Grafh was on the verge of becoming one of New York's biggest rap stars à la 50 Cent in the early 2000s. His electrifying mixtapes and guest verses grabbed the attention of rappers from all coasts, enabling him to cut tracks with Jay-Z, Scarface, and E-40. Unfortunately, label shakeups and general inertia left the aspiring MC's projects on the back burner. In competition to attain a record deal with artists from G-Unit, Dipset, and many other N.Y. camps, he found a home at Epic. Between 2003 and 2004, he rhymed on the remixes for Top Ten hit singles by Ginuwine and Beyoncé. However, due to the restructuring of Epic's parent label Sony in 2004, Grafh had to take his recorded material elsewhere. Damon Dash reached out to the rapper, but the split of Roc-a-Fella Records added yet more obstacles to the release of his first solo album.