Jake Brown took our money, but he won't give it back. Why, Jake?
$50 richer. My $50, that is.
We represent a hardworking band that fell into a trap set by Mr. Jake Brown of Nashville, Tennessee.
In 2009, Jake put together a music biography project -- in this case, a biography of Alice in Chains. Just like past projects, the book was to feature a Sampler CD featuring independent artists that love and are influenced by the bands he writes about.
Jake advertises his upcoming projects via news posts on popular music sites. And, as bands send money to secure a spot on the disc, they also help a seemingly struggling author develop their book career. In what is advertised as a mutually-beneficial gain -- it turns out that the end result, in our case, was much farther from the truth.
In this case, it's a downright lie. And we'd like to tell you about it.
The book came out almost a year late, and with no CD. Jake decided that the CD would be left out only after he collected money from the bands.
And Mr. Brown refuses to give us our money back.
When we did finally receive a copy of the book - out of 5 promised - the result resembled utter garbage in content, grammar and promises.
The goal of this site is to raise awareness so that what happened to us doesn't happen to you. And to us, that is $50 well spent.
After all, it's not about $50. It's about doing a good job, and honoring promises while not ripping people off.
We got ripped off. And we've been told we're not alone.
Here is our story.
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January 16th, 2009.
Wow, great news today! I saw a post that an up-and-coming author is putting together a book on Alice in Chains.
Even better, he's promised a spot on a Sampler CD which is going to ship with it. Only $50!
Heck, the money alone is worth it to help out with publishing costs and get some exposure, right? And the cover looks awesome!!!
January 19th, 2009.
This guy has put together an awesome package. In return for the fee, we'll get nationwide press, as well as 5 copies of the book.
Release date: Summer 2009 - right ahead of the first AiC album in 14 years. Great timing -- I'm in!
Christmas, 2009.
Well, I guess I'm not totally sure what happened to the book. Some emails from Jake here and there, but I guess I was expecting it to come out this summer. Meh.
June, 2010.
The book's coming out soon. I think. I wonder where our copies are.
Hmm. I'm hungry.
July 1st, 2010.
Supposedly this thing is going to arrive any day now.
Black Gives Way to Blue came out 9-29-2009, so it made sense for Alice in Chains: In the Studio to come out over 9 months later. I think.
Ehh... I'm sure this will give enough time for people to hear of the CD. It'll increase sales of the book, too, right??
Not so great.
Guess not.
July 6th, 2010.
I had an old hot dog left over from the holiday. I feel sad. I wonder where the books are.
Maybe they are still baking- Mom said special packages like me take 9 months anyway!
There are 2 weiners on this webpage. This is one.
July 10th, 2010.
Oooh! I received a copy!
Wait... this doesn't look like the book Jake told us he was making.
It's.... it's actually pretty crappy =-(
It accidentally dropped in the toilet once. Oops.
July 12th, 2010.
Well, I went through the package. I sure can't find the other 4 books he promised to send.
I know... it must not have been the final version, right? Besides, the writing capabilities mirrored that of a fetus. And the cover sure looked like the wrong end of High School shop class.
Please note that the bands were told their information would be digitally accessible via the media disc, and were not asked to have that information reprinted in the book.
Sigh. I hope people don't think the bands suck as much as this thing.
Software which I believe has been used to attain similar results in various 3rd-world publications.
Wait - Where are the CD's????!!!
I thought they came with the... OH! I remember him letting us know there would be no CD's the 11th hour before release. Things change, right?
Digital download? I, uhh.. hmm... I don't remember agreeing to that.
I guess the CD we paid for didn't quite work out.
Later in July, 2010.
Not one to give up, Jake put together a website for everyone to get the songs. After all, according to the stellar sales records, I bet that half those buying the book did so just to support their friends' bands on the sampler.
Err -- the missing sampler.
It's awesome - take a look!
Screenshot taken 7-22-2010, 42 days after the book's release.
Now that I think about it...
I feel like a sad panda.
Actual picture of defrauded musician.
Jake, I know you're having trouble and everything...
Associated reading: Are Unpaid Internships Illegal?
But I want my money back.
Please give us our money back, Jake.
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If you'd like to get in touch with Mr. Jake Brown:
Jake Brown
Rock ‘N’ Roll Books
5101 Linbar Drive, #H306
Nashville, TN 37211
Rock ‘N’ Roll Books
1607 Brentwood Terrace
Nashville, TN 37211
Phone: (615) 739-6046
E-Fax: (212) 401-4785
rocknrollbooks@yahoo.com
http://www.myspace.com/jakebrown420
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Here are a list of other masterpieces by Mr. Jake Brown:
* Suge Knight: The Rise, Fall, and Rise of Death Row Records (Amber Communications Group, October 2001)
* Ready to Die: The Story of Biggie Smalls (Amber Communications Group, May 2004)
* Your Body's Calling Me: The Life and Times of "Robert" R. Kelly (Amber Communications Group, May 2004)
* Dust N' Bones: The Untold Story of Izzy Stradlin (Black Market Publishing, February, 2005)
* 50 Cent: No Holds Barred (Colossus Books, June 2005)
* Jay-z...And the Roc-a-fella Dynasty (Amber Books, June 2005)
* Tupac: in the Studio (Amber Books, June 2005)
* An Education in Rebellion: The Biography of Nikki Sixx (Black Market, August 2005)
* Kanye West: in the Studio (Amber Books, April 2006)
* Dr. Dre: in the Studio (Amber Communications Group, March 2007)
* Heart: in the Studio (ECW Press, June 2008)
* Black Eyed Peas: An Unauthorized Biography (Amber Communications Group, June 2008)
* Red Hot Chili Peppers: In the Studio (Amber Communications Group, June 2008)
* Prince: in the Studio (1975-1995) (Amber Communications Group, June 2009)
* Rick Rubin: In the Studio (ECW Press, August 2009)
* Behind the Boards: The Best Kept Secrets and Untold Studio Stories of Rock & Roll Hit Records
* Motorhead: in the Studio (John Blake, November 2009)
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jake_Brown_%28biographer%29
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Although presented with a feeble attempt at humor, this webpage is a testament to our experiences with Jake Brown and represents facts regarding monetary transactions and our opinions in general.
If you feel you have also been defrauded, please seek the below authorities. We are mounting evidence for a class-action lawsuit and would like to gather your story.
The Tennesse State Attorney General can be contacted here:
http://www.tn.gov/attorneygeneral/
If you have been a victim of fraud, the Nashville Police are very nice people whom can help you to file a criminal fraud report for any situation that may require it
http://www.police.nashville.org/forms/contactus.aspx
Thanks for reading.
