Jim Jones Reveals Kevin Gates Refused To Sign With Cash Money Until They Could Meet
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Jim Jones’ lengthy career comes with many unique stories. The 47-year-old rapper recently revealed that Kevin Gates refused to sign with Cash Money Records until they were able to meet.
“Shoutout to Kevin Gates,” Capo told Drink Champs on Saturday (Aug. 12). “[Cortez Bryant] or one of them called me like, ‘Yo, Birdman tryna sign this artist. His name is Kevin Gates and he just came home from jail. He the biggest thing going, and Birdman tryna sign him, but we got one problem. He’s not going to sign to Birdman unless he meets Jim Jones.'”
The Harlem rapper was confused at how he figured into the situation but agreed to meet up with the “2 Phones” artist anyways. “I’m like, ‘Yeah, tell him to pull up,'” Jones continued in the story. “Kevin Gates pull up. He still had on the khakis, still looking like he was fresh out of jail. I just felt his energy. You knew he was one of us. Like, he came from the same places we came from and things like that. We sat in there. Did five records that night. Then after that, Cash Money got to do business with him.”
Kevin Gates ultimately did not sign with Cash Money Records and interestingly stated that he made that choice because he was inspired by how Birdman “got it out the mud,” per a 2014 conversation with MTV News. “I listened to Birdman talk about how he got it out the mud and how it took him 20 years to build his brand,” Gates said. “That inspired me. I don’t want no handouts, I want to get it out the mud.”
The Baton Rouge, La., rapper also had the chance to meet Lil Wayne, though that wasn’t as motivating as his time with Birdman. “When Wayne sat across that table with Mack Maine, Wayne said, ‘Man, if you not over here, you ain’t gon’ eat. If you not over here, you know what I’ma do to you if you not over here? I’ma eat ‘chu,'” he told Sway Calloway in 2018.
Gates called that “the scariest moment” of his life. “I’m making a transition from being in these streets,” he stated. “Trying to learn the game, you don’t really know the game, and you got an artist at the top telling you that if you don’t sign over here all or nothin’, you ain’ going to sign nowhere.”
Kevin Gates went on to sign with Atlantic Records and launched his own independent venture called Bread Winners’ Association. Most recently, he released the single “I Don’t Apologize” and his latest album Stranger Than Fiction came out in July.
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