Virgin Records Ltd was a British independent record label founded by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman in 1972. It grew to be a worldwide success over time, with the success of platinum performers such as Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, Devo, Tangerine Dream, Genesis, Phil Collins, the Human League, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Lenny Kravitz and Mike Oldfield among others, meaning that by the time it was sold, it was regarded as a major label, alongside other large international independents such as A&M and Island Records.
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of motor and town, has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered.
Eric B. & Rakim are an American hip hop duo formed in Long Island, New York, in 1986, composed of DJ Eric B. and MC Rakim. AllMusic wrote that "during rap's so-called golden age in the late '80s, Eric B. & Rakim were almost universally recognized as the premier DJ/MC team in all of hip-hop." Tom Terrell of NPR called them "the most influential DJ/MC combo in contemporary pop music period." The editors of About.com ranked them as No. 5 on their list of the 10 Greatest Hip-Hop Duos of All-Time, and Rolling Stone ranked them No. 5 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time.
Roger McBride, better known by his stage name King T, is an American West Coast Hip hop rapper from Compton, California. Emerging as one of Compton's earliest hip hop artists, he was signed to Capitol records, where he released his debut album Act a Fool in 1988 with the hit singles "Act a Fool," "Payback's A Mutha," "The Coolest," and "Bass” [Remix], all of which were considered hip-hop classics. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he worked primarily with producer DJ Pooh, and was responsible for the rise of Tha Alkaholiks, whom he helped guide into the rap game. King T is also the CEO of his own record label, King T Inc.
Profile Records is a record label that specialized in urban-oriented music such as hip hop.
Mark Howard James professionally known as The 45 King, is an American hip hop record producer and disc jockey (DJ) from The Bronx borough of New York City. James began DJing in New Jersey, in the mid-1980s. His pseudonym, the 45 King, came from his ability to make beats using obscure 45 RPM records.
Kendrick Jeru Davis, known as Jeru the Damaja, is an American rapper and record producer. He is known for his 1993 single "Come Clean" from his debut album, The Sun Rises in the East, ranked as one of the 100 greatest hip-hop albums of all time by the editors of About.com. He has worked extensively with Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr, whom he has known since he was in high school.
Field Mob is an American hip hop group from Albany, Georgia, composed of artists Shawn Timothy Johnson and Darion Crawford, better known by their stage names, Shawn Jay and Smoke respectively. Field Mob is currently signed to T-Pain's label Nappy Boy Entertainment and managed by La' Roc Management Group owned by Christopher King.
Hardnoise were an early British hip hop group. Hardnoise, along with early label-mates Hijack, was influential in establishing the UK hardcore sound. The group only released a handful of singles before reforming with a changed membership as Son of Noise.
Simon Harris is a DJ, producer, remixer and electronic musician predominantly known as the founder of the record label Music of Life and producer of most of its catalogue of songs.
Kane & Abel, formally known as 'Double Vision', is an American hip hop duo formed by twin brothers Daniel and David Garcia that were founded by Master P in late 1995. They were best known for their time with No Limit Records.
Black Radical Mk II is a British hip hop artist from Tottenham, London, England. He was one of the pioneers of the British scene, releasing his first single in 1987 and continuing to release records until 1998. He is most well known for his strident political views, which he often used as the basis for his records.
Andre O’Neal Harrell was an American music executive and multimedia producer. In 1986, recently a rapper, he formed Uptown Records, which became a leader in hip hop, R&B, and their fusion, "new jack swing." He gave Sean "Diddy" Combs his 1990 start in the business, and later was CEO of Motown Records.
Noo Trybe Records is an American hip hop record label established in 1994 and operated as a sublabel of Virgin Records. It was the distributor of several independent hip hop labels including Rap-A-Lot Records and AWOL.
Daddy-O is an American rapper and record producer. He began his career as founder and member of the hip-hop group Stetsasonic.
A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distributing releases from Polydor Ltd. from the UK. Throughout its operations, A&M housed well-known acts such as Gin Blossoms, Dishwalla, Joe Cocker, Procol Harum, Captain & Tennille, Sting, Sergio Mendes, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Supertramp, Bryan Adams, Burt Bacharach, Liza Minnelli, The Carpenters, Paul Williams, Quincy Jones, Janet Jackson, Cat Stevens, Peter Frampton, Elkie Brooks, Carole King, Styx, Dennis DeYoung, Extreme, Amy Grant, Joan Baez, The Police, Jann Arden, CeCe Peniston, Shanice, Blues Traveler, Soundgarden, Duffy, and Sheryl Crow.
Angelo Starr is an American singer, musician and record producer. He is also the younger brother of the late soul singer Edwin Starr.
Mark Duffus, also known as Sure Shot and Blak Prophetz, is a British rapper and producer from the West Midlands in England where he formed the group Blak Prophetz in the early 1980s.
An independent record label is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented by trade associations in their country or region, which in turn are represented by the international trade body, the Worldwide Independent Network (WIN).
