Tech N9ne signed to Quincy Jones's Quest Records and another label, but both deals collapsed and left his debut unreleased. Frustrated, he co-founded Strange Music in 1999 and built it into the world's leading independent hip-hop label by touring constantly and releasing album after album without a major distributor.
Tech N9ne signed with two major labels before he ever built an empire, and both deals fell apart. He worked with Quincy Jones's label Quest Records on what was supposed to be his debut. It never came out. Same story with another deal before that. Years in development hell, as insiders called it. Talent nobody could deny, but he still wasn't the one calling the shots. So in 1999, Tech partnered with a local businessman, not a label, and built his own label, Strange Music. No major distributor picked him. He built the machine himself, touring relentlessly, album after album, until Strange MUSIC became the number one independent hip-hop label in the world. He didn't wait to be signed, he built what should have signed him.
