Def Jam’s Kawan Prather: The Man Behind John Legend and T.I.’s Fame

Walking
through Kawan “KP” Prather’s house is like taking a trip through the
lives of the who’s who of music. On the wall of his “reflection” room,
are plaques from Usher, OutKast, Pink, John Legend, T.I., Toni Braxton
and more. As the senior vice president of A&R for Def Jam Records,
KP may be one of the most important people in the music business that
you don’t know.
           
Starting off as the DJ in the first rap group signed from the Dungeon
Family, Parental Advisory, back in the early ‘90s, L.A. Reid and his
then-wife, Pebbles, immediately recognized something special in him.
           
“Both of them were nudging me to be behind the scenes based on
conversation that I would have with them and the way that I thought
about music,” recalls KP, who has also worked as the head of A&R
for LaFace and Sony.
           
In the 15-plus years that he’s been in the music business, his track
record has been steady. He introduced Usher to Jermaine Dupri, spawning
their multiplatinum relationship. He signed John Legend and Killer Mike
and was responsible for crafting OutKast, Goodie Mob and Pink records.
But his claim to fame is signing T.I.
           
“We knew when he walked in the room he was special,” says KP, who also
has his own imprint, Get-o-vision, and a production duo with producer,
Malay (John Legend, Fantasia, Mario). “I ended up signing him that
week.” 
           
Now at Def Jam, KP hopes to continue his winning streak with his new
artist, Las Vegas rapper, Mr. Finely. Take a few tips from a real boss:

1. For artists: “Make sure that you’re
trying to perfect your craft. Don’t settle for average. If you come in
the door average, you’ll probably go out really wack.”

2. For A&Rs:
“Quincy Jones was an A&R person for Mercury, but he always was a
producer, he was a music guy. So traditionally, A&R people were
music people.”

3. For labels: “There was
a period of the homeboy A&R where they would just sign their
friends and they would just hustle to get things done. But it’s
[changing] now because the fans want more out of the music and the
artist.” –jacinta howard