Rapper Busta Rhymes has defected from J Records
and will ink a deal with Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment.
"We haven’t signed the papers yet, but the
deal is done," Busta’s manager Chris Lighty told AllHipHop.com. "They
have been working together for his album for the past few weeks."
Lighty said that the two titans in rap have known
each other for years and have always had a mutual respect for each other. Their
best-known collaboration together, "Break Ya Neck," was featured on
Busta’s Genesis album, an album that also spawned the massive single,
"Pass The Courvosier."
The follow up, It Ain’t Safe No More,
was a commercial disappointment compared to other releases in the rapper’s catalog
and was his last album release for J Records.
Rumors swirled that Busta was set to sign with
Dre after It Ain’t Safe No More and felt comfortable with the super producer.
"Dre has known Busta for years," Lighty
added. "Dre had done songs with Busta in the past and had an interest in
working with Busta intimately when he his deal was finished. And simply put,
who wouldn’t want to work with Dr.
Dre?"
Busta Rhyme’s untitled Aftermath Records album
is scheduled for a June/July 2004 release date.
