VICTORY RECORDS’ BOGUS PRACTICES EXPOSED

Thursday, August 2nd, 2007 at 8:56am by

Victory RecordsVictory Records president Tony Brummel has long been known as an Asshole with a capital “A”… but this is the icing on the cake, a tell-all confession from former Victory employee Ramsey Dean. It includes jaw-dropping confessions such as this:

Royalties were payable quarterly and, before each quarter ended, I’d get the amounts, totaling into millions of dollars, that were to be dumped into bogus marketing programs to prevent the band from getting a royalty. It was nothing short of malicious. “Fuck those guys, they’re not entitled to that money,” was his quarterly lament. The royalties, which ranged into hundreds of thousands of dollars, would be calculated and I’d get the amounts I’d need to spend. The last quarter I was there he laid $360,000 of Taking Back Sunday’s money on me. I couldn’t even find enough places to dump it: television advertising, print ads, sale pricing, endcaps, and then we’d play around with dating to try and make it stick, but sometimes even that didn’t purge it all.

Click here for the entire letter. It’s long, but a shocking glimpse into this corrupt industry that you all should read.
-VN

  • http://www.myspace.com/freaksystemband Sammy

    This industry is about to find itself in the past tense category, sharing space with the travel agent and typewriter.

  • TTquick

    I read it and I am disgusted. In an industry filled with scum and shit, Tony Brummel is a top shit slinger. He’s as clueless as he is rich. What owner/president thinks the label should be associated by his image and all about him? Tony Brummel does. I am ashamed to have worked in the same industry.

  • drjimmynyc

    It’s all true, based on what I know of Ramsay’s character–I worked alongside him for more than 5 years–and based on what I know of Victory and the business in general. And I’ve been in it for 25 years. The part about royalties is especially true–you wanna get paid after recouping? Call the accountants and lawyers, check the books and if you can’t work it out amicably, then SUE THE BASTARDS!

  • http://www.myspace.com/afterimage AfterimageEric

    I don’t get queasy easily, but reading that literally makes me sick.

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  • Sam

    I never gave a shit about Victory Records. I always thought the bands they signed were more emo-core & screamo shit. I really don’t care about this article. Just thought I’d comment.

  • Santa Claus

    Welcome to america. This is how we run our corporations.

  • http://www.hempire-records.com/ HempireMusic

    People say that rap is a dead form. I tend to believe different, I believe it’s just evolving, and staying current. Prime example is what we’ve been doing over here… Check out Kryptik – V.I.P ft. Crooked I. Just google it, I don’t wanna spam a link. poor mother

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