Within the UK there are four major music labels which consist of:
1.)Universal Music Group (UMG) is the largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry. It is the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations.
Some of the many artists that the label manages are:
- Lady Gaga
- Gwen Stephanie
- Keri Hilson
- Young Jeezy
- Mariah Carey

2.)Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group (WMG) is the third-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies. The current incarnation of the company was formed in 2004 when it was spun off from the Time Warner, and as a result, Time Warner no longer retains any ownership. Warner Music Group also has a music publishing arm called Warner/Chappell Music, which is currently one of the world's largest music-publishing companies.
A few of many artists signed to Warner music group are:
- Death Cab for Cutie
- Gnarls Barkley
- Basshunter
- Fleetwood Mac
- Enter Shikari
This major company owns many smaller companies for example:
Warner Bros. Records
Some of the artists signed to Warner Bros. Records are:
- Cher
- Clint Eastwood
- Goo Goo Dolls
- Nelly Furtado
- Faith Hill
Warner Classics
Some of the artists signed to Warner Classics are:
- Janet Williams
- Brian Adams
- Kim Begley
- Ruth Welting
- David Adams

3.) Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment UK is part os the largest music and entertainment companies in the world. It has a broad array of local artists and international superstars, as well as a vast catalogue compromising of some of the most important recordings in history.
Sony Music Entertainment UK is part os the largest music and entertainment companies in the world. It has a broad array of local artists and international superstars, as well as a vast catalogue compromising of some of the most important recordings in history.
Some of the many artist that Sony manages are:
- The Ting Tings
- The Clash
- MGMT
- Ke$ha
This major company owns many smaller companies, for example;
Epic Records:
Some of the artists signed to Epic Records are:
- Avril Lavigne
- Michael Jackson
- Nicole Scherzinger
- Paloma Faith
- Ozzy Osbourne
Provident Music Group
Some of the artists signed to Provident Music Group are:
- Moriah Peters
- Michael W.Smith
- Brandon Heath
- Matt Maher
- Royal Tailor
EMI
The EMI Group (Electric & Musical Industries Ltd.) is a British music company. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of records labels in the recording industry, making it one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major publishing arm - EMI Music Publishing - based in New York City. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index bit is now wholly owned by Terra Firma Capital Partners.
Some of the many artists that the label manages are:
- Whitesnake
- Iron Maiden
- Spice Girls
- Kate Bush
- The Beatles
The major company owns many smaller companies, for example;
Blue Note Label Group
Some of the artists signed to Blue Note Label Group are:
Some of the artists signed to Blue Note Label Group are:
- Britpop
- Green Day
- Joy Division
- Glenn Miller
- New York Dolls
Capitol Music Group
Some of the artists signed to Capitol Music Group:
- Royal Bliss
- Katy Perry
- Morrissey
- Neil Diamond
- Faith Evans
Independent UK record labels:
LAB Records (pronounced lab) is an independent record label operating from Manchester, England and founded by Mark Orr and Nathen McVittie in 2007. The company also has a creative and distribution division, LAB Exposure, as well as a New York based management company, LAB Partners.
It releases music in the pop and rock genres, with bands primarily from the United States and UK. As of 2014 artists include Cover Drive, Mike Dignam, Fort Hope, Bethsn Leadley, Cartel, The Hush Sound, and William Becket, and the label has released positively reviewed albums such as The Way I Fell In by The Morning Of, Would It Kill You? by Hellogoodbye, and It Hates You by He Is Legend.
The label has a reputation for developing UK talent. Two LAB affiliated artists, Young Kato (BMG Chrysalis), and Katie Sky (Universal Music Group) both signed to labels in 2013, while UK rock band Blitz Kids signed to Red Bull Records.
Clay Records
Clay Records was an independent record label founded by Mike Stone (Not Mike "Clay" Stone) in 1980 out of a record shop in the English city of Stoke-on-Trent.
Nowadays Clay Records is an independent label and studio in Groningen, the Netherlands.
Artists signed to this record:
- White door
- Discharge
- Demon
Dreamboat Records
Dreamboat Records is a British Independent record label based in Bristol, England. The label was founded in in 2005, and released records on a small scale for a group of local artists. In 2009 it expanded to include releases of independent film soundtracks. The first film the label worked on was "How To Be" which starred Robert Pattinson, followed by the soundtrack written by John Parish for the film "She, A Chinese". In 2009, they became the label for "This Is The Kit" and, in 2010, the UK label for "Bear in Heaven."
Artists signed to this record:
- Whalebone Polly
- Bear in Heaven
- Robin Allender
Erased Tapes Records
The record company was established by German-born Robert Raths in early 2007 in London, with the release of Ryan Lee West's Vemeer EP under the Aparatec moniker. Raths defines his main interest as 'a dialogue between two opposite poles, between traditional and contemporary, between digital and analogue'. The label is known for its strong sonic and visual aesthetic with a special focus on packaging and design, which has seen collaborations with Berlin based graphic design studio FELD and American contemporary artist Gregory Euclide. Erased Tapes has a tradition of releasing a free compilation annually and continues to gain a reputation for unpredictable releases. The label is managed by Raths with assistance from Sofia Ilyas.
Artists signed to this record:
Jungle Records
Jungle Records is a British-based independent record label formed in 1982, specializing in classic punk rock, post punk, gothic and alternate releases.
From 1982 to 1986 they were also active as a record distributor and were 'unofficial' members of the Cartel. They held the exclusive right to sell all indie product to the Our Price Records chain, including supplying them hits by Depeche Mode, New Order and The Smiths during that high growth period of independent music.
They recorded albums by Johnny Thunders such as 'Copy Cats' (with Patti Palladin) and 'Que Sera Sera' and are licensors of the classic Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakerstape library, including their seminal L.A.M.F. album.
They discovered and released the irst recordings by Mercury Rev: 'Yerselg Is Steam' and 'Car Wash Hair'. and also the first recordings by Fields of the Nephilim, 'Burning The Fields'.
Artists signed to this record:
The record company was established by German-born Robert Raths in early 2007 in London, with the release of Ryan Lee West's Vemeer EP under the Aparatec moniker. Raths defines his main interest as 'a dialogue between two opposite poles, between traditional and contemporary, between digital and analogue'. The label is known for its strong sonic and visual aesthetic with a special focus on packaging and design, which has seen collaborations with Berlin based graphic design studio FELD and American contemporary artist Gregory Euclide. Erased Tapes has a tradition of releasing a free compilation annually and continues to gain a reputation for unpredictable releases. The label is managed by Raths with assistance from Sofia Ilyas.
Artists signed to this record:
- Michael Price
- Douglas Dare
- Codes in the Clouds
Jungle Records
Jungle Records is a British-based independent record label formed in 1982, specializing in classic punk rock, post punk, gothic and alternate releases.
From 1982 to 1986 they were also active as a record distributor and were 'unofficial' members of the Cartel. They held the exclusive right to sell all indie product to the Our Price Records chain, including supplying them hits by Depeche Mode, New Order and The Smiths during that high growth period of independent music.
They recorded albums by Johnny Thunders such as 'Copy Cats' (with Patti Palladin) and 'Que Sera Sera' and are licensors of the classic Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakerstape library, including their seminal L.A.M.F. album.
They discovered and released the irst recordings by Mercury Rev: 'Yerselg Is Steam' and 'Car Wash Hair'. and also the first recordings by Fields of the Nephilim, 'Burning The Fields'.
Artists signed to this record:
- Geraint Watkins
- NFD
- The Waldos
Boy Better Know is an English grime music collective – a group of musicians, a UK grime record label. The collective was formed in North London by JME, his brother Skepta and Wiley. The band and label were established by Jamie Adenuga (born 4 May 1985).
In my opinion, I find the fact that there is four main companies dominating the music industry unfair to those artists in other less known music industries due to the fact that there are some artists of whom may not appeal to the dominating industries so would therefore be forced to join smaller industries interested in their genre making it harder for them to become well known to a wider range of audience. The affect this has on the music industry is vital because the artists within the most popular genres will join with the dominant labels where as those artists within the genres that are less known would be inclined to go with the smaller companies therefore making the music industry less unique as it stays consistent in the music that is most well known. This means the audience are deprived of the music that the major record labels don't take on or find appealing when the audience themselves could be interested in the type of music turned down by the dominated labels.
The way in which you can judge whether the independent labels are successful depends on the artists that are signed to them, some of the artists names are more well known than others and some bring more individual artistic success to the table such as the amount of records sold, charts list or winning awards. The independent labels offer the chance for artists and bands of a a more varied genre to be signed to a label and to have the chance of becoming famous as their own expense. The most dominant and largest record labels only accept artists of whom they believe have potential success and have the appearance of a star of that particular genre and whether they will gain capital for them and build a better reputation for the label.
The way in which you can judge whether the independent labels are successful depends on the artists that are signed to them, some of the artists names are more well known than others and some bring more individual artistic success to the table such as the amount of records sold, charts list or winning awards. The independent labels offer the chance for artists and bands of a a more varied genre to be signed to a label and to have the chance of becoming famous as their own expense. The most dominant and largest record labels only accept artists of whom they believe have potential success and have the appearance of a star of that particular genre and whether they will gain capital for them and build a better reputation for the label.
You have made a start in including points on the major and independent record labels, by relating to music artists. The summary points that you have included helps to demonstrate some of your understanding of the music industry. But you need to relate your points to music artists to support some of the points that you are making.
ReplyDelete