On Monday, Cam'ron announced that his protégé, fellow Harlem rapperVado, has inked a recording contract with Interscope Records.
"He just signed a deal with Interscope," the rapper told Angie Martinez on her Hot 97 radio show. "Shout to Jimmy Iovine, DJ [DJ Mormile, senior VP of A&R at Interscope], what up, yo?! Big shout to DJ and Jimmy Iovine over there at Interscope. We appreciate that."
Since their reunion, various members of the Diplomats have mentioned the possibility of the group, formerly signed to Jay-Z's Roc-a-Fella Records, signing to Interscope.
"Everything is still going, but we all had prior obligations," Cam'ron said. "Like me and Vado got this Gunz 'n Butta album that's coming out. Jim [Jones] has a solo album coming out called Capo. Juelz [Santana] is working on his mixtape. But me and Jim just definitely had obligations with Koch that we couldn't drop everything. We working with DJ and Jimmy Iovine to get the deal over there at Interscope done for us as well. It's just a little more intricate being that everybody is signed to a label already."
Jones' contract with E1 Entertainment (formerly Koch Records) will be up after the release of his Capo album, due in stores April 5, according to Cam'ron. Santana is still on Def Jam Records, and despite his recenttrouble with authorities, the rapper announced plans to release three mixtapes prior to the arrival of a proper album at the end of the year, according to Rap Radar.
As for Vado, though he is not a formal member of the Diplomats (Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana and Freekey Zekey), he is an official member of Cam'ron's the UN, a separate group started before Dipset's reconciliation. Thanks to street burners like "Speakin' Tungs" and "We All Up in Here," it was thought that Vado would be a lock to make XXL magazine's Freshmen 2011 issue. But in early January, Cam'ron said Vado would pass on participating if the opportunity presented itself, saying his artist deserves a bigger look.
Vado released a retail mixtape, Slime Flu, last October and his collaborative album with Cam'ron, Gunz 'n Butta, comes out on April 19 on E1. While Vado's fanbase continues to expand, Killa Cam is clearly still one of his biggest supporters.
"Vado's crazy out there," Cam'ron said. "If y'all don't know about Vado, make sure y'all check that young boy out, man. He's the new voice of Lenox Ave. right now. Make sure you go get his mixtape, Slime Flu. We got an album coming out called Gunz 'n Butta and his solo album will be out later this year. That's my statement."