Unconventional, elusive, and often confessional, Frank Ocean has long been an enigma. It’s said the name Ocean was inspired by the character Danny Ocean from the Oceans movie series – a character known for executing elaborate schemes. Years after officially changing his name, Frank Ocean would live up to the “Ocean” name with his own heist.

In 2009, he signed with Def Jam ready to start his solo career. The label however, offered minimal support and Ocean released a mixtape, ‘Nostalgia ULTRA’ independently via Tumblr which proved to be a breakout success. His next project ‘Channel Orange’ was his first major label album, topping global charts it also went on to win a Grammy. After earning critical acclaim, Def Jam awarded Ocean a $2M advance for his next album. Yet, despite his success, Ocean fell out of the public eye. He resurfaced in 2015 with a cryptic post “I got two versions. I got twooo versions” and anticipation was mounting.

Ocean’s next album was to be titled ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ but it never released. Instead, fans received a 45-minute visual album titled ‘Endless’ in 2016. Visuals of Ocean in a studio, building a staircase with the ‘Endless’ audio on loop, left fans perplexed. For many, ‘Endless’ was a pleasant surprise and for Def Jam, it fulfilled Ocean's contractual obligations.

“It started to weigh on me that I was responsible for the moves that had made me successful, but I wasn't reaping the lion's share of the profits, and that was problematic for me”. 

When ‘Endless’ was released, Ocean had already paid back Def Jam $2M to regain ownership of his masters, making him officially independent. A check-mate in what Ocean referred to as a “seven-year chess game”, the precision of his moves only became clear the next day, when the album ‘Blonde’ was released independently and exclusively to Apple Music.

‘Endless’ had turned out to be a perfectly staged bluff – the winding staircase serving as an aversion and representing Ocean’s long-awaited exit from Def Jam. ‘Blonde’ landed at #1 in 7 countries, and along with $20M from #Apple for having exclusivity, Ocean had obtained complete control over his work.