by Marcella Ortega
Daily Lobo
Royalty Life Records has come a long way from the Redondo dorms.
"As far as 2006 goes, we've done a lot of incredible things," said student Lameck "Humble" Lukanga, CEO of Royalty Life Records. "We've done shows with Fat Joe, DMX, Paul Wall, Chamillionaire - any big artist you could possibly imagine. Now, people are kind of understanding there is talent in New Mexico. There is talent in the Southwest, and we're just trying to open up the doors for everyone else."
The record label, which has signed four artists, was founded in January 2005 and distributes records throughout the Southwest. In 2006, hip-hop artists Young Jigzaw, born Christian Lupton, and Cooley Sha, born Sasha Jennings, sold 15,000 records each.
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"The biggest challenge was really competing with the majors - competing against these companies with million-dollar budgets," he said.
Lukanga and Byron Davis made their first studio in Redondo. Soon after, students and friends of Lukanga wanted to help with its development.
"It seemed like everything just fell together in pieces," he said. "I was in Redondo, and I ran into Brandon Burnett. I ran into Will McMullen, and I told them, 'I want to start my record label. I want to start my record label.' So, we looked at each other and were like, 'Why not now?'"
Will McMullen, senior vice president of operations, said it wasn't easy at first.
"Me and H (Lukanga), we went down to City Hall," he said. "We went to go get our business license. We were 18, and one guy told us, 'Man, you need to go across the street to the library and read books for a lot of years. Then, you can come back when you are grown-ups.' So, to me and H (Lukanga), that was a challenge."
McMullen wants people to realize Royalty Life is a legitimate business.
"This ain't no hobby," he said. "This ain't something we do on the weekends. This is very serious business. We have very serious investors. It's a very serious game for us. This is our careers."
Quentin Dorn is Royalty Life Records' first and only R&B artist. He is working on his first album. Dorn owns the company's automobile, a midnight-blue Chrysler 300C. He said he put the company logo on the vehicle for promotion.
"When we say we are entrepreneurs, we aren't saying that because we want some allure," he said. "We bleed this. This is 24/7 for us."
Brandon Burnett was the first intern at Royalty Life Records.
"Humble came up to me," he said. "He lived down the hall, and we became friends since day one. I just kind of started helping out. I just kept working at it, working hard, and now, I'm the senior vice president of finance."
Lupton was the first artist signed to the label on Dec. 24, 2004. He said he met scouts from the label when he performed at a talent show in Colorado.
"They dug my music," he said. "They liked what I brought to the table, and I was like, 'Yo, if you think this is dope, man, come to the car. I got more music. I got something to show you all.' I took them to the car. I spit a few records, and they lost their minds."
Student LaVone Ealy was one of the scouts who found Lupton.
"I called Humble up afterwards and said, 'Man, you got to hear this,'" Ealy said. "Then Humble was like, 'Yeah, right. He's not as tight as you say he is.' Then I was like, 'Then come out here and see him.' So, he came out, heard him and said, 'Yeah. This is gold.'"
Lukanga said in the future, he would like to sign rock 'n' roll artists.
"I want to get into the singer-songwriter soft-rock blues kind of sound," he said. "I just love that sound. I'm really influenced by John Mayer, Coldplay and Maroon 5. I want it to be a music company, not just a hip-hop label."
The label's latest release, Jigzaw's The Missing Piece, sold 4,000 copies in its first month.
"Obviously, we have beaten all those obstacles, and here we are today," McMullen said. "A bunch of kids see their worth and they are out to get it. I think more people could be doing it. It just takes a little bit of courage."
