Alchemist On How He Turned Beats Into A Business, And Cut Out The Music Industry | IDEA GENERATION Ep. 8

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Alchemist got his start as the teenaged sidekick to Cypress Hill and the Soul Assassins. Though his rap group, The Whooliganz, would be dumped by their label before they could even release their first album, Al did not let the setback stop him. In fact, by the time he dropped out of NYU the MC-turned-beat-maker already had a catalog with a couple classics, and more on the way. In the 25 years since Al has continued to develop as a musician, embracing new generations and new styles, while also reinventing his business model from the typical front half advance + pub and writing backend to a more Direct-To-Consumer model. And as a result of this conscious shift in economics, he has more latitude than ever with his craft.

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CREDITS

Noah Callahan-Bever, Creator & Host, Idea Generation

Starring: The Alchemist

Executive Producer: Helena Ox

Producer: Insanul Ahmed & Adam Fleischer

Lead Editor: Sarathi Garimella

Asst. Editor: Sam Anderson