Does Rap-A-Lot Midwest Have A Grip On The Culture? The Executive and President Share Their Secret Sauce

When you think about unity what comes to mind? Mob Ties is the motto within this umbrella.

The Rap-A-Lot identity has spread throughout culture over the years and now Rap-A-Lot Midwest is making its mark. An hour long conversation with Damone Emery (Prez) and Eric Chatman (Easy) helped me understand this isn’t a traditional type of label. Their tone felt familiar.

Brilliant minds would be an understatement to describe the two. What they have is a tight-knit operation combined with high level marketing genius.

Knowledge, resources and mentorship were some of the biggest objectives mentioned at the forefront. With that being said, lets introduce them respectfully.

Where are you guys from and how did you get started in the music industry?

Damone Emery (Prez): We’re from Chicago, Illinois...born and raised. I began in music with Easy and Sconey when they formed SuperGiant Ent a while back. I assisted some but was so ingrained in the corporate and non for profit space during that time that I wasn’t involved with the day to day processes.

Eric Chatman (Easy): We got started in the music industry around 2010. We had an entertainment company named SuperGiant Ent with one of our close friends, Andre Williams (Scony).

Super Giant Entertainment was very instrumental in us learning the business and figuring out how to navigate better with Trust Da Process Entertainment. We took a few years off to regroup and several of the artists that were on SuperGiant are actually on TDP now.

Explain Trust Da Process and what it means to you guys

Damone Emery (Prez): Trust Da Process is our mantra that is applicable to any and everything you do. Whether it’s music, school, or life, there is a process that you're going to go through whether it leads to success or failure. In either scenario, the key is adapting, evolving and continuing to Trust Da Process along the way.

Eric Chatman (Easy): Trusting Da Process is believing in the process that it takes to get you where you are going. We’re helping to create that process to cut through the middle man and/or extra steps to achieve whatever they are trying to achieve in a more effective and efficient way.

How did your relationship with J Prince start?

Eric Chatman (Easy): J Prince flew me and a few guys down to Houston to talk about the gun violence in Chicago and how can we fix it? This led to him and I becoming best friends then TrustDaProcess, Rap A Lot Midwest being born.

Damone Emery (Prez): I met J Prince through my cousin, Easy, a few years ago. There has been nothing but mentoring, loyalty, respect and Mob Ties (Movement of Bosses Together in Every Step) since.

Damone Emery (Prez), Eric Chatman (Easy), J Prince

What are you guys looking to accomplish as an independent label?

Eric Chatman (Easy): We are looking to change the game in every aspect especially for independent artists getting out and owning their own music. It's time to bring the industry to the streets instead of us bringin the streets to the industry. We are gonna cut out the middleman and get right to the source.

Damone Emery (Prez): We’re also looking to bring back the label movement. In the 90’s you had Wu Tang, Ruff Ryders, Roc-A-Fella, No Limit, Death Row, Cash Money, etc. These label brands were strong from a leadership standpoint, with a plethora of talent and services (music, clothing, liquor, etc) that resonated with fans all over the world. We will be a premier brand that encompasses all of those things and more, especially the non for profit aspect.

Marketing is key. What type of funnels / pipelines are you guys applying to move the needle?

Damone Emery (Prez): We’re not looking to completely reinvent the wheel so we’re definitely leveraging some of the existing marketing strategies, primarily with all of the social media platforms, Google Ads, Youtube Ads, etc. However, the TDP differentiator we built is our own Underground network called TDP Underground Railroad.

We decided to start our own universal movement that is represented by chapters in each state. Each chapter has its own state and has its own governors acting as the head of each chapter or state.

We currently have chapters in 27 states that are actively engaged and we meet every Tuesday via Google Meet to discuss what’s going on in those states, leveraging TDP Underground resources and continuing to grow the TDP footprint. Our pitch of letting us liberate those who are ready & equipped to simply work without the constraint of a label.

What other types of ventures or business moves are you guys working on beyond music?

Eric Chatman (Easy): We are involved with sports especially boxing, our other non profit organization Da Big Homies Club which is an organization geared towards building entrepreneurs for its members as well as giving back to the community and we have a partnership with The Manhattan Liquor.

What metrics do you think are the most important when dealing with a new artist vs a more established artist?

Damone Emery (Prez): We focus on a lot of different metrics but have a heavier focus on work ethic and focus. There are a ton of talented artists out here and a lot of them crank out quality music, but what other tangibles do they bring to the table?

We have to make sure artists understand that creating music is only one angle and there is a lot more that comes along with making them successful. We treat our artists and team as equals so we expect them to hold themselves accountable as well as us because we definitely are holding each other accountable.

Going viral in 2021 or being popping on SoundCloud seems to be the wave most artists are on. But things can change very quickly after signing to a label. What’s your take on breaking an artist?

Eric Chatman (Easy): Breaking an artist depends on that artist first because the artist has to have full participation in breaking them. Being independent means you’re going to have to be a part of the machine that’s pushing you.

Damone Emery (Prez): As we’ve mentioned, we’re focusing on the brand development as much as the artist. Down the line, the brand will be strong enough to bring artists through the pipeline even if the mainstream is not familiar with them.

Drake is an extended family member at this point with Rap A Lot. You guys got anything new brewing with him?

Eric Chatman (Easy): As of yet no but we hope to in the near future. We’ve partied with him on several occasions and I’ve even been to his house once with J Prince.