Percy “Master P” Miller built No Limit Records into one of hip-hop’s most successful independent labels by retaining ownership of his masters and a majority cut of his own record sales, at a time when few artists in the industry did either.
Master P returns to headline the Cash Money & No Limit Tour when it opens Sept. 11 at Toyota Center, the first stop on a 17-city run reuniting two of Southern hip-hop’s most influential labels. Ahead of the show, he sat down with the Defender to discuss what that music ownership model means today, as artificial intelligence and shrinking streaming payouts reshape how young artists build their careers.
“I’ve been doing it for over 30 years,” Miller said. “And I think the sustainability comes from one, having integrity, two, consistency, and not being afraid to put the work in.”
He pointed to the years he spent hand-delivering records to Houston DJs and club promoters, passing out jackets and posters, and once dressing homeless people in No Limit T-shirts to turn them into what he called “walking billboards,” building the label’s name before he had a marketing budget to buy it.
He also invested directly in his own education. Miller said he once paid $25,000 to work with an attorney who had represented Michael Jackson, specifically to learn the business side of the industry.
“You’ve got to constantly want to grow to know the business,” he said. “That’s the only way you’re going to survive.”
Miller founded No Limit Records in 1991 after opening a small record store in Richmond, California. By 1996, the independent label had struck a distribution deal with Priority Records that let Miller retain full ownership of his masters and keep 85% of record sales, an arrangement almost unheard of in the industry at the time. No Limit went on to sell more than 100 million albums worldwide, according to multiple reports, turning Miller and turning artists like Snoop Dogg and Mystikal into some of the era’s biggest stars.
That ownership model is the foundation Miller wants young artists to study now, even as the tools of the business shift under them. AI-generated music has surged industrywide; the streaming platform Deezer reported receiving roughly 75,000 AI-generated tracks a day in 2026, accounting for 44% of all daily uploads. Miller said he isn’t rattled by it.
“Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself. And don’t forget where you came from.”
Master P
“Even as AI grows, they still need somebody behind it,” he said. “We talk about streaming, the game has changed, but I feel like if you own your stuff, you’ve just got to be able to keep up with the times.”
Miller said he tells young artists to be honest with themselves about whether they want to run a business or simply make music. “Being a boss and being an entrepreneur is not for everybody,” he said, recalling a $1 million, seven-year record deal he turned down early in his career to invest in himself instead. “You’ve got to know what you want.”
“Everybody has 24 hours. What are you doing with your 24 hours?” Miller said artists who spend that time partying instead of building a brand shouldn’t expect the same results as those who don’t. “You got to know what you want. Everybody don’t have to be the boss… any company need workers.”
Miller attended the University of Houston on a basketball scholarship before a knee injury sent him to Merritt College in Oakland, California, where he studied business administration, training that later shaped how he ran No Limit. Houston also took in members of his extended family and community after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and his son, Mercy Miller, is entering his second season as a guard for the UH Cougars, who reached the NCAA Final Four in 2025.
“Houston is like my second home,” Miller said. “I done brought many houses for my family out here in Houston, so just to be here, you just feel like home, a home away from home.”
The Sept. 11 concert will reunite Cash Money artists Birdman, Juvenile, Mannie Fresh, and B.G. with No Limit’s Silkk the Shocker, Mia X, Mac, Fiend, Choppa, and Mr. Serv-On, along with special guest Boosie. The show follows the labels’ Oct. 25, 2025, Verzuz battle at ComplexCon in Las Vegas, which reintroduced both catalogs to a new generation of fans. Proceeds from the tour benefit Miller’s Team Hope Foundation, which supports mental health resources in Black communities.
“This tour is already opening doors to new audiences, the same way Verzuz did,” Miller said. “What’s next for me is being able to educate the next generation.”
He is developing an early-childhood education project, Captain Ace, aimed at reaching kids before middle school, alongside his continued work coaching and mentoring young athletes in Houston.
“Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself,” he said. “And don’t forget where you came from.”
