SinceThe80s | |
---|---|
Parent company | Universal Music Group |
Founded | 2017 |
Founder | Barry "Hefner" Johnson Zekiel "Zeke" Nicholson |
Distributor(s) | |
Genre | Hip hop, R&B |
Country of origin | United States |
Location | Atlanta, Georgia Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Official website | sincethe80s |
SinceThe80s is an American record label, management, and publishing company founded by Barry "Hefner" Johnson, and Zekiel "Zeke" Nicholson, based in Atlanta and Pittsburgh. The label is a joint venture with Motown, a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. [1]
Barry "Hefner" Johnson started in the music industry from marketing and promotion with Warner Music Group and Sony Music, promoting Pittsburgh artists such as Wiz Khalifa and Mac Miller. [2] In 2014, Kei Henderson met 21 Savage during the annual Atlanta hip-hop festival, A3C, and became his manager, [3] while Johnson and Zekiel Nicholson co-manage JID and EarthGang, who both signed with Dreamville in 2017. [4] They made the progression from management to label executives since they already take on those responsibilities as managers, and launched SinceThe80s. Henderson told Billboard, "I realized how much I was doing on my own, everything from merch design, web design, staffing a team [and] hiring radio." [5]
In an interview with Billboard, they said the label is envisioned "as a collaborative brand that seeks to find and nurture the next wave of superstars from the culture hub of Atlanta." In 2019, the founders of label played an intricate part in Dreamville's recording sessions for the compilation album Revenge of the Dreamers III . Johnson and Nicholson convinced J. Cole to host the studio sessions at Tree Sound Studios in Atlanta instead of Los Angeles. Every artist on the label was invited to the sessions in Atlanta with the goal of fostering connections with other artists that attended. Johnson says Cole has "always been supportive" of SinceThe80s and has relationships with other Atlanta-based labels such as Love Renaissance. [6]
The label houses artists Njomza, Hardo, Asiahn, and Jordan Hawkins. [7] In 2020, the label added Metro Marrs to the roster who signed a joint deal with Quality Control, as well as Benji who is part of the collective Spillage Village. [8] The also house producers Christo, Malik Baptiste, Tommy Brown, and Pyrex. [6]
District 80 Publishing is an American music publisher part of SinceThe80s. The company published number 1 singles such as Ariana Grande's "Thank U, Next", "7 Rings", and "Positions", co-written by Tommy Brown and Njomza, "Better Off" and "Make Up", co-written by Malik Baptiste. [9]
Act | Year signed | Releases under the label |
---|---|---|
Njomza | 2018 | 2 |
Hardo | 2018 | 3 |
Asiahn | 2019 | 3 |
Jordan Hawkins | 2019 | 1 |
Metro Marrs | 2020 | 1 |
Benji. | 2020 | 1 |
Spillage Village | 2020 | 1 |
NDO Dee | 2023 | – |
Artist | Album | Details |
---|---|---|
Asiahn | Love Train 2 |
|
Hardo | Days Inn |
|
Spillage Village | Spilligion |
|
Hardo & Deezlee (with DJ Drama) | Fame or Feds 3 |
|
Benji. | Smile, You're Alive! |
|
Artist | Album | Details |
---|---|---|
Njomza | Vacation | |
Hardo | Trapn Fever 2 |
|
Asiahn | The Interlude |
|
Asiahn | The Interlude (Orchestral Performance) |
|
Njomza | LIMBO |
|
Jordan Hawkins | Heart Won't Stop |
|
Artist | Album | Details |
---|---|---|
Metro Marrs | Popular Loner |
|
Dreamville Records is an American record label founded by American rapper J. Cole and his manager Ibrahim Hamad. The label is currently distributed through Interscope Records, a unit of Universal Music Group. The roster includes Bas, Ari Lennox, Cozz, Omen, Lute, JID, EarthGang, and Cole himself. Dreamville also houses American record producers Elite, Ron Gilmore, and Cedric Brown.
EarthGang is an American hip hop duo from Atlanta, Georgia, composed of Olu and WowGr8. They are co-founders of the musical collective Spillage Village, with JID, Hollywood JB, JordxnBryant, 6lack, Mereba, and Benji.
Luther Nicholson, better known by his stage name Lute, is an American rapper. He is signed to J. Cole's Dreamville Records. He released his first mixtape, West1996, on February 22, 2012. His debut album, West1996 pt. 2, was released on September 29, 2017. His second album, Gold Mouf, was released on October 4, 2021.
Ricardo Valdez Valentine Jr., known professionally as 6lack, is an American singer, rapper, and songwriter. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, he gained recognition following the release of his 2016 single "Prblms", which marked his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. The song preceded the release of his debut studio album, Free 6lack in November of that year through Love Renaissance and Interscope Records. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Urban Contemporary Album and earned platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Destin Choice Route, better known by his stage name JID, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is a part of the musical collective Spillage Village, founded by EarthGang in 2010. He signed to J. Cole's Dreamville Records, an imprint of Interscope Records in 2017. He is also a member of the hip hop supergroup Zoink Gang, with Smino, Buddy, and Guapdad 4000. His fluent rapping style and usage of wordplay has been highly acclaimed by several music critics.
The Never Story is the debut studio album by American rapper JID. It was released on March 10, 2017, by Dreamville Records, Spillage Village and Interscope Records. The Never Story was supported by four official singles; "Never", "D/vision", "Hereditary" and "EdEddnEddy". The album received generally positive reviews from critics and debuted at number 197 on the US Billboard 200. J.I.D's lyrics details a narrative on his upbringing in East Atlanta.
Rags is the third EP by American hip-hop duo EarthGang, released August 31, 2017 by Spillage Village and distributed by Empire Distribution. Released after the announcement of their signing to Dreamville, it is the first installment in a trilogy of EPs, leading up to their debut album, Mirrorland.
Revenge of the Dreamers III is the third compilation album by American record label Dreamville, released on July 5, 2019, by Dreamville and Interscope Records.
Spillage Village is an American musical collective from Atlanta, Georgia. The group is composed of rappers, singers and producers, and was founded by the members of EarthGang. Spillage Village was primarily made up of five initial members with a split-base in both Atlanta and Baltimore.
Quantavious Tavario Thomas, known professionally as Young Nudy, is an American rapper. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, he is best known for his collaborations with his cousin and fellow rapper 21 Savage, as well as record producer Pi'erre Bourne. Thomas signed with RCA Records to release his debut studio album Anyways in 2020, which was followed up with Dr. Ev4l (2021), Rich Shooter (2021), and Gumbo (2023). The latter spawned his hit single "Peaches and Eggplants", which peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100.
American rapper JID has released three studio albums, three compilation albums, two extended plays (EP), four mixtapes and fifteen singles.
American singer-songwriter Ari Lennox has released two studio albums, four extended plays (EPs), one mixtape, and 11 singles. She released her debut studio album titled Shea Butter Baby in May 2019. Then she released her sophomore album Age/Sex/Location in September 2022. Both studio albums were produced through Dreamville Records and Interscope Records.
"Down Bad" is a song by American record label Dreamville featuring performances by American rappers J. Cole, JID, Bas, Johnny Venus of EarthGang, and Young Nudy, released on June 12, 2019 alongside "Got Me" as the dual second single from the label's 2019 compilation album, Revenge of the Dreamers III.
"Costa Rica" is a single released by American record label Dreamville, performed by American rappers Bas and JID, featuring fellow American rappers Guapdad 4000, Reese Laflare, Jace of Two-9, Mez, Smokepurpp, Buddy, and Ski Mask the Slump God. It was released on July 1, 2019, along with "LamboTruck" as the third and fourth single from Dreamville's 2019 compilation album, Revenge of the Dreamers III.
Markus Alandrus Randle known professionally as Childish Major, is an American rapper and record producer based in Atlanta, Georgia. He initially rose to fame as the producer of the 2013 Rocko single, "U.O.E.N.O.", which peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. He has since shifted into a career as a solo recording artist with his debut mixtape, Woo$ah, being released in 2017 by Empire Distribution. A single off that project was produced by J. Cole and was featured on an episode of the HBO series, Insecure. In September 2019, he released his debut studio album, Dirt Road Diamond.
Spilligion is the major label debut album by American hip hop collective Spillage Village, headed by JID and EarthGang, released on September 25, 2020 by Dreamville, Interscope, and SinceThe80s. The collective consists of EarthGang, JID, Hollywood JB, Jurdan Bryant, Mereba, 6lack, and Benji. The album features guest appearances from Ant Clemons, Ari Lennox, Buddy, Chance the Rapper, Masego, Lucky Daye, and Big Rube. The production was primarily handled by in-house producers Olu, Benji, Christo, and Hollywood JB, with outside producers Nice Rec, Jay Card, Monte Booker, and Elite, among others.
Asiahn Bryant is an American singer-songwriter and voice actress from Paterson, New Jersey, currently signed to the SinceThe80s and Motown record labels. Since 2021, alongside her music, she provides vocal performances for Karma Grant in the Ludacris-created Netflix streaming musical series, Karma's World.
Ghetto Gods is the second studio album by American hip hop duo EarthGang. It was released on February 25, 2022 by Dreamville, Interscope, and Spillage Village. The album includes guest appearances from Future, JID, J. Cole, Musiq Soulchild, Baby Tate, CeeLo Green, Nick Cannon, and Ari Lennox.
D-Day: A Gangsta Grillz Mixtape is the fourth compilation album by American record label Dreamville. It was released on March 31, 2022, by Dreamville and Interscope as a Gangsta Grillz mixtape hosted by DJ Drama.
The Forever Story is the third studio album by American rapper JID. It was released on August 26, 2022, through Dreamville and Interscope Records. The album features guest appearances from Kenny Mason, EarthGang, 21 Savage, Baby Tate, Lil Durk, Ari Lennox, Yasiin Bey, Lil Wayne, Johntá Austin, Ravyn Lenae, and Eryn Allen Kane. The Forever Story was met with critical acclaim upon its release, in which critics praised the album for its ambition, lyrical content and introspective writing.