G. Love has downsized

NEW YORK — For many musicians, getting a major label contract is the dream of a lifetime.

But G. Love, best known for his diverse mix of hip-hop, rock, blues and everything in between, has realized more of his dreams since downsizing from the big-time corporate music machine to a smaller label.

G. Love and his band, Special Sauce, put out their first record on Sony Music more than a decade ago and had hits like the songs "Cold Beverage" and "Rodeo Clowns." But over the years, the Philadelphia native felt lost in the shuffle — bigger acts seemed to get more of the priority, while his band got sidetracked.

That's no longer the case since he moved to his buddy Jack Johnson's label, Brushfire Records, three years back. Describing the atmosphere like "camp," G. Love (born Garrett Dutton) says it's been the best move of his career. His latest record, "Lemonade," featuring Johnson, Ben Harper, Blackalicious and others, has been a steady seller, and the group is playing for bigger crowds than ever.

Associated Press: What have you learned about surviving in the music industry?

G. Love: For a while, I was kind of unwilling to play the game, which is the music business, because I felt like spiritually, it would kind of infect me — infect my music, infect my soul, and I was just kind of wary of anything that had to do with the business side of it ... that kind of really hurt me early on in my career. It took me a while to learn how to play the game, to realize that the record label is actually trying to help blow you up, so how can you help them help you blow you up?

Associated Press: On your latest record, you have a lot of collaborations — it's almost like a party vibe.

G. Love: We were in the studio and the band was kind of struggling a little bit, not on any kind of vibe, just like not a good vibe, and the best way to break that up is to invite some special guests over ... and then we wouldn't be bickering ... we'd be on our best behavior (laughs). I think it's just a good catalyst for positive energy in the studio.

Associated Press: There's a whole debate on the state of hip-hop and that it's waning. What do you think?