Keeping deals out of line of fire.

This article reports that razor-thin margins on album sales are making artists more dependent on pitching consumer products for profits, and more violence could cause the mainstream corporations that are venturing into the youth market through hip-hop to recoil from relationships with rappers. Established artists like 50 Cent are less likely to feel the backlash and may even benefit in the short term. His new album, "The Massacre," posted more than 1.14 million unit sales within four days of its release-a rare feat in a lackluster music market.