The "RCA Curse" Explained

For years now, fans have noticed that some artists signed to RCA Records have had a little trouble releasing music. From shelved EPs and albums to leaked singles, many fans have accused the label of both mismanagement and sabotaging their artists. RCA has been around for over a century, and while the label has helped greats like Elvis ride to the top, artists like Zayn, Tinashe, and Normani have seemed to suffer during their time with RCA. Because of this, Internet fans have coined the term "RCA Curse", referring to the bad luck a lot of artists seem to have after signing with RCA. Is the RCA Curse real? Let's take a look at the careers of some of their artists, and some of RCA's shady actions and try to come to a conclusion. *Disclaimer: this is just a fan theory so RCA don't sue me I'm broke* SOURCES: Zayn Thread: https://twitter.com/zayndata1/status/1247003992254746625?lang=en Tinashe Thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/okrbfo/5_years_ago_tinashe_released_superlove _a/ Normani Thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/p2dc34/is_rca_sabotaging_normani_if_so_why/ Avril Lavigne Blog: https://www.fanpop.com/clubs/avril-lavigne/articles/234772/title/why-rca-bad-record-label-avril-lavigne https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RCA_Records#Beginnings_and_history https://www.spontaneouslunacy.net/rca-records/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Talking_Machine_Company https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/28/arts/the-pop-life-rca-gambling-on-kenny-rogers.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Rogers#Solo_career_and_duets_with_other_artists https://www.distractify.com/p/zayn-malik-rca https://www.nylon.com/free-zayn-hashtag-campaign-twitter https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/3962177/zayn-malik-axed-record-label-rca-drugs/ https://uproxx.com/music/tinashe-rca-record-label/ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/tinashe-no-longer-signed-rca-795297/ https://www.thefader.com/2019/02/19/tinashe-rca-label-dispute-independent https://www.billboard.com/artist/normani-kordei/ https://variety.com/2021/music/news/tunji-balogun-named-ceo-def-jam-records-1235037775/ https://torontolife.com/culture/avril-lavigne-is-very-very-pissed-off-at-her-record-label/ https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/avril-lavigne-battles-her-label-works-with-ex-husband-on-goodbye-lullaby-472663/