Ruggedman: I’m yet to sign young artistes because most of them are greedy, selfish

Michael Stephens, a veteran rapper better known as Ruggedman, says he is reluctant to sign upcoming artistes to his Rugged Record label because most of them are impatient.

Ruggedman told HipTV in an interview that he has tried working with a few young artistes but according to him, “lots of them miss the point”.

Describing them as “greedy and selfish” Ruggedman said their impatient attitude deprive them of opportunities from other labels and affect the chances of some who might “be very good”.

“I have actually tried working with a couple of young talents, and trust me, lots of them miss the point,” Ruggedman said.

“A lot of them just want to be popular real quick, a lot want to be out there and just be like Wizkid, Davido, Tuface not checking how long these people I have just mentioned have been in the industry, how long they have been paying dues for.”

He further said talent alone is not enough, and that record labels are being careful not to waste millions on artistes who would later walk away.

“I have worked with a couple of young artistes we were too quick, who were in a hurry, who had nothing else to offer except talent,” he said.

“Talent is not enough. You need to bring more than talent to the table, because some of you have messed up the chances for yourselves by being greedy, selfish, in a hurry, by being rude to people who have invested millions in you and the backlash of that is affecting other young artistes even if they are very good, even if they have a lot to offer.

“Because of the bad things you have done to other record labels, now others are suffering for it. So, it is not about Rugged Label anymore not wanting to sign people, it is about young artistes themselves.

“So now, we are being careful. You won’t spend 20, 30, 40 million on an artiste and he or she just gets up and walks away because they feel they can do better or they should have been bigger than they are right now, forgetting that all you brought to the table was talent.”