Violator is a company, record label, marketing group, and multi-media entertainment conglomerate founded and operated by

Chris Lighty Darrel Steven "Chris" Lighty (May 8, 1968 – August 30, 2012) was an American music manager and record producer. He co-founded Violator, a record label, management and marketing company, which represented hip hop and R&B artists such as Busta ...

and Mona Scott-Young until Lighty's death on August 30, 2012.Violator - The Company
Violator. Accessed August 25, 2007.

History

In 1996, Lighty partnered with manager Scott-Young to launch Violator management. The company specialized in managing the careers of

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

and R&B performers and is also a record label. Included among Violator's past and present clients are

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey ( ; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Songbird Supreme" by ''Guinness World Records'', Carey is known for her five-octave voc ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after National Football League, NFL and Canadian Football Lea ...

N.O.R.E. Victor James Santiago Jr. (born September 6, 1977), better known by his stage name, stage names N.O.R.E. (an acronym for Nigga On the Run Eating) and Noreaga, is an American rapper, singer and podcaster. Santiago first rose to prominence as one ...

Q-Tip Cotton swabs (American English) or cotton buds (British English), also Q-tips ( proprietary eponym), are wads of cotton wrapped around a short rod made of wood, rolled paper, or plastic. They are most commonly used for ear cleaning, although th ...

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott (born July 1, 1971), also known as Misdemeanor, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She began her musical career as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B girl group 4 All the Sistas Arou ...

, Fantasia,

Mýa Mya Marie Harrison (; born October 10, 1979), known professionally as Mýa, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, and actress. She was born in Washington D.C. and studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance as a child. Her ca ...

Diggy Simmons Daniel Dwayne "Diggy" Simmons III (born March 21, 1995) is an American rapper, singer and actor from Queens, New York City. The fourth child of Run-DMC's Joseph "Rev. Run" Simmons, he began his recording career in 2009 and signed with Atlantic ...

Cormega Corey McKay, better known by his stage name Cormega, is an American rapper. Early life Cormega was born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens. He was childhood friends with Nas, Havoc and Capone, who all went on to become successful rappers. A ...

Mobb Deep Mobb Deep was an American Hip-hop, hip hop duo formed in Queens, New York (state), New York in 1990. Consisting of rappers/songwriters/record producers Prodigy (rapper), Prodigy and Havoc (musician), Havoc, they are considered to be among the pr ...

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, alongside fellow new school hip ho ...

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...

JoJo Pellegrino Joseph Edwards (born September 13, 1977), professionally known as Jojo Pellegrino, is an American rapper, songwriter and actor from Staten Island, NY. Pellegrino was formally managed by Chris Lighty as a member of the legendary Violator imprint. ...

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

Fat Joe Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper. He began recording as a member of Hip-hop, hip hop group D.I.T.C., Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992, and pursued a sol ...

Uncle Murda : ''For the American football player, see Len Grant'' Leonard Carl Grant (born June 25, 1980), better known by his stage name Uncle Murda, is an American rapper from Brooklyn, New York. He signed to 50 Cent's G-Unit Records in 2016, having previ ...

Frankie Cutlass Frank Javiel Malave (born January 16, 1971), better known by his stage name Frankie Cutlass, is an American Grammy nominated and award winning DJ, record producer, songwriter, and remixer from East Harlem, New York City. He was a member of the F ...

and Da Franchise . Violator has released two compilation albums of material from its artists: '' Violator: The Album'' and '' Violator: The Album, V2.0''. The first album features Q-Tip's first solo hit single, " Vivrant Thing". Lighty also managed

Sean "Puffy" Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, Combs worked as a ...

. In September 2009, CEO

joined the Advisory Board of Purista premium cocktail mixers to aid in the execution of the company's strategic marketing plans. Chris Lighty died on August 30, 2012.

Violator Entertainment

This is the list of movies and video games that Violator Entertainment has worked on. Music Manager Leon Derrick Youngblood SR collaborated with Dave Lighty to broker a deal for music producer/recording artist Roccstar, who is signed to Violator as a music producer and is currently working on several artist under the Violator umbrella, Chris Lighty signed off on the deal in 2011. *''

Full Clip ''Full Clip'' is a 2004 action film starring Busta Rhymes, Xzibit, Bubba Smith, Tiny Lister and Mark Boone Junior. It is directed by mink and written by Kantz. ''Full Clip'' is a 1970s-style blaxploitation action movie that is a loose remake o ...

'' (2004) *'' 50 Cent: Bulletproof'' (video game, 2005)

Discography

Singles

Clients

The following artists and producers were signed to Violator Management.Violator Management artists
Violator. Accessed August 29, 2007. *

* Diddy *

Papoose Papoose (from the Narragansett ''papoos'', meaning "child") is an American English word whose present meaning is "a Native American child" (regardless of tribe) or, even more generally, any child, usually used as a term of endearment, often in ...

Prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and m ...

Red Alert Red Alert or red alert may refer to: Alert states * Red alert, a high alert state * Red Alert, the "attack imminent" alert signal for the US civil defense siren * Red alert state, the most serious alert state in the UK BIKINI state system * Red ...

Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

Winky Wright Ronald Lamont "Winky" Wright (born November 26, 1971) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1990 to 2012. He is a two-time light middleweight world champion and was the last to hold the undisputed title at that weight until ...

Former artists

The following artists were signed to Violator Records *

(Violator/Relativity) *

(Violator/Def Jam) * CRU (Violator/Def Jam) *

Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and DJ who helped popularize West Coast hip hop during the 1990s.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. ...

(Violator/Def Jam) * Foxy Brown (Violator/Def Jam) * Da Franchise (Violator/Def Jam) *

The Beatnuts The Beatnuts is an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu (born Jerry Tineo on December 14, 1968) is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les (born Lester Fernandez ...

(Violator/Relativity) * Mysonne (Violator/Def Jam) *

(Violator/Loud) *

(Violator/Relativity) *

Chi-Ali Chi-Ali Griffith (born May 27, 1976), better known by his stage name Chi-Ali, is an American rapper from The Bronx, best known for his debut album, '' The Fabulous Chi-Ali'', released in 1992, and as a member of hip-hop collective Native Tongues ...

(Violator/Relativity)

Compilation albums

* '' Violator: The Album'' (Violator/Def Jam, 1999) * '' Violator: The Album, V2.0'' (Violator/Loud/Columbia, 2001) * ''V3: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly'' (unreleased) (Violator/ Jive), 2003)

References

External links

Official siteViolator Management Myspace
- Violator Management Myspace Page.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Violator (Company) Talent and literary agencies American record labels Contemporary R&B record labels Hip-hop record labels Record labels established in 1998 Mass media companies established in 1998 Entertainment companies of the United States Sports management companies Zomba Group of Companies subsidiaries