Haven’t we seen this before? Last year, Rhymefest responded to snarky remarks about his underperforming debut, Blue Collar, by posting a compelling essay about SoundScan sales and their irrelevance when it comes to good music. (Unfortunately, the memorable essay has since been removed from his MySpace page.) He has since stepped his game up by seeking out unlikely-but-platinum-certified producers like Lil Jon for his forthcoming follow up, El Che.

Now Consequence is trying to do the same thing. Last week his decade-in-the-making debut, Don’t Quit Your Day Job, bricked by selling a measly 7,490 units and htting no. 113 on the Billboard album charts. (In comparison, Blue Collar sold around 15,000 copies and reached no. 61.) In subsequent interviews, he has offered to give fans a refund if they can’t find a song they like on Don’t Quit Your Day Job. He then directed people to his MySpace page for further details.

I visited Consequence’s MySpace page, and all I could find was a bunch of YouTube videos and a message board stuffed with spam. Where’s the refund information? I want my money back for that wack-ass album cover.

Consequence has given several reasons for the lack of success of his new album. “I put the record out through the vehicle of Red because I was hoping that with all the things that I had done, I could come out 10,000 the first week,” he told Allhiphop.com, referring to the G.O.O.D. Music/Red Distribution partnership that issued Don’t Quit Your Day Job. Originally, it was supposed to come out on Sony proper. “I came close. I didn’t know when I was gonna have the option to utilize the promotional engine of Sony. And that’s why I chose to go this route, because I felt it was that important to get the music out, to get the message out. A lot of people wouldn’t even have gambled with their reputation like that.”

“I knew I was gonna sell records on my namesake alone. I spent basically zero dollars on marketing and promotion. You didn’t see any billboards or anything on my record,” he griped to SOHH.com. “Of course, if you look at it without any information you’re like, ‘Consequence only sold 7,000.’ But if you know the science behind it, motherfuckers is calling me from the office like I scored. I’m still in the red, but I’m way closer to recouping than the top ten artists that are on Billboard right now.”

Stay tuned for Consequence’s next album, I’m About to Retire from My Day Job. It’s scheduled to drop in 2017.

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While opening for A Tribe Called Quest at the Tabernacle in Atlanta, Consequence announced that his long delayed album Don’t Quit Your Day Job will finally drop in February 2007. Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music, which enjoys a distribution deal with Sony BMG, will put it out. But with SA-RA and Fonsworth Bentley set to drop soon, too, you may have to wait a little longer.

In the meantime, for those who missed Consequence re-enacting his classic “Phony Rappers” verse, the Queens MC will make select appearances on John Legend’s promo tour. Here are the dates taken from G.O.O.D. Music’s MySpace page:

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www.myspace.com/constothequence