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independent label help

triptoyourmindtriptoyourmind 294 Posts
edited July 2005 in Strut Central
So my media class has given me an assignment to do - a 10 minute presentation on an independent label. I have until next wednesday (I got it today). What im wondering is what to do? considering the audience probably wouldnt be interested in blue note or impulse (my first ideas) or any jazz for that matter, what can I do? I really dont know many independent labels that arent jazz or soul. I was thinking of doing cadet. anyone got any ideas? what would be a good label that has a interesting history, a decent output and wouldnt bore the relatively hip audience?

any help always appreciated.

  Comments

  • montymonty 420 Posts
  • DJAckDJAck 255 Posts
    damn, i like Stone's Throw. here's what i thought:
  • davesrecordsdavesrecords 1,802 Posts
    is blue note and cadet really independent ?

    what makes a label independent anyway ?
  • asstroasstro 1,754 Posts

    what makes a label independent anyway ?

    I'd say that if it's owned a by one person or a small group of people who make all of the creative and business decisions, it's an indy label.


    How about Dischord Records if you want to look outside of Jazz and Hip-Hop? It doesn't get much more independent than them.
  • johmbolayajohmbolaya 4,472 Posts
    is blue note and cadet really independent ?

    what makes a label independent anyway ?

    When it's not affilated or controlled by a major label.

    Blue Note and Cadet, in the early days, were independent. Blue Note jumped around a number of places, but now they are affiliated with Capitol/EMI, and have been for some time. However, from what I've been told, while they have Capitol distribution, the label itself runs as an indie, with little to no interference with Capitol UNLESS you're a Norah Jones. Before Jones, the biggest album in their catalog was War's Platinum Jazz[/b]. Jones has officially outsold everyone in the history of the entire label.

    Cadet had been affiliated with, of course, Chess. In time they got bought out as well, and now they are housed nicely in MCA, or really Universal since there's technically no "MCA Records" anymore. In this case, Cadet's history is very independent, and most of the quality records we talk about come from their indie days.


    With all of that said, Warner Bros. and Capitol were also independent, as well as Columbia. But it got to a point where you had these labels slowly become big companies BEFORE they became corporations.


    Of course, one has to ask if having major label distribution takes away your "indie" status, even though all it is is distribution? Arguably, I would say yes. For example, what got me into "digging" was when I cut class in high school and found The Electric Express' "It's The Real Thing (Part 1)" at a local pawn shop. It was on Linco Records but had Atlantic distribution, and I had never seen this variation. I had to know more. It would be years later until I found out that Linco's representation on Atlantic existed for only two or three records.
  • BamboucheBambouche 1,484 Posts
    How about Dischord Records if you want to look outside of Jazz and Hip-Hop? It doesn't get much more independent than them.


    No shit.

    Start here:
    http://www.dischord.com/about/index.shtml


    Touch 'n' Go as well.
  • funkyexamplefunkyexample 915 Posts
    damn, i like Stone's Throw. here's what i thought:

    definitely one of the better of the recent indies that it was. too bad they can't put out anything that gets hip hop folks blood boiling these days.
  • triptoyourmindtriptoyourmind 294 Posts
    cheers for the help. I think im gonna sneak my way around and do motown, as they were independent before being bought out. I can then use the obligatory marvin gaye and stevie wonder songs as well as some standing in the shadows of motown dvd to use up time.
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