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OVO Sound (also known simply as OVO) is a
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
-based Canadian record label, founded in 2012 by hip hop artist Drake, producer 40, and Oliver El-Khatib. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through,
Warner Music Group Warner Music Group Corp. (trade name, d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment and record label Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in New York C ...
's
Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
, except for Drake's albums, which are distributed by Republic Records, a division of
Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
. The label represents acts including Drake, PartyNextDoor, Majid Jordan, Roy Woods, OB O'Brien, Dvsn, Plaza, Baka Not Nice, Popcaan and Smiley. In-house producers include 40, Boi-1da
DJ Prince
,
Nineteen85 Anthony Paul Jefferies (born July 1, 1985), known professionally as Nineteen85, is a Canadian record producer and songwriter. Nineteen85 holds the distinction of winning an ASCAP Music Award back-to-back in 2014 and 2015. He is best known for pr ...
,
Mike Zombie William Michael Coleman (born July 8, 1992), professionally known as Mike Zombie, is an American record producer and rapper from Willingboro Township, New Jersey. Since 2012, Coleman has been an in-house producer for Drake's label OVO Sound. His b ...
,
T-Minus A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...
, an
Future The Prince


History

The label's roots can be traced back to 2006, when Drake's first official mixtape, '' Room for Improvement'', was released under the unofficial record label "All Things Fresh" which eventually became "October's Very Own". Drake later raised the profile of the label by prominently featuring OVO throughout his music, regularly mentioning the label in songs and on stage, as well as promoting OVO merchandise. The record label was officially founded in 2012 by Drake and long-time collaborators Noah "40" Shebib and Oliver El-Khatib following the success of Drake's third studio album '' Nothing Was the Same''. According to '' Billboard'', Drake signed a partnership deal with
Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
similar to that of Rick Ross' record company. Though Ross is signed as a solo artist to
Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...
, the artists on Ross' Maybach Music Group label are signed to
Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...
, former partners with Warner. Drake was signed as a solo artist to Republic Records through Young Money and Cash Money for nine years. Drake's 2018 release Scorpion was his last project under Young Money/Cash Money. On the other hand, the artists Drake signs to OVO Sound through Warner have their content distributed through the latter. Upon founding the label in 2012, Drake and 40 signed frequent collaborators Boi-1da,
T-Minus A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...
,
Mike Zombie William Michael Coleman (born July 8, 1992), professionally known as Mike Zombie, is an American record producer and rapper from Willingboro Township, New Jersey. Since 2012, Coleman has been an in-house producer for Drake's label OVO Sound. His b ...
to the label as in-house producers (the latter two are the only active signees in the label to come outside of Canada). In April 2013, it was reported that Drake was close to signing the label's first
recording artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...
, PartyNextDoor, which he ended up revealing shortly thereafter. In August 2013, Drake announced that he signed Toronto music duo Majid Jordan to OVO Sound. OB O'Brien and iLoveMakonnen would soon sign in 2014, with the latter being the first non-Canadian act and second non-Canadian signee after to Mike Zombie. Makonnen would eventually leave OVO Sound in April 2016, wishing to pursue his interests as a solo artist with Warner. Canadian rap artist Roy Woods and R&B duo Dvsn, composed of singer Daniel Daley and producer Nineteen85, soon joined the label in 2015 and 2016, with each act releasing an EP and studio album respectively.On June 10, 2017, newest signee Plaza's project, Shadow EP, debuted on OVO Sound Radio episode 45. In 2021, Canadian rap artis
Smiley
was signed to the label.


Roster


Current acts


Former acts


In-house producers


OVO Sound Radio

OVO Sound Radio was a radio program that aired on Beats 1, fortnightly on Saturdays. The show primarily aired newer material, with at least one song premiering in each broadcast. The show's initial airing was on July 11, 2015, and it was hosted by Drake and Oliver El-Khatib. The show is notable for debuting hit Drake singles, such as platinum-selling " Hotline Bling", and chart-topping " One Dance". The show ended on October 27, 2018. On March 4, 2021, Drake announced that he and Oliver would debut their new 24 hour radio station, "SOUND42" on Sirius XM featuring the return of OVO Sound Radio that same night.


OVO Clothing

OVO Clothing was launched in 2011. The series of clothing began with a series of collaborations between
Roots Canada Roots Corporation ( doing business as Roots) is a publicly held Canadian brand that sells apparel, leather bags, small leather goods, footwear, athletic wear, and home furnishings. The company was founded in 1973 in Toronto, Ontario, by M ...
and OVO, which produced several parkas, jackets and other collaborations. In 2013, merchandise for the OVO figurehead included collaborations with the Toronto Raptors, which coincided with Drake becoming the franchise's Global Ambassador. OVO has since morphed into a clothing line in itself, releasing a slew of clothes during every season of the year. T-shirts, sweatshirts, varsity jackets, baseball hats, and knit beanies are seasonal installations. OVO Clothing oversaw the opening of the first OVO store for the brand's clothing in downtown
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
, opening on December 6, 2014. Exactly a year after the opening in Toronto, OVO stores expanded to the United States, opening a flagship store in Los Angeles, California. Its New York store opened in December 2016 on Bond Street, and its Chicago store in August 2019 on Walton Street in Gold Coast. OVO also opened its first location in Vancouver in December 2018. Other OVO collaborations have included Canada Goose, and Air Jordan. Its pre-2016 collection was composed of basketball shorts, OVO jerseys, track jackets, and baggy hoodies. On November 9, 2020, it was revealed via the OVO Clothing Instagram account that
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
Hall of Famer
Wayne Gretzky Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...
would be a model for the Fall and Winter 2020 collection. Gretzky and OVO Clothing founder Drake are both proud natives of southern
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada. Also featured in the collection was former Canadian Olympian Ross Rebagliati, who won a gold medal in Giant Slalom Snowboarding in the 1998 Nagano Olympics.


Discography


Studio albums


Compilation albums


Soundtrack albums


Mixtapes


EPs


Notes


References


External links

* {{Authority control Drake (musician) Companies based in Toronto Record labels established in 2012 Vanity record labels Warner Records Canadian hip hop record labels