IN STORES 7.24.01

News | Bio | Press Release

BIO

"Hip-hop has become a cultural reference point for the world, and Chris Lighty and his partner Mona Scott have stayed on the cutting edge of this revolution. They are forward-thinkers who anticipate these trends in music and have a keen awareness of what the audience wants."
-- Michael Ovitz, Artist Management Group

"Being a part of Violator is just like being a part of a family. Violator has been the best thing to happen to me, both personally and professionally. Mona and Chris have looked out for me from all angles. They've secured my well-being-both as a person and as an artist."
-- Busta Rhymes

From a management company to a record label to a marketing group to a multi-media entertainment conglomerate, Chris Lighty and Mona Scott have built an impressive empire in Violator. And, most importantly, this success-the permeation of all areas of entertainment-has been earned by the powerhouse duo without compromising their integrity, nor the integrity of hip-hop music and culture, the very thing that got the ball rolling over 10 years ago.

Running with a rebel posse called the Violators back in the Bronx, Lighty's roots in rap are grounded to his days as an apprentice disc jockey, carrying crates in local clubs for legendary DJ Red Alert and the late Scott La Rock of Boogie Down Productions. It was a soldier's in-trenches, do-what-has-to-be-done-to-get-it-done mentality back then, and that philosophy carried over to managing careers and releasing hit records. When Mona Scott joined the company, she took over the day-to-day responsibilities of running Violator Management, as she sees it, "making the impossible possible."

And so they have. Violator Records/Management has sold an average of 10 million records a year for the past 6 years, and Lighty and Scott have seen the last 7 CDs by Violator-related artists enter the Billboard Top 200 Pop Album Charts in the Top 10. Just this past year superstar client Busta Rhymes went from hawking Mountain Dew on television to co-starring in two major motion pictures (Gus Van Zandt's "Finding Forrester" with Sean Connery and John Singleton's "Shaft" with Samuel L. Jackson), with a third ("N.A.R.C.", starring and produced by Ray Liotta) currently in production. The musical roster bounces from those still watching the streets like Noreaga and Mobb Deep to those who say they are the "GREATEST OF ALL TIME" (G.O.A.T.) LL Cool J to platinum producer/rapper/ lipstick pitcher Missy Elliott, NAS, Maxwell and Cee-Lo (Goodie Mobb) recently came aboard for career guidance and Violator's even watching Ja Rule's back for films.

For Lighty and Scott, there would be no commercials, films or TV shows without maintaining a focus on the music. Platinum and gold are the norm for each artist CD on the roster, and in an effort to demonstrate the continuity of their acts and familial loyalty, Lighty and Scott tied together their street artists and mainstream stars on 1999's VIOLATOR THE ALBUM, the million-selling CD that featured a reunited Capone-N-Noreaga, some of the last music from Big Pun, new tracks from Busta Rhymes, Mobb Deep, LL Cool J and introduced the first solo record from Q-Tip since his departure from long-time Violator management clients, A Tribe Called Quest. That track, "Vivrant Thing," went on to #1 and garnered Grammy, Soul Train, and MTV Award nominations. The album's solid material and savvy marketing strategy got Hollywood and America's attention.

Following those accomplishments, Lighty is putting together a successor for Summer 2001 release that will demonstrate the growth of the Violator brand. VIOLATOR THE ALBUM V2.0, will feature the first music from Busta Rhymes since leaving Elektra, as well as two new LL Cool J tracks, Prodigy featuring Jadakiss, Staten Island newcomer Jo Jo Pellegrino with Method Man and others from the Violator camp. This will be the first album in a new Violator Records/Sony distribution deal, after many years with Def Jam, where Lighty learned how to brand his artists under the tutelage of Russell Simmons and Lyor Cohen. It was a lesson he'd put to good use in his own meteoric career, when he launched his own Violator label, signing Latin hip-hop artists Fat Joe and the Beatnuts, then busting out with Warren G's four-million-selling REGULATE album, Cru, Foxy Brown, The Firm, and the aforementioned VIOLATOR THE ALBUM. With the Violator Records move to Steve Rifkind's Loud, Lighty assumes additional responsibility as Loud Records' Senior Vice President.

Given Violator's ability to straddle the line between grassroots cred and mainstream appeal, it makes sense that when Hollywood's legendary Michael Ovitz went looking to partner with some of the top music companies in the business, he turned to Chris Lighty and Mona Scott's Violator empire. "It allows us to do what we do best, which is reach the urban market, and to use the skills we refined in that market to crossover and assist in the Hollywood arena" says Lighty, who along with Scott, co-heads Urban Entertainment at Ovitz' Artist Management Group (AMG). "We now have at our disposal a staff of 200 other managers and executives already deeply entrenched in film and television; they can open any door, get any meeting and have access to any talent, including our own."

Having successfully marketed hip-hop from the hood to Hollywood, Violator brought their street marketing skills to the film and television world when newly-formed Violator Marketing Group (VMG) landed the promotion contract for New Line Cinema's summer picture, "Blow," starring Johnny Depp and directed by Ted Demme. VMG was created to successfully market mainstream products to the urban consumer, a consumer not defined by ethnicity, but rather by lifestyle. Theirs will be a grass-roots team that furthers what Lighty and Scott learned from convincing Mountain Dew to move Busta Rhymes' soda sales pitch beyond urban radio and into multiple mainstream television and magazine advertisements; and that Missy Elliott could successfully sell Gap clothing on TV. "What began as a musical movement is now a part of everyday life-no matter who you are," explains Ovitz. "The rap culture has gone mainstream," adds Scott. "It's not about color. It's about the music you listen to, the activities you enjoy doing, the kind of experiences you claim as your own."

Violator has already made inroads into such areas as TV, films and the Internet, with Busta Rhymes roles in "Higher Learning," "Shaft," "Finding Forrester," and "N.A.R.C." Rhymes is also collaborating with screenwriters like Tiger Williams ("Menace To Society") and Darryl Quarles ("Big Momma's House") on his own film ideas, while Noreaga has sold HBO on his hosting role for his hip-hop documentary, "What What", which the rapper created, will star in and Ted Demme has produced. Nas is currently shooting "Sacred Is The Flesh," and is about to begin production on "Keeping The Faith," two film projects that he co-wrote and will produce. Ja Rule has also sought out Violator to guide his television and film career. Under their auspices, he has recently wrapped shooting on "Fast and Furious," which features him as a member of a motorcycle gang. The movie opens June 22nd and also stars Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez.

"By combining Chris and Mona's expertise and great taste with the architecture of AMG, we will be able to expand the scope of opportunity for all our clients," insists Ovitz. "We have always considered ourselves and the artists we represent to be progressive, and leaders in our field," adds Scott. "This is just another chapter in our growth and we accept the challenge!"