Inside the Playbook: Steve Rifkind on The Street Team Strategy That Built Hip-Hop Fans
In this clip, Steve Rifkind breaks down the year he spent managing New Edition, and why it became his real-world education in the music industry. From meeting key players like Lady B, Hiriam Hicks, and Russell Simmons, to learning how artist management, A&R instincts, and music industry networkin...
Inside the Playbook: Steve Rifkind on How He Invented Street Teams
Steve Rifkind breaks down one of the most important “from nothing to systems” stories in the music business. With just $5,000 to his name, he invests in a simple booklet and turns it into real leverage, building what would become the early blueprint for street teams, grassroots music marketing, a...
Life Griffith Successfully Switches Industries: My Friends Are Better Than Yours
"No matter what you think you know, you really don't know nothing at all, which is the first step towards knowledge."In this episode of My Friends Are Better Than Yours, BIG CED (The Industry Cosign) sits down with a long-time friend and industry titan, Life Griffith (Life Allah). With over 30 ye...
Inside the Playbook: Steve Rifkind on How He Negotiated Wu-Tang’s Deal with a CHAIR?!?
Steve Rifkind breaks down the behind-the-scenes reality of Wu-Tang Clan’s record deal negotiations, the kind of label-room pressure that shapes careers, catalogs, and legacies.
In this clip, Steve walks through how a deal can come down to a $20,000 gap, how business affairs and label politics can...
Inside the Playbook: Steve Rifkind on How Akon Blew Up Without a Music Video
Steve Rifkind breaks down the real story of Akon’s breakout, and it’s a masterclass in how hits actually happen before the industry “agrees” they should.
In this clip, Steve explains how “Locked Up” started moving in unexpected markets like Albuquerque and Utah, even while parts of the label ecos...
Steve Rifkind on Tupac, Kanye, Three 6 Mafia & Building Loud Records | The 3rd Verse Podcast
In this weeks episode we sit down with Steve Rifkind (@steverifkind), the legendary founder of Loud Records, for a wide ranging conversation on hip-hop history and resilience. He opens up about being bullied early in life, finding his footing in the music industry, and building one of the most in...
Akon
From “Lonely” to “Locked Up” and beyond, Akon has provided a consistent soundtrack of hit songs throughout his 30+ year career. The Senegalese-American singer (“not a rapper,” in his words, though he writes raps for others) grew up in New Jersey & honed his musical craft through exposure to artis...
Steve Rifkind: The $500K Deal That Fell Apart Before New Edition
Join Ross’s Patreon Community for exclusive content and LIVE events https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRealRossMandell?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creatorAfter a proposed $500,000 deal fell apart, Steve Rifkind found an unexpected opportunity with New Edition. On Going Public with Ross Mandell, the Loud...
Steve Rifkind on Inventing the Street Team, Signing Big Pun Blind, and Breaking Akon
Steve Rifkind invented the modern street team, built Loud Records into the home of Wu-Tang Clan, Mobb Deep, and Big Pun, then broke Akon at SRC. He tells Jeffrey Sledge how his dad strong-armed him into starting a label, why he signed Pun without hearing a bar, the Sony deal he'd take back, and t...
This is Loud! w/ Steve Rifkind
On this ENTIRE episode we have a conversation with the legendary Steve Rifkind about him starting Loud Records, discovering Wu-Tang Clan, Mobb Deep, Big Pun, Three 6 Mafia and more. We also discuss his later success with discovering Akon, Three 6 Mafia winning the Oscar and navigating Hip-Hop in ...
