21 Savage has proven himself to be one of the most business-savvy artists in hip-hop as he made the conscious decision to remain independent during the most important times of his career. Over the past few years, the Atlanta artist has dropped a whole slew of hits and has also come through with some pretty fantastic albums. Needless to say, Savage has turned himself into quite the money-making machine, especially since he owns a good chunk of his music.
During the most recent episode of the "ExpediTIously Podcast" with T.I., 21 spoke to the Atlanta patriarch about his come up and how at first, he asked T.I. for a $1 million deal. As T.I. was quick to explain, he ended up rejecting 21's offer as he felt the artist was much better off independent.
"I had the same conversation with Thug," T.I. revealed. "If I give you a $1 million, I'm going to take 10 times as much because that's just the way the game goes. If you want to maintain ownership of your art and equity in your art, you need to go through those tough times in the beginning. Can't accept upfront money and cushion your blow. You have to go ahead and get it out the mud the same way you do anything else."
21 Savage noted that if it were not for T.I.'s wisdom, he would have signed a big deal early on. In 2017, Savage signed to Epic although it's clear he still has full equity in his catalog. Without T.I.'s influence, it's clear 21's financial situation wouldn't be what it is now.
