Jay-Z Didn't Sign 'X Factor' Rapper Astro To Roc Nation

Posted 12/6/11 8:34 am ET by MTV News in Music News

By Rob Markman

Despite all of the rumors that have been circulating on the web in the past few days, X Factor's whiz kid, Astro, tells MTV News that he hasn't actually signed a deal with Jay-Z's Roc Nation label. "I don't have a check or a contract, so as far as I know, I'm not signed," the 15-year-old MC said, when he stopped by our newsroom on Monday (December 5).

Last week, rumors that Hov signed the L.A. Reid-backed Astronomical Kid began to swirl online but the upstart rapper shot down the buzz. "I have never met anyone from Roc Nation. I'd love to, but I'm not signed right now to anyone," he said. "Nobody ever hit me up about that — just go on the Internet and it's up there. But I'm not signed as far as I know."

On last Thursday's episode, after giving a Michael Jackson-themed performance the night before, Astro was eliminated from the competition. Not that he was sweating it.

"Hey, man, it's for the better," the MC told "X Factor" host Steve Jones during his exit interview. "The only reason I'm mad is 'cause I don't get to see my girl that lives in Cali, but I will be back. ... I love my time. I've gained a lot of fans. People got picket signs tonight. I wish y'all the best of luck."

Astro wowed judges with his initial audition for the show when he rapped his own original composition, the viral hit "Stop Looking at My Mom." And during his "X Factor" run, he took hip-hop hits like Eminem's "Lose Yourself" and Jay-Z's "Show Me What You Got," effectively making them his own by adding new lyrics to the already popular beats.

Now that he is off the show, the Brooklyn whiz kid is looking forward to getting back into the studio and eventually signing a deal. "I just want to be in a place where I'm comfortable 100 percent. I just want to be able to release my music, do my movies, [and] everything is fair," he said of his dream deal. "I just want to be able to have fun doing it. I don't want music to be a job for me; I want it to be something I'm doing for fun. As long it's not a job then you're straight."