Music Record Labels

What music record labels will be best for our artists? 

Universal, Island and Island Def Jam Music Group

Island Records was originally established in Jamaica in 1999 by Chris Blackwell and Graeme Goodall. It was based in the UK for many years before being owned by Universal Music Group. The label has now divided and created a sub label known as Island Def Jam Music Group which houses artists such as Rihanna, Kanye West, Iggy Azalea and Justin Bieber. Island Def Jam is hosted by music producer and former X Factor USA judge, LA Reid.

I think that Island would be a good record label to place our artists into as Island houses singers from a large variety of genres and nationalities. I also think that Island need someone who fits into the grime/British hip-hop genre in their label to add some extra variety and flavour. UK artists signed to Island include Jessie J, Angel, Bombay Bicycle Club and Disclosure.

Tim Westwood TV - a specific grime record label

Tim Westwood is a Radio 1Xtra DJ. He also happens to run an extremely successful YouTube series where rap and grime artists can shine.

Eminem's freestyle rap on the YouTube channel is the most popular video. However, this video is not what shot him to fame. Eminem has been in the music industry for just over 10 years and has received countless awards for his contributions to the RnB and Rap genres. An example of an artist who has done well from their exposure on Tim Westwood is Kid Cudi. The American rapper has less commercial success than the likes of Eminem and Jay Z but his freestyle on this channel saw a rise in his popularity and is the 2nd most viewed video on the channel overall. This shows that small, underground artists can benefit from exposure on Tim Westwood TV. Our artist could benefit from exposure through this particular method.