L.A. Reid Explains Why Epic Records Hasn’t Paid Bobby Shmurda’s Bail

Earlier this month, Bobby Shmurda once again saw his bail denied by a New York judge. The 21-year-old rapper was arrested alongside more than a dozen associates last December on a series of drug and weapons charges. The arrests were the culmination of an extensive investigation by a Special Narcotics Prosecutor; the charges  GS9 members--though not necessarily Shmurda--face include murder and attempted murder. This Feb 22, Shmurda expressed his frustration with Epic Records for their unwillingness to help him post bail, which was then set at $2 million. Now awaiting a trial scheduled for Feb. 22 of 2016, Shmurda has yet to be freed, leading to many of the rapper's supporters questioning his label's motives. But recently, Epic boss L.A. Reid took to the Rap Radar podcast to give his side of the story.

"People don't know anything about my business," Reid said. "It's really not their business. That's the truth about it, right? We're not elected officials here, and we're not at liberty to disclose how we do business. It's fair practice. I can tell you that." He went on to compare Shmurda's financial production to other famously incarcerated rappers: "Bobby Shmurda is not the same as Snoop Dogg and 'Murder Was the Case,' who's coming off The Chronic and [Doggystyle]." He added, "It's a different era, you know? And we're a publicly held corporation. We just aren't in the same position we were in back in those days so it's a different day."