Carmelo Anthony: My Man, My Melo

In just three seasons, Carmelo Anthony has been an NBA force to be reckoned with. The former Syracuse star has taken the Denver Nuggets from an NBA joke to a franchise with a hopeful future encouraged by a lot of widespread supporters. The 22 year-old Forward has changed minds everywhere based on his young leadership on the court.

With the arguable exception of Shaq, no hoops star has ever bode as well in the music industry. While Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson were unsuccessful despite major label backing, Ron Artest, Nick Van Exel, and others have hoped to channel success to fledging labels supported with NBA dollars. The jury’s still out if the NBA’s run at the industry will be as close as Master P’s run at the NBA. To date, there's been no burden of proof.

Carmelo Anthony, with his age and heavy persona, may stand to change things up a bit. Krossover Entertainment is his vehicle to Hip-Hop. While he adamantly denies wishing to crack the mic himself, it’s Krossover’s artist, Berg, that is the label's first free-throw at the game.

AllHipHop.com and ‘Melo discussed his industry plan of attack shorly before the Denver Nuggets’ first round appearance in the NBA Playoffs. While the team’s defeat to the Clippers makes the 2006-2007 season seem very distant in Carmelo Anthony’s life, it brings him to his industry task at hand much sooner. The young star is quiet, but determined. One of those traits feels lost in both music and sports. The other trait has been embedded in winners since the beginning of time. Get the skinny.

AllHipHop.com: You’ve dealt with a DVD controversy before. Do you worry about controversy attached to putting out a rap record?

Carmelo Anthony: No, because I’m not rapping, so I don’t have anything to really worry about.

AllHipHop.com: Players like Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest haven’t been as successful in rap and entertainment as they have been on the courty. What do you think will make you different with Krossover Entertainment?

Carmelo Anthony: The difference is all of them tried to rap. I’m not going into the booth, so that’s different. And I don’t think all of them were willing to put the time and effort into it like I am.

AllHipHop.com: What types of things do you plan on doing as an executive to make this a success?

Carmelo Anthony: Whatever it’s going to take. Whether it’s sitting down and taking meetings with anybody, just doing whatever it’s going to take, I’m willing to do.

AllHipHop.com: You have a relationship with LaLa. What role is she going to have with the company?

Carmelo Anthony: [I’ll be] using her networking ability, and just using her connects and using my connects in order to make this a success.

AllHipHop.com: Is she going to be a part of the label, in terms of performing?

Carmelo Anthony: No, not at all.

AllHipHop.com: So just for the record, you have no plans of jumping into the entertainment side of it, you’re just going to stick to the business side of it?

Carmelo Anthony: Yeah.

AllHipHop.com: Besides the music and the basketball, you recently got into the Indy Car circuit. How do you find enough hours in the day to get this all done?

Carmelo Anthony: With the Indy Car thing, it’s only on weekends. I’m going to be able to get to some races, and others I won’t. They understand that, because it’s during the [NBA] season.

AllHipHop.com: I know Joe Montana was involved in that sport at one time. But how did Indy Car and Carmelo Anthony come together. It seems like a weird combination?

Carmelo Anthony: The opportunity was brought to me and my Vice President of Marketing. He [has recently] went to listen to Gene Simmons at a conference in Los Angeles, and they just got to networking, and it was a good fit and good opportunity for everybody.

AllHipHop.com: What Hip-Hop do you listen to? What’s in your headphones before a game?

Carmelo Anthony: I listen to everything, man. I don’t try to narrow my choices down to one person. I try to listen to everyone.

AllHipHop.com: When you’re looking for a specific artist for your label, what do they have to bring to the table for you to give them a good look?

Carmelo Anthony: Most importantly, I’m a fan, so I know what I want to hear and I know what people want to hear. I know the music a fan wants to hear, so when I listen to music I listen to it as a fan.

AllHipHop.com: Have you sewn up distribution?

Carmelo Anthony: We’re still in the process of doing that, but in the meantime we’re doing it on our own right now. We’re trying to do things on our own and show people we’re really working and putting in the effort and time and doing it.

AllHipHop.com: When you tell people about your plans for your company have you found that people have been supportive or the “Here we go again…” type deal?

Carmelo Anthony: Naw, I think people have been supportive. Of course you’re going to have people out there who say its just another ‘basketball player whose trying to something,’ but overall, I’ve gotten a lot of support.