THE SOURCE (MAGAZINE)

'''The Source''' is a U.S., monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture. The magazine was founded as a newsletter in 1988 by college students David Mays and Jon Shecter distributed from their dorm room. The current president of the publication is Jeremy Miller. From humble beginnings, ''The Source'' had grown into one of the largest and most influential hip-hop publications in the United States. It had even grown to the point of being called "The Bible of Hip-Hop." ^[1]

Contents

History

The Source Enterprises

The Source Awards Controversies

Benzino and his role at The Source

The feud with Eminem

Benzino's Resignation

The Sexual Discrimination Lawsuit

The Future of The Source Magazine

The Source's 5 Mic Albums

See also

References

External links

History

''The Source'' was started originally by David Mays and Jon Shecter while they both attended Harvard University. The two were once radio DJs and hosted ''Street Beat'' on the college radio station WHRB. Mays and Shecter, both white men, were influenced by hip-hop and wanted to give praise by devoting coverage to the rising music genre. ''The Source'' originally started as a concert newsletter. Its popularity became known when The Source scored an interview with LL Cool J. The Source was growing from one small newsletter to a mainstream magazine.
The two decided to hire their college friends James Benard (as Senior Editor) and Ed Young (as Associate Publisher), who both immediately became equal shareholders in the ownership of the magazine. At the time, Mays handled duties as the Publisher for the magazine, and Shecter was the editor-in-chief. The Source was moved from Boston to New York in 1990. Their move was to expand the magazine in a mainstream market.
''The Source'' became the most respected name in hip-hop journalism. The magazine included many notable features, including the famous Unsigned Hype.
The magazine also featured cover stories on the crack/cocaine epidemic, police brutality, and New York's investigation of high-profile rappers. The publication has over eight million subscribers worldwide, and remains one of the most popular hip-hop magazines in the world.
Tim Dog stated in his song "No more Interviews" from BX Warrior that he lost interest in The Source when they put Martin Lawrence on the cover instead of Ultramagnetic MC's. Also, David Mays used to hang out with Ultramagnetic MC's and Tim Dog.

The Source Enterprises

As The Source expanded, the magazine then became involved in television programs such as ''The Source: All-Access'', ''The Source: Sound Lab'' and its annual award show. 'The Source Awards' are given to rappers and some R & B acts for their contributions to hip-hop. The "Lifetime Achievement" Award is the highest award given to a rapper who has contributed their time to succeeding in the hip-hop music industry. The Source also releases a compilation album of hip-hop/rap hits. The Source has expanded overseas with a French version of the rap magazine, alongside a ''Source Latino'' and ''The Source Israel'' magazine franchises. The company has invested in mobile phones and ringtones in which subscribers are offered their favorite choice of hip-hop ringtones. The Source also invested in its own urban clothing apparel company.

The Source Awards Controversies

The magazine is also known for its annual,''The Source Hip-Hop Music Awards Show''. The first live (but untelevised) show was held in 1994, with the only notable event being Tupac Shakur running onstage during a set by A Tribe Called Quest, interrupting their performance. No violence resulted, and Shakur was convinced to make an apology by members of Zulu Nation.
The second broadcast was taped in 1995 at the Paramount Theatre at Madison Square Garden. Many point to this show as heightening East Coast/West Coast tensions. Death Row Records' Suge Knight publicly questioned why Bad Boy Records honcho Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs had to appear in every one of his labelmates' videos. Some feel that this escalated the disrespect between the two coasts.
The Source held their award show in Pasadena, California in 2000. The award show had to be stopped due to violence in the crowd and backstage. The fight caused DJ Quik to be hospitalized and resulted in Pasadena banning The Source from having their awards held in the city. Only five of the fifteen awards were given out during the telecast, and two performances were cut short. Still, despite the fact that no fights were shown on the broadcast, the 2000 awards' television ratings were 31 percent higher than the previous year's show.
The bad publicity caused UPN, the network broadcasting The Source Awards, to sever their ties with them a year after the melee. UPN aired its last awards show from Miami in 2001. The Source Awards were featured on BET but it's uncertain if the network will continue the award show.

Benzino and his role at The Source

After the editors resigned from the publication, the magazine experienced several years of success as it grew along with the exploding popularity of rap music and hip-hop culture under the magazine's second editor-in-chief, Adario Strange. Several years later, with Selwyn Hinds in the editor seat, it was suddenly announced that Raymond "Benzino" Scott had been made a co-owner of ''The Source''. Shortly thereafter Hinds was forced from his post and replaced by Carlito Rodriguez. Benzino was a member of the Almighty RSO when he first met Dave Mays while at Harvard. He needed support from Mays to get his group some credibility. In a short time, Mays became the RSO's manager. While Mays was gaining support from advertisers willing to invest in The Source, Benzino managed to broker a label deal at Tommy Boy to distribute his group. The Almighty RSO was known for their controversial song "One In The Chamber". In 1994, Benzino pressured Mays to slip a four page article about the group into the magazine against the will of the editors. The article forced a major walk-out among staff members.
The magazine had indeed inserted favorable coverage to Benzino on various occasions (including the reformed Almighty RSO, now known as the Made Men). Even at The Source Awards, Benzino, a relative unknown, performed at the show to the surprise of a stunned audience. When Benzino was arrested in Florida after taping The Source Awards, Mays rallied for an investigation of the Miami Police for their treatment of the rapper and threatened a boycott against Miami.
Benzino also received a notorious reputation as co-owner of the publication. Benzino threatened many staffers after an issue was raised about his group Made Men being shunned for other performers. This is an example of the things that provoked a number of editors at The Source to quit or walk out. In a 1999 issue, Made Men received a rating of "four and a half" mics for their album Classic Limited Edition. The rapper's involvement in the mic rating system caused the publication to lose credibility in the hip-hop community.

The feud with Eminem

In 2002, Benzino started a feud with rapper Eminem. Benzino claimed that Eminem was a product of the machine that sought to discredit black and Latino artists' contributions to hip-hop. Benzino released a diss record, to which Eminem refused to respond. This angered Benzino further, so he released a diss track called "Pull Ya Skirt Up", in which he says, among other things, that Eminem would only be remembered as a battle rapper, such as Canibus, if he weren't white. The track also alleged that the rapper would never have gained his level of popularity without being featured in The Source's Unsigned Hype column. The Source published several articles discrediting Eminem. Eminem responded back in a series of diss songs (namely "The Sauce", "Nail In The Coffin", "Doe Ray Me", "Monkey See, Monkey Do", "Bully" and "Go To Sleep" featuring Obie Trice and DMX), that attacked Benzino's street credibility and ethnicity. He also mocked Benzino for trying to make his son Lil' Ray Ray into a rap star. These records were widely seen as highly damaging to Benzino and The Source's credibility. Undaunted, Benzino went back and recorded several more tracks, including "Die Another Day" (in which he likens himself to a hip hop version of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X and calls for Eminem's death) and "Lose Yourself" (which plays off the chorus of Eminem's hit song of the same name). These tracks were widely ignored.
The Source then went another route to take down Eminem. It went as far to dig up an old tape in which a young Eminem was rapping racial slurs against Blacks and women. The magazine devoted its entire coverage to the discovery of the tapes, and also the negative impact that Eminem has had on the hip-hop industry. For his part, Eminem did not deny making the tapes; he claimed that he made them after a bitter break up with a black girlfriend (a situation upon which he elaborates on "Yellow Brick Road" on his ''Encore'' album). He apologized for making the tapes but also exhorted the public to consider the origin of the allegations.
Nevertheless, Eminem had sued The Source for defamation and copyright infringement. The federal courts allowed an injunction to distribute a minimal amount of lyrics of the alleged tape. The Source ignored the injunction and went forth to publish the entire lyrics on its website and in its magazine. By ignoring the injunction, The Source was found in contempt of court and were forced to pay Eminem and his label, Shady Records a considerable sum in compensation. In 2005, lawyers for Eminem were preparing for trial over copyright infringement but abruptly withdrew stating that the rapper issue with The Source was done and there's nothing from the magazine. Benzino still hasn't officially squashed the beef with Eminem. Mays and Benzino both countered the withdrawal of the lawsuit calling it a "cowardly" move. They both claimed they can finally expose the truth about Eminem and planned to eventually release the "racist tapes" in a future magazine. Nevertheless, The Source was satisfied with the results, and felt that the move was considered a win for both parties.

Benzino's Resignation

Benzino still continues to feud with Eminem and many others associated to him. Internet bloggers had rallied a petition for the removal of Benzino and Dave Mays. Under pressure, Benzino decided to step down from his post at The Source. In 2005, Benzino formally announced that he was resigning as chief operations officer and co-owner of The Source. Benzino stated that his battle with Eminem and the magazine's publishers were hurting the revenue of The Source. Within a few mere days Benzino announced that he returned to The Source as co-owner. Industry insiders believed that The Source staged a fake event in order to encourage advertisers to invest in the controversial magazine. The rapper refuted his claims about saving The Source, and instead blamed Interscope's chairman Jimmy Iovine. Benzino believe that Iovine was pressuring to fire rap mogul L.A. Reid if he didn't have Def Jam advertising removed from The Source. The reason why Benzino stepped down was to save Reid's position as president of Island Def Jam, or so he claimed. Last year, Benzino had been on radio denouncing Def Jam's founder Russell Simmons for not participating in his smear campaign to expose Eminem as a racist. He had used racial comments about Simmons in the past forcing Def Jam to pull a vast majority of their ads from The Source. As of today, Interscope, Def Jam, Tommy Boy, Virgin, Motown and Universal have pulled advertising from The Source. It is noted that Benzino was signed to each of these labels before the massive decrease in general advertising.
Joshua "Fahyim" Ratcliffe was appointed to the publication. Ratcliffe abruptly left after he was ordered to lower the rating of Little Brother's ''The Minstrel Show'' from four-and-a-half to four. Lil' Kim's release, ''The Naked Truth'', received the five mic rating instead. Although critics speculated that Lil' Kim's manager was dating Dave Mays, this was the first time that a female rapper ever received the highest rating in the magazine. That album failed to even go gold. By being given the five mic rating, it was placed next to classic albums from Nas, Outkast, The Wu-Tang Clan, Scarface, and Dr. Dre.

The Sexual Discrimination Lawsuit

The magazine has experienced their recent lawsuit from former editor-in-chief, Kimberly Osorio. Osorio alongside Michelle Joyce, a former marketing executive, both filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the magazine over gender discrimination and sexual harassment. Osorio claimed that Benzino and his friends from Boston would get special treatment while the female staffers were to abide by the rules. Also numerous complaints about harassments to female staffers were turned down by Benzino and Mays.
Though the jury ruled that Osorio was not discriminated against and had not worked in a hostile environment as she claimed, it maintained that the magazine was vindictive in its retaliation and fired her unjustly. Osorio was awarded $15.5 million by the jury of six men and two women, a figure that was later contested by Mays and Scott,[1] who vowed to appeal the verdict. [2][3] [4]

The Future of The Source Magazine

Currently the future of The Source is uncertain. The publication is losing subscribers due to not delivering magazines on time and faces numerous lawsuits totaling over a million dollars. Rival magazine ''XXL'' is now the best-selling hip-hop magazine. The Source is losing major advertising due to the feuds with Eminem and 50 Cent.
In 2005, The Source Magazine began a wave of lawsuits. There was 100 million dollar lawsuit filed against BET on behalf of the publication. The publication's awards show was to be featured on BET until the network severed ties with the magazine. Also a dispute with Hot 97 staff personality Funkmaster Flex has led to another lawsuit against him and the radio station. Controversial statements were made by the deejay towards a recent article in which it targets Hot 97 over alleged unethical radio practices.
In addition, The Source is still facing lawsuits of their own. There is a lawsuit that targets the owners' travel expenses for the 2003 Source Awards. The Smoking Gun claimed The Source owes over 1.2 million dollars in unclaimed jewelry and unpaid airline tickets for both the Benzino and Mays families. Lawsuits from former employees of the magazine also trouble the magazine. Benzino and Mays were filming a video in the Dominican Republic, and while they were away The Source, staff had another walk-out. The protest came because paychecks were not clearing and Benzino and Dave Mays were nowhere in sight. The Source avoided paying freelance writers for the stories they wrote in the magazine.
In 2006, shareholders of The Source officially terminated the positions of Mays and Benzino. Black Enterprises the company that supports the publication has decided to fire the moguls after revenue from the publication decreased. Mays and Benzino tried to avert the firing by placing a restraining order against the company. After the restraining order was lifted shareholders moved forth and formally removed them. The company appointed former editor Jeremy Miller to assume the post of CEO of The Source.
The rumors around the rap websites state that The Source is close to bankruptcy. The financial stress from losing advertisers, losing subscribers, and lawsuits may force the company into involuntary bankruptcy and a possibility that the magazine will go out of business. The Source Magazine's departure will greatly affect the fans because of the 15 years of impact the magazine has had on the hip-hop community.
The magazine was forced into Chapter 7 Bankruptcy on July 27, 2006 by creditors. At this time the magazine is trying to emerge from Chapter 11 Reorganization (Case No. 06-11707 AJG) which will enable it to continue operations. It is still not currently paying creditors on-time and this will seriously effect the recovery.

The Source's 5 Mic Albums

The "Record Report" is a special feature in the publication in which journalists rate albums. Ratings range from one to five ''mics'' paralleling a typical five-star rating scale. An album that is rated at four-and-a-half or five "mics" is considered by The Source to be a superior hip hop album. The first albums granted the coveted "5 Mics" award were Ice Cube "AmeriKKKas Most Wanted", Brand Nubian "One For All", A Tribe Called Quest "People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm", A Tribe Called Quest "The Low End Theory", Eric B and Rakim "Let The Rhythm Hit Em", De La Soul "De La Soul is Dead" and Nas "Illmatic". Over the first ten years or so, the heralded "five mic" rating only applied to albums that were universally lauded hip hop albums. The complete list of 5 mic albums is below.
A total of 43 albums have been awarded 5 Mics, the most recent being The Naked Truth by Lil' Kim
There have only been a handfull of artist to have more than one album receiving 5 mics Jay-Z, Ice Cube, Boogie Down Productions, Run D.M.C., Eric B. and Rakim, Biggie Smalls, Nas, 2Pac,A Tribe Called Quest, and Dr. Dre.
Run-D.M.C. by Run-D.M.C.

Radio by LL Cool J

Licensed to Ill by The Beastie Boys

Raising Hell by Run-D.M.C.

Criminal Minded by Boogie Down Productions

Paid in Full by Eric B. & Rakim

Long Live the Kane by Big Daddy Kane

By All Means Necessary by Boogie Down Productions

Strictly Business by EPMD

Straight Out the Jungle by The Jungle Brothers

Straight Outta Compton by N.W.A.

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back by Public Enemy

The Great Adventures of Slick Rick by Slick Rick

Critical Beatdown by Ultramagnetic MCs

No One Can Do It Better by The D.O.C.

Grip It! On That Other Level by Geto Boys

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm by A Tribe Called Quest

One For All by Brand Nubian

Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em by Eric B. & Rakim

AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted by Ice Cube

Breaking Atoms by Main Source

The Low End Theory by A Tribe Called Quest

De La Soul Is Dead by De La Soul

Death Certificate by Ice Cube

The Chronic by Dr. Dre

Doggystyle by Snoop Doggy Dogg

Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) by Wu-Tang Clan

Illmatic by Nas

Ready to Die by The Notorious B.I.G.

The Diary by Scarface

The Infamous by Mobb Deep

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx by Raekwon

Me Against the World by 2Pac

The Score by The Fugees

Reasonable Doubt by Jay-Z

All Eyez on Me by 2Pac

Life After Death by The Notorious B.I.G.

Aquemini by Outkast

The Chronic 2001 by Dr. Dre

Stillmatic by Nas

The Blueprint by Jay-Z

The Fix by Scarface

The Naked Truth by Lil Kim

See also

★ Ray Benzino

★ Eminem

★ Benzino vs. Eminem

★ Controversy over subject matter

★ Timeline of hip hop

★ Tim Dog

★ Ultramagnetic MC's

References

1. http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0236,allah,38050,1.html Allah, Dasun. (September 4, 2002) The Village Voice. ''The Swami of Hip Hop''

External links

★ ''The Source'' magazine official website (requires Flash)

★ ''The Source'' magazine official music Myspace page

★ ''The Source'' magazine other official Myspace page

★ ''The Source'' magazine (French edition) official website

★ ''Details'', November 2001, "Made Man: How Did White Harvard Grad David Mays End Up Atop the $100 Million ''Source'' Hip Hop Empire? And How Can He Survive It?"

★ ''The Real History Of The Source Part 1''

★ Benzino: Straight From The Source from Clover Hope of Allhiphop.com

★ ''The Source: The Greatest Story Never Told'' ''Part 2'' ''Part 3''

★ ''The Bible of Hip-Hop'', a site critical of ''The Source'' and Benzino.