Fiend Entertainment

Fiend Entertainment is an independent music label and recording venture established by New Orleans rapper Richard Anthony Jones, better known as Fiend or International Jones. The label emerged after Fiend’s period with Master P’s No Limit Records and a brief association with Ruff Ryders Entertainment, giving him a vehicle for releasing music outside the major-label and prominent independent-label structures with which he had previously been associated. Fiend first entered the recording business through New Orleans independent label Big Boy Records, which issued his debut album, I Won’t Be Denied, in 1995. He subsequently joined No Limit Records, where his profile expanded through appearances on releases by Master P and Mia X. His 1998 No Limit album, There’s One in Every Family, became his strongest charting release, reaching the top ten of the Billboard 200 and the top position on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. His follow-up, Street Life, also reached number one on the genre chart and number 15 on the Billboard 200. After leaving No Limit, Fiend developed Fiend Entertainment as an independent platform for his own recordings. The label’s early releases included Can I Burn? in 2000, followed by Can I Burn? 2 in 2003, Go Hard or Go Home in 2004, and The Addiction: Hope Is Near in 2006. These projects continued his cannabis-oriented, street-focused Southern hip-hop identity while allowing him greater control over recording and distribution. The independent releases achieved placements on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, although at lower positions than his No Limit work. Fiend Entertainment functioned primarily as an artist-centered imprint rather than a large roster-based music company. Fiend remained its central creative identity, recording artist, and producer. His work also extended beyond performing: he produced material connected with artists including Jadakiss and former No Limit associate C-Murder. The label’s activities therefore combined recording, independent release management, and Fiend’s broader role within Southern hip-hop. In 2011, Fiend announced that he had signed with fellow New Orleans rapper Currensy’s Jet Life Recordings and joined the Jet Life collective. This association supplemented rather than erased his independent identity. Later releases continued to credit Fiend Entertainment, including Street Aint Safe, Vol. 3, issued in 2015 through Fiend Entertainment, Rapbay, and Urbanlife Distribution, and Heart of a Ghetto Boy: Volume 1, released independently through Fiend Entertainment in the same year. Publicly available reference material does not establish a current corporate structure, active roster, headquarters separate from Fiend’s New Orleans base, or a current official website. Fiend Entertainment is best understood as a small, artist-controlled independent label associated with Fiend’s post-No Limit catalog and later self-directed releases.

Fiend Entertainment developed from Fiend’s transition away from established labels and toward artist-controlled independent release activity. Fiend, born Richard Anthony Jones and raised in New Orleans’s Hollygrove neighborhood, began his recording career with Big Boy Records, which released I Won’t Be Denied in 1995. His early work established the local and Southern hip-hop context from which his later label identity emerged. In 1997, Fiend signed with No Limit Records. He appeared on projects associated with Master P and Mia X before releasing There’s One in Every Family in 1998. That album reached number eight on the Billboard 200, topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and received a Gold certification from the RIAA. Street Life followed in 1999 and reached number 15 on the Billboard 200 and number one on the genre chart. These releases made Fiend a nationally visible Southern rap artist, but they were issued during his No Limit period rather than as Fiend Entertainment projects. Around the turn of the 2000s, Fiend separated from No Limit and established Fiend Entertainment. The venture served as a platform for his independent recordings. Can I Burn? was released on August 22, 2000, and was identified as his first independent album. Fiend briefly joined Ruff Ryders Entertainment during this period, appearing on Ryde or Die Vol. 3 before leaving in 2001. He also formed Da Headbussaz with Three 6 Mafia members DJ Paul and Juicy J; the group’s album Dat’s How It Happen to'M appeared in 2002. Fiend continued building his independent catalog with Can I Burn? 2 in 2003, Go Hard or Go Home in 2004, and The Addiction: Hope Is Near in 2006. These releases retained the musical themes and Southern rap orientation associated with Fiend while demonstrating the label’s role as a practical outlet for self-directed projects. Reference material identifies chart positions for each album on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, but does not provide evidence of a larger commercial label infrastructure or a substantial external artist roster. Fiend also worked as a producer. His production credits included songs connected with Jadakiss’s Kiss tha Game Goodbye and C-Murder’s The Truest Shit I Ever Said. This broadened the significance of Fiend Entertainment beyond album issuing: the venture was linked to Fiend’s activities as performer, producer, and independent music operator. In 2011, Fiend announced that he had signed with Jet Life Recordings, the label founded by fellow New Orleans rapper Currensy, and joined the Jet Life group. He released the collaborative project Jet World Order with the label in 2011. The Jet Life association gave Fiend an additional collaborative platform while Fiend Entertainment remained connected to later independent releases. In 2015, Fiend Entertainment was credited on Street Aint Safe, Vol. 3, released with Rapbay and Urbanlife Distribution. Fiend also released Heart of a Ghetto Boy: Volume 1 independently through Fiend Entertainment on August 21, 2015. Public reference material does not confirm the label’s current operating status, legal organization, ownership beyond its association with Fiend, or any official website. Its documented history is therefore primarily the history of Fiend’s independent recording career.

• 2015

  Fiend Entertainment issues later independent releases

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Street Aint Safe, Vol. 3 and Heart of a Ghetto Boy: Volume 1 were released through or independently under the Fiend Entertainment name.

• 2011

  Fiend joins Jet Life Recordings

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Fiend announced his signing with Currensy’s Jet Life Recordings and participated in the Jet World Order collaborative project.

• 2006

  The Addiction: Hope Is Near is released

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  The album continued Fiend Entertainment’s documented independent catalog and reached number 70 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

• 2003

  Can I Burn? 2 is released

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  The second independent installment in Fiend’s Can I Burn? series reached number 55 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

• 2000

  Fiend Entertainment becomes an independent release platform

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Following Fiend’s departure from No Limit, he established Fiend Entertainment and released Can I Burn? as his first independent album.

• 1998

  There’s One in Every Family reaches major chart positions

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Fiend’s No Limit debut reached number eight on the Billboard 200 and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

• 1997

  Fiend signs with No Limit Records

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Fiend joined Master P’s No Limit Records, expanding his national profile and releasing his most commercially prominent early albums.

• 1995

  Fiend begins recording career with Big Boy Records

  [1]Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org

  Big Boy Records released Fiend’s debut album, I Won’t Be Denied, establishing the New Orleans rapper before the creation of Fiend Entertainment.

Artist-controlled independent Southern hip-hop label focused on Fiend’s self-directed recordings, collaborations, and production work.

• Album · 2000

  Can I Burn?

  Released on August 22, 2000, Can I Burn? is identified as Fiend’s first independent album following his No Limit period and as an early release associated with Fiend Entertainment. Its chart appearance on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums list documents a continuing commercial audience after his departure from No Limit.

• Album · 2003

  Can I Burn? 2

  Can I Burn? 2, released in 2003, continued the series that had begun with Fiend’s first independent album. The project reached number 55 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and reinforced Fiend Entertainment’s role as an outlet for Fiend’s self-directed Southern hip-hop work.

• Album · 2004

  Go Hard or Go Home

  Issued on August 31, 2004, Go Hard or Go Home was Fiend’s third documented independent album under the Fiend Entertainment umbrella. It reached number 55 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and continued the label’s focus on artist-led album production rather than a broad commercial roster.

• Album · 2006

  The Addiction: Hope Is Near

  The Addiction: Hope Is Near was released on June 27, 2006. It was the fourth independent album listed in Fiend’s post-No Limit sequence and reached number 70 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

• Album · 2015

  Street Aint Safe, Vol. 3

  Released on July 10, 2015, Street Aint Safe, Vol. 3 was credited to Fiend Entertainment in association with Rapbay and Urbanlife Distribution. The release represents the label’s later independent distribution activity after Fiend’s involvement with Jet Life Recordings.

• Album · 2015

  Heart of a Ghetto Boy: Volume 1

  Heart of a Ghetto Boy: Volume 1 was released independently on August 21, 2015. Reference material identifies Fiend Entertainment as the issuing platform, making it one of the clearest later examples of Fiend’s continued independent label activity.

• 2011

  Fiend signs with Jet Life RecordingsM&A

  Background

  Fiend remained active as an independent artist while seeking a collaborative connection with another New Orleans-centered rap enterprise.

  Action taken

  He announced a signing with Currensy’s Jet Life Recordings and joined the Jet Life group.

  Aftermath

  The relationship led to the collaborative Jet World Order project and supplemented Fiend’s own label identity.

  Source

• 2000

  Fiend establishes an independent label platformStrategy

  Background

  After separating from No Limit Records and briefly associating with Ruff Ryders Entertainment, Fiend pursued greater control over his recordings and release schedule.

  Action taken

  He started Fiend Entertainment and used it to issue Can I Burn? and subsequent solo projects.

  Aftermath

  The label became the principal independent outlet for Fiend’s post-No Limit catalog, although public sources do not document a large-scale label operation.

  Source

1. 1Fiend (rapper)en.wikipedia.org