LET’S MAKE A DEAL: When director John...

LET’S MAKE A DEAL: When director John Singleton went to Epic Records to negotiate the rights for the soundtrack album for his upcoming “Poetic Justice,” he had bigger things in mind. “I said, ‘You guys want to get into business with me on the soundtrack, you gotta give me a label,’ ” he recalls.

Impressed by Singleton’s use of music in the new film and in his directing debut “Boyz N the Hood,” the label said sure. And now Singleton, 25, joins the roster of film directors who are also record company executives, alongside the likes of Spike Lee and James Cameron.

Singleton insists that this venture is not just a toy for him, saying that he has legitimate ambitions to become a multimedia mogul. Among his first moves was to bring in Paul Stewart, who had been a top figure at Ice Cube’s Street Knowledge company and who manages the Pharcyde and other acts, to run the company, which is called New Deal.

The label’s first release will be the “Poetic Justice” soundtrack, featuring tracks by TLC, Babyface, Naughty by Nature and Stevie Wonder--but not Janet Jackson, the star of the film. Her song “Again” is featured in the movie, but can only be found on her new “janet.” album. Also due from New Deal: an album in September by L.A. rapper Mr. Grimm and one in January from soul/R&B; group Cultural Revolution.