Common Ground 2013: Jon Connor

Flint rapper Jon Connor performs Sunday evening at Common Ground Music Festival.

FLINT, MI--After years of free releases, touring and recording, Flint rapper Jon Connor joins the record label home of rap legends Eminem and 50 Cent: Dre's Aftermath Entertainment.

Connor made the announcement during a performance at the BET Hip Hop Awards, which aired on Tuesday, Oct. 15. He was participating in one of the award show's "Ciphers," a down the-line rap session with other up-and-coming rap artists Wax, Rapsody, Emis Killa, and Rittz.

Connor's verse was the last of the performance. Switching between a fast, double-time flow and a steadier one, he name-dropped Michigan before ending his verse by revealing the news to event attendees and viewers at home.

"I cleared all y'all that got in the way. Y'all knew that I was ill, but now my doctor is Dre," Connor said, using wordplay to refer to his new label boss. "Aftermath. AVM. Flint, Michigan."

He then held open his jacket to reveal a black shirt that read "Flint" in white letters.

Connor visited Dr. Dre's Los Angeles home in July, shortly after performing at Lansing's Common Ground Music Festival with fellow Flint native, and The X Factor USA finalist, Lyric Da Queen.

He told Flint Journal that Xzibit, a rap/TV star and frequent Dr. Dre collaborator, helped Connor connect with Dre, after Connor toured with Xzibit earlier this year. Connor has also been cosigned by Mr. Porter, a member of Aftermath Records' production stable and of Eminem's rap group D12.

As a signee to Aftermath Entertainment, Connor will join a lineage of some of hip-hop's most successful artists. Eminem, 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, and others have all enjoyed fruitful careers with Dr. Dre's musical production and mentorship.

Since the label was founded in 1996, 15 of its 19 albums have been certified as "platinum"--the Recording Industry Association of America's award certification to honor one million units sold--or higher. Eminem's "The Marshall Mathers LP" and "The Eminem Show," along with 50 Cent's "Get Rich Or Die Tryin'," were RIAA-certified as diamond with 10 million units sold.

The Aftermath news will likely intensify rumors of Connor writing lyrics for "Detox," Dr. Dre's oft-delayed final album. The record has developed a virtually mythical status because of years of release delays and limited output, but Connor insisted that the album is there.

"'Detox' is going to come out whenever it's ready for him to put it out," Connor said. "It's not as mythical as people think. ... 'Detox' is definitely real."

The signing also makes Connor one of the most visible rap artists in Flint's history. He grew up listening to Genesee County acts like Top Authority, The Dayton Family, and MC Breed. The latter enjoyed hit singles such as "Ain't No Future In Yo Frontin" and the 2Pac-featured "Gotta Get Mine" before he died in his sleep in 2008.

In his last conversation with Flint Journal, Connor said he looks at their careers with "respect and appreciation."

"At the end of the day, Dayton Family, Top Authority, MC Breed, all of them paved the way for whatever I'm doing," Connor said. "...I'm the new generation, but nothing I do will ever trump or erase the history they have set in motion. I'm coming in and adding on to the lineage and history they've already set."