Clive Davis Recalls How Working With Diddy Changed His View Of Hip Hop

BYCole Blake7.4K Views
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Diddy, Clive Davis
Clive Davis says that a 23-year-old Diddy changed his mind about hip hop.

Clive Davis says that working with a 23-year-old Diddy convinced him that hip hop could be a mainstream success. The legendary music executive is known for having launched the careers of Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Alicia Keys, and many more. 

Davis discussed the rise of hip hop and how Diddy convinced him it would happen during an appearance on the Rock & Roll High School With Pete Ganbarg podcast.

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“Puffy was 23 years old and I knew the artists that I had– Aretha, Dionne, Whitney–was one kind of music,” Davis said in the interview. “LaFace ushered in blue collared R&B at its height. But, sensing the Hip Hop revolution, both LA and I agreed that we could use someone really attuned to the street. You gotta know what you can do for yourself, and you gotta know when you need to look to other people.”

He continued: “When I met with Puffy, he articulated that Hip Hop should be part of the Top 40 mainstream, and that the business would change in the future. And I said ‘What have you got to illustrate that point?’ and he played me Craig Mack’s ‘Flava in Your Ear’ and he played me the then unknown artist that he felt and believed so strongly. He played me four or five cuts from Notorious B.I.G.”

After being convinced, Davis says he helped introduce Diddy to the right music executives who could assist him in ushering in "the forthcoming Hip Hop revolution.”

Check out Davis's interview with Pete Ganbarg below.

[Via]


About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.
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