Rockland Records was a vanity label conceived by R. Kelly. Having distribution from Interscope Records, Rockland's artists included Sparkle, rappers Boo & Gotti, Talent, and Vegas Cats (the latter two groups never released an album) among others. The soundtrack to the 1999 Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy movie Life was released on the Rockland label, and Sparkle was the first artist to release an album on the label. Despite various conflicts between Sparkle and the label, her debut album performed well, going gold. The album's most popular track was a duet between Kelly and Sparkle titled "Be Careful".
The conflicts between Sparkle and her label were many. First, Sparkle was dropped from the label for refusing to show up to work unless her boyfriend, Steve Huff, was allowed to work on her next project. In addition, she was released several times for insubordinance.
Finally, Sparkle was released for good and she went to Motown. The album's only minor hit was "It's A Fact" which reached #62 on the R&B charts. Sparkle tried to team up with Kelly once more but was unable, due to past issues.
After Kelly refused to work with Sparkle, she claimed her niece was in a sex tape having sex with R. Kelly, which Kelly, the girl, and her parents all denied.[1]
After dealing with the disloyal, ungrateful artists he tried to help out, R. Kelly shelved the label and focused on producing and writing songs. Boo & Gotti and Vegas Cats appeared on the R. Kelly albums R. and TP-2.com, as well as a freestyle from Boo & Gotti on The Fast and the Furious soundtrack, making several references to Rockland. Sparkle, Talent, and Vegas Cats all appeared on the Life soundtrack. Boo & Gotti would go to Cash Money Records.