Scratch Pad – Free….Lupe???

On WAX - The Poster Magazine | Jul 27, 2010 | Comments 0

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by Ural Garrett

If you haven’t heard, Lupe Fiasco’s third album LASERS has been somewhat shelved by his record label Atlantic.

According to Fiasco, he turned in the album some months ago and is just waiting for the “go-ahead” from the label. It’s somewhat shocking seeing that both of Fiasco’s albums have been critically acclaimed, gained Grammy Award nominations and somewhat managed to go gold.

While there are many theories to why the album is being held up, my reason (and most obvious) is probably due to the fact that he won’t “Dumb It Down.” In response to the hold up, a few inpatient fans did something really fascinating in the form of a petition.

Here is the letter in its entirety:

Dear Atlantic Records,

The fans have been below have been waiting for the release for Lupe Fiasco’s album “Lasers” for over a good year now. Since when it was originally announced finished last summer, there has still yet to be a release date announced. It has even been stated by Lupe Fiasco the artist himself, that the album is in fact completed. Enough is enough, we demand that you stop playing around and give us the album that we have been highly anticipating since the release of The Cool.
Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Honestly, I haven’t seen this much dedication and fan reaction since the Free Fiona campaign in 2005. For those who don’t know, the Free Fiona campaign started when singer Fiona Apple’s label decided to shelve her album. In response, her fans formed a petition (which garnered over a hundred thousand signatures). Her label was so moved by the numbers, that the album was eventually released (though sounding a bit different). Hell, I even remember signing the petition once I heard the leak of the original version.

Like the Free Fiona situation, this actually shows the intelligence and dedication of his fans. The reaction to the delay of LASERS shows that maybe major labels do care or respect consumers because after gaining over fifteen thousand signatures in three days, Atlantic even acknowledged the petition by saying that it’s on the way. While I don’t know what that statement means, the fact that there is some acknowledgment may mean something.

This also begs a question. Would so called fans of other rap artists do the same or would they leave it alone and move on to the “next big artists?” Would fans of Rick Ross, Plies, Lil Boosie or Lil Wayne do the same thing? With record sales at its lowest and album delays even effecting some of the most acclaimed artists (hell Jay Z had to buy out his contract from Def Jam to release The Blueprint 3), it’s pretty much amazing to watch fans take the extra step to make sure their favorite artists succeeds.

People call Lupe’s brand of rhyming “too smart,” “nerdy” and “outspoken” (a.k.a. smartass) along with his fans but I honestly don’t have a real problem with that. In fact is being those three things worst then being a “bottle popper,” “misogynist,” or “murderer” ?