Ye and Ty Dolla Sign’s ‘VULTURES 1’ Shifts Independent Music Forever

Okay… Obviously Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is one of the most well-known
artists of a generation. His name itself is enough to sell a surplus of albums. We’re
aware, but just hear us out. The INSANELY important implications behind the success

of this Ty Dolla Sign collab album extend beyond their own benefit.
‘VULTURES 1’ was released under the YZY label as an independent album. Said
independent album sold 140,000+ equivalent units. Those units grossed Ye and Ty
Dolla Sign over $1M in the album’s first week! This all culminates in one most pressing
point — doing this as an INDEPENDENT album means that the artists dictate their deal,

which was potentially an 80/20 payment split with Label Engine (their initial distributor of
choice). This comes down to one word every artist needs to strive for: leverage.
Because of Ye’s leverage and world equity outside of music, he’s created a nearly
unstoppable vessel to communicate with people that truly want to listen to what he’s
saying and not necessarily how he’s saying it. When that is the case, you don’t have to
be label reliant to be successful. Again, we aren’t saying every artist can have leverage
to that extent (we’re undead, not BRAINdead), but it’s a pivotal shift that even with their
album being removed from streaming services multiple times, this independent album
still came out on top! We’re artist-centric, and that is a win for artists. Period.