Cheron: How did Rare Breed
Entertainment get started? Is RBE
a league or platform?
ARP: I was working with
another company and after
some time I realized it just
wasn’t cut for me and during
the process of moving out of
that situation and out of that
company,I decided my brother
and I decided to start our own
company, which is now called
Rare Breed Entertainment. We
call ourselves a platform, but at
the same time, we do everything
that a league does. The word
“league” makes no sense for
how the battle rap culture
actually is constructed and does
business. A league is something
like the NBA, where players are
contracted to work on one team
and and they get paid no matter
what they’re doing, whereas in
the battle rap culture, they’re
contract is for hire, they’re paid
killers — hitmen. Also, we also
call ourselves a platform because
we have no problem with seeing
artists move around, if it makes
sense for them. We believe in
movement for the artists.
Cheron: That brings me to my
next question regarding Math
Hoffa and the “Lift His Soul”
card and how he ended up on that
card. Initially, he was supposed to
do his debut on your card. I do
remember seeing a video where
he mentioned that you were not
trying to take any food out of his
mouth and how he went to do the
battle against Dizaster first. How
does that come into play when
you want to pull off a card that’s
highly anticipated, but he’s being
offered something somewhere else?
Did you feel that would take away
from the card?
ARP: One thing about us at
RBE, we don’t follow the norm;
we pride ourselves on being
different. We put real situations
before politics and b.s. We don’t
do what’s expected. The name
“Rare Breed” totally fits that
situation, because you’d be hardpressed to find another platform,
another league or two other
owners that would do something
like that , I think that shows
what we are about, because this
is a huge battle and Math Hoffa
coming back to battle rap is
huge for the game. So that whole
situation, basically was just
about putting real s**t before the
politics in the battle rap game
and all the business. I don’t want
myself, my brother or RBE to
be the reason why the battle rap
culture didn’t get to see “Math
vs. Dizaster”.
Cheron: Okay, so I definitely have
to address some of the controversy.
Of course you’ve seen the
interview; Heavy Bags interviewed
a former business partner of yours
who had some things to say about
the contract you were involved in
arp
Seen & Heard
and that you were the “battle rap’s
Number One Groupie”. How do
you feel about those comments?
ARP: One thing about Star,
I’ve worked with him for
roughly a year. I’ve had a lot of
conversations with him. I know
how he is — it’s