give two shits about supporting the artists they listen to. And even w/ the machine behind Wale, dont expect him to do much better. It just is what it is. Times have changed, lyricism has been playing the background for a minute now. And all top of all that, Lupe is retiring. It was all good just a week ago….
did “The One” get any major TV airplay? I know I posted it on RTD. Matter of fact, I posted a lot of SH material on RTD, from freestyles to random performances to approved leaks. And the album failed to live up to the hype. Period. They went on Hot 97 last week and didn’t want to speak to Ciph and Rosenberg about their (read: Joe’s) beefs (which is the ONLY reason they even got mentions on the morning show beforehand), and I’m not sure they did any *major* press, at least not as major as the shit they did for the ‘Net, which can be a win/lose. Or, in this case, a lose/lose. Yes, the Internets love the shit out of SH, but they still need mainstream appeal to get over how they want.
wow thats really fucked up, these guys deserve some shine. i bought my copy legit so i feel good….support your favorite rappers!!
Disclaimer: In my old age, I’ve gotten lazy.
I went to Best Buy the week the album dropped and didn’t see it on the shelves, which means I now have to drive a little further, find parking and spend a little extra $ to cop it. So instead of it being where I am, I now have to go to it. Of course, I could go the iTunes route, but I still love buying CDs and reading the credits.
I say all of that to say that the major part of selling anything is making sure it’s available to be bought. I don’t know what kind of distribution deal SH’s label has, but it failed them. I’m only one person, but thousands of “one persons” could have made a difference.
On the flip side, I think that we are in an era where the market is saying that everyone’s material isn’t worth buying. There will always be a group of artists who will be able to sell records. We might as well label them “elite.” In this tertiary internet age, we are finding that selling records/music isn’t going to happen for each and every artists, especially when it has provided a forum where anybody that wants to be somebody can showcase their material. Thus, flooding the market and making it more difficult to capture a piece of people’s mind share.
We also have to consider that SH is, in this day and age, a “niche” group. Super lyrical and hard beats aren’t the “go-to” right now. I don’t see it as being any different that in the early 90s. The one exception is that these types of artists had major label deals. But even with some form of a major label push, they weren’t putting up Billboard numbers, nor where they expected to (at least from the media/fanbase perspective).
It would be naive to think that views on a Youtube video should equal records sold, so I don’t think you can look at that as a measuring tool for expected sales. And since Billboard doesn’t track $free99 downloads just yet, there is no way to know what the potential sales would have been if everyone bought a cop. Thus, SH did what they were suppossed to do sales wise.
The new key to success isn’t figuring out how to get on, it’s figuring out ways to make money from it even when folks aren’t buying the actual product you are trying to sell.
@Scott Stotch - first off, great post.
“It would be naive to think that views on a Youtube video should equal records sold, so I don’t think you can look at that as a measuring tool for expected sales.”
The industry will keep trying to find their Soulja Boy, though - i.e. those artists who seem to be “ready-made” - solid fanbase w/ no major-label hype, formulated personality, etc. Its not as if we randomly started thinking who the next “Internets star” would be - the music industry started buying into Internets stars (or celebrities, word to Dallas & Rafi) and making it happen. It just won’t happen to everyone. And it ain’t easy.
this was a very good read!!
Damn good debate going on here.
Don’t mind me though, continue lol.
What’s funny is the same ones who don’t support the music for whatever reason are always the first ones complaining their isn’t any Good/Real hip hop out.
Instead of Internet Soldiers Joe need some Internet Doctors/Lawyers they can afford to purchase the music. Soldiers are broke
lol
What up Khal! ‘Preciate it.
The industry will keep trying to find their Soulja Boy, though - i.e. those artists who seem to be “ready-made” - solid fanbase w/ no major-label hype, formulated personality, etc. Its not as if we randomly started thinking who the next “Internets star” would be - the music industry started buying into Internets stars (or celebrities, word to Dallas & Rafi) and making it happen. It just won’t happen to everyone. And it ain’t easy.
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From a business standpoint, it’s the smart way to go about finding that next cash cow. It’s really no different than venture capitalism. The folks with the money are looking for either a great idea they will be able to nurture into a big return or they invest in an already established entity that has a high “sweat equity” and proven to already have an established customer base. It’s just the evolution of the business.
The thing is, we really have to look at this issue from different perspectives. There’s the business perspective and the “streets” perspective, an artist perspective and an observer perspective. And we can be in any of these “roles” at any given time.
My comment about Youtube views equalling sales was really geared towards artists, but I think it plays into perception vs. the reality. If a person sees an artist or a group everywhere you look, then you may have a perception that they are everywhere, everywhere. The reality is typically a lot different.
You’re right about the industry creating the Youtube phenom, but artists need to be thinking of that next step. It used to be off the strength of the mixtape, now that is not enough. That came and went. The Youtube phenom is pretty much dead already, even if the industry is still mining the site for one more crack at a superstar. But artists need to be thinking about that next step in the evolution.
Fading back to SH. There’s a lot at play with these guys. I think their talent is undeniable, but I think they did just slightly less than what I would have expected them to do (25K). You may also have to take into consideration that these guys are all dudes that had “failed” major label shots. Whether it was of their own fault or just the industry itself, it may have something to do with why they weren’t able to break into more people’s conscience.
I copped. But I’m not mad at the 18,000. When I went in (at 10 am), I saw ~5 copies of the album. One of my friends couldn’t cop cause his local BB only had 3. Talked to the guy working there and they only had 3 coming to them total.
And you’ve gotta look at it from the business standpoint too. E1 undershipped, but sold almost every damn copy they put out there. They had no idea how Slaughterhouse would do, so they weren’t going to put a lot of money into physical copies while digital’s getting it done for lots of artists.
And anyone saying there were doper albums this year. Name one. I’ve seen a lot of people say there were better albums, but only saw one person mention Ecstatic.
I lost my American Gangster CD. Do you think i can take the receipt to the store and get another one for free, since I already paid for it?
Good points made, Scott. I was talking to Dart Adams on twitter, and he made a good point: with guys like Flo Rida, he makes crap physical sales, but scores a million purchases of his single. The industry is reverting back to a single-driven market, but for some reason no one wants to admit it. No matter how many “360 deals” people get hit with, they should be focusing on building artists, track by track. One single comes out and we automatically think “what’s the fucking album gonna sound like?”, which is unfair to them, especially new artists who might just be getting their feet wet. We really only know artists from their singles, anyways, so why not focus on pushing single/EP releases (with remixes ft popular artists and/or dope producers), instead of trying to eek out millions on a sub-par album.
Plus, its recession time. A lot of crappy LPs got bought in the late 90s, because people had bread to spend. Nowadays, people want bonafide quality. I think that wasn’t the case with SH - there was still some doubt. Hardcore heads copped it, but lukewarm fans didn’t grab.
Three copies to an entire store? They could have at least sent one for each memeber of the group. lol
first, Slaughterhouse is an Internet phenomenon
but Soulja boy’s crank dat too, so that now the reason
secondly, padded room sold around these numbers
normaly if crook, joe, joell and royce ’s fans bought this cd
it’s was a possible 50k first week, that was a minimum…
five years ago, this album could be Gold ! now, Slaughterhouse is an Internet phenomenon ! but “Underground”
Where is that Crooked I fanboy? For being the greatest rapper alive you’d think he’d at least copped 2.
I didn’t like the album. I don’t like Budden or Crooked I. It’s that simple. I bought ALC’s album for the full $15 yesterday at Best Buy. I like that album and bought it 2 months after it came out.
this & Gotty’s post from before has a sense of urgency that connects with me more than the album this post is about.
——————————————————————————————————
True.
Album was meh to me.
I buy 2 of ish I really like, and 1 of shit I think is good.
Haven’t copped, won’t cop.
Bought 2 copies. I enjoyed the album, very disappointing news to hear. I had high expectations this album would do a least 60K or more.
The album even sold out in two days @ my local stop shop, I had to buy it Saturday.
SMMFH….I feel bad for posting a link for it when it leaked, thinking folks would still buy a physical copy.
Won’t EVER do that again. Sorry Slaughterhouse.
Not Stans, where the real music fans @?
Moben technology and atom based processors will enable you to download Nike Air Max’s directly to your hard drive. So that’s goodbye to Footlocker then!
The inter nutty butty is totally loopid I tell y’all.
But anyway Slaughterhouse can still re-coup from the live shows, and TV plus radio appearances they make.
Plus there is always the soundtrack from NBA Live and Project Gotham Racing route, might not be Jay-Z stacks, but hey at least it pays right?
I still think hearing these dudes over Sid Roams(or Premier) would make everybody happy. It needed to be some hard shit and it just wasn’t. I know this article isn’t about that but I think people are missing the point that something failed with this album(musically speaking), and it’s just not very good. Same thing goes with Budden’s last two albums.
Plus I saw Royce and Budden when they toured in Canada and I can say it was one of the weakest concerts I’ve been to. The local acts that opened were ten times more exciting. I expected Royce and Budden to do at least a freestyle together but nothing. They just played their three or four ‘hit’ songs and left.
The problem is that the internet is just MARKETING AND PROMOTION!
Every single one of these artists were dropped by their label or failed to chart on their solo albums…Think about that.
Just because they all came together it means they should sell? Hell nah.
Yeah yeah, blame the internet. You should be blaming Slaughterhouse for failing to come up with a cohesive song, let alone a whole album.
Sid Roams or Premier??? Urrrrgh, no way dude!
@ everybody saying this album wasnt good
slaughterhouse is just an example…its not about this particular album…its about the music in general…arguing about whether the album was worthy of being bought is irrelevant…if you thought it wasnt good enough, then this example doesnt apply to you….but what might apply is The Ecstatic perhaps….this is about any album that was critically acclaimed and well received by the people and didnt sell…it just so happened that with slaughterhouse this was really really extreme…and also on a side note…E1/Koch really did undership..i went to best buy to buy it and they had 0…and i went there the morning of its release date…from there i went to target..who also didnt have it…and finally i went to another target in another city…and thats where i found it…and now i’m proud to have 2/18000 that were sold
Matty said “I know this article isn’t about that but I think people are missing the point that something failed with this album(musically speaking), and it’s just not very good. Same thing goes with Budden’s last two albums.”
And really, that’s all that needs to be said.
@ Key, I get that point. And I bought The Ecstatic but I get that it’s not for everyone. It’s a really different album and for the average listener it will come off as too strange or whatever. btw Auditorium ft Slick Rick is my favorite song of the year. Crazy that Slick Rick still sounds just as fresh as he did back in the day.
What do I do when I buy the cd? use it as a coaster? throw it away? album is dope though. Artists should put their PayPal addy’s out there for people to be able to send money directly to them..A 6 dollar paypal donation would net them more per unit anyway…
So did everyone complaining go buy it? I think I will now. I didn’t even know it was out, but I knew it leaked. I didn’t even download it because I planned on buying. I thought all 4 members were gonna release an ep first though…I think only two members did. That was my countdown. I just assumed all the webfans would cop and I was gonna wait for the Raekwon lol…..going to Target today to buy though.
Does iTunes count in that total?
I think the 18K was physical, and digital downloads were like another 4K or so - I think!
I agree with “Work the Angle”. The album was kinda wack! As far as performances and seeing them live, save ya money or see’em @ rock the bells. In Cali while one would flow another would walk off stage, Joell chain smoked the whole set, Crooked actually left to go piss and then to take shots of liquor. Joe has no stage presence at all. They were just straight garbage on stage! Save your hard earned cheese!! !
if people don’t buy underground cds, u won’t have gold certification for these underground artists !
people can talk about sales, thought about a marketing explanation of this 20k, etc etc but even with a enormous promotion, these sales would not be enormous… cuz
if people don’t buy underground cds, u won’t have gold certification for these underground artists !
nothing more, nothing less
peace
Fuck all yall…..
Didn’t think this album was very good, so it’s low sales don’t bother me in the slightest. Of course there is much worse shit selling much more but I don’t waste my money on that either.
“Google Earth Greums” = hilarious.
LOL! Yeah, that “Google Earth Greums” had me rolling!
Very creative!
True Hip Hop Group……
Sales were low because not enough units were in the pipeline…
I went to a bunch of stores for the last few days and nobody has it….
Thats just me… times that by the thousands of fans in my area…..and times that by the thousands of fans across this country…. that couldnt find the CD, some of us don’t like ordering shit on the net and like to get it in person, but for it to be independent..and go almost 20,000 in the first week, thats great…I believe it would of done better if the distribution was better….
anybody know how many have been sold on amazon and other online places…?
correct me if I am wrong, but selling 100,000 is like going platinum when you are independed making almost $8, per CD if they are getting that, so going 20,000 on a messed up distribution seems to be great….they dont have def jam pushing them and there are enough of us frustrated with trying to find this CD to show support to this group and prove to you that the numbers would of been higher………
BETTER ALBUMS THIS YEAR — for those of you who asked, no problem, here’s a quick list off top:
Che Grand - Everything’s Good
La Coka Nostra - A Brand You Can Trust
Tanya Morgan - Brooklynati
UGK - UGK 4 Life
Plus the solo Royce and Saigon will probably blow this out of the water…feel free to disagree and shit.
Maybe its just me? Maybe I’m just too old?
But to me, every one of these emcees is 2nd tier, so putting them all on one album, and then having a bum ass single like “One” as the leader for the album, did not interest me at all.
Honestly? Y’all liked that single?
Supergroup? G Rap, Kane, Rakim for example… THAT’S some supergroup members.
These SH cats are on the same level as a Papoose or Saigon. More hype than substance. (Not to say that they don’t have hot lines, but seriously… y’all need to stop hanging off their every word like they’re Rakim incarnate. They ain’t THAT hot.)
“poor slaughterhouse. they make an album and it doesn’t chart like black eyed peas! this is street level shit, they won’t give a fuck. they make their money touring….thats how the industry works for 99.9% of cats these days. and to be honest, thats how it should be. a real job. don’t just sit back and let the $$$ flow in…go out, entertain, and collect your cheque. those cats are doing alright, they seem to be fitted out in some nice shit.
regardless of how many units they ship…they are making a living making music!!! thus, reading your strongly worded complaint to us listeners is a bit hard to stomach. sure, its regrettable that black eyed peas sell more units, but everything is relative!!! life is unfair in many ways, and the varying succes of various artists on the charts ranks down at #50492 in importance for me…”
Exactly right ^^^ I cleaned 30 pairs of fucking golf shoes and polished them and got tipped 2 dollars. So I’m not shedding any tears because they aren’t going to have a platinum album. Is it the internets fault, or theirs, I mean the internet is where 99.9% of music is pirated, and this blog is a contributor. So maybe they shouldn’t have marketed their product to the #1 place it was unlikely to be purchased. I mean I buy CDs when I really am into the people. For me Slaughterhouse won’t get my ass to drive over to best buy, other people will (very few). But I think its hypocritical to say these guys deserve money for there album when the other 8 albums I downloaded off this site today don’t. And as the quoted poster said, they are still making a living doing music and probably loving that shit, I don’t feel bad for ‘em.
He should’ve protected his neck and jawbone (no homo)
I just saw them at First Ave in Minneapolis last night, so I did my part. Front and center for the whole thing, shook everyone of their hands. Probably the best night of my life. They fuckin rocked that shit. Crooked was walking through the crowd rappin, shit was ill. (They did bring their album out at one point and told us to buy it, so I yelled at Budden asking if I could buy it there because I couldn’t find it in any stores. He had to hear me, I was right at his feet.)
It got quiet for a second and my friend yelled “Fuck Wu-Tang” and Joe Budden goes “WHAT?!” He stared him down for a minute, then decided to move on. For the record, my friends not an idiot he loves Wu-Tang, but we were drunk and he was just trying to start some shit. So maybe he is an idiot.
Pete Rock was the DJ for the whole night, Supernatural was there (he asked for people to hand him something on stage to rap about, so I gave him my joint. He grabbed it, said it was too small, then grabbed somebody’s blunt and sparked it, LOL), Slum Village was fucking incredible, and we were so blown away by Slaughterhouse that we left before Reflection Eternal even came on. To be fair, I’ve heard that Talib isn’t even that good live, but we probably should have stayed anyways.
Support good music! Buy albums and go to shows! Last night reaffirmed my love for Hip-Hop!
Vegas mike has a point…these niggas are doing what they love and are getting paid for it.. I’m sure no one expected the album to have classic sales but as far as their “JOB” was concerned they spit hot ass lyrics and it was a great album. Its not their fault the album didn’t sale. It wasn’t like Royce was working in accounting after he spit his verse and fucked up the numbers. Or that Ortiz didn’t get the promotional process started sooner. Or that Joe didn’t make sure that shipping and receiving for retailers were in order. These dudes are Artist not label execs. Its just frustrates me when people put blame on sales on the artist especially when the album (imo) is one of the top ten lyrical albums of this year (I said Albums not mixtapes for you smart dumb cats who are about ready to name 100 mixtapes that came out)
Just respect the artist and if you think its hot buy it…if not move on
“…If you don’t put your dollars where your mouth is, eventually “good” music is going to become obsolete & obscure…”
^^Thats bullshit.
Human race has been around for roughly 5 million years, music in some form for not much less time than that… and you think something like the internet is going to come along and RUIN MUSIC…?? c’mon G.
You can have more faith in humanity than that. The sun also rises
I’ve been waiting to comment on this album… And I REALLY hope the members read this. This album is a shame! Now wait, let me finish… This album is a shame because for once you have an album that is straight lyrical, just lyrically sick on every level, by ALL members, with ill beats, yet it won’t sell 1 million copies. Because it isn’t mainstream. That should NEVER happen. NEVER. And i always hate it when artists say that they are making albums for hardcore ni–az, then get upset when the album doesn’t go platinum. Hardcore ni–az are not the ones who buy albums. Crooked is from Long Beach and in my opinion, everyone in the West Coast, if anywhere, should buy an album to support. That would at least guarantee Gold sales. But that can’t even happen. That is what makes this album a shame … Not the content, but the fact that something this ill can’t go at least gold.
Now I remember Crooked saying that this album is a classic, and I disagree, ONLY because there is no “Anthem” on this album. If I was to classify this album in terms of Mics; 5 being a hip hop classic, this album is a 4.5. This album has no “Still - Dr. Dre”, has no “Shook One’s II - Mobb Deep”, has no “Step into a World - Krs One”… 1 track that will rock for 5+ years straight. If this album had just one track like that, you would have a hip hop classic. That is how sick this album is, and i stopped buying hip hop for while because I found that the stuff that was coming out was just weak. I bought this album to support true talent.