Universal Records was a

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

owned by

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...

and operated as part of the

Universal Motown Republic Group Universal Motown Republic Group (UMRG) was an umbrella label founded in 1999 by Universal Music Group to oversee the labels assigned to its unit. UMRG was formed in 1999 by pooling together Universal Records, Motown Records, and Republic Records, ...

. The label has been dormant since 2006, due to

Universal Motown Universal Motown Records was an American record label that operated as a division of Universal Motown Republic Group. It was the contemporary incarnation of the legendary Motown Records label, and the " urban" half of the Universal Records ...

and

Universal Republic Records Republic Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Based in New York City, it was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially a ...

being formed and taking all of the artists from it. Those labels were eventually combined to form the latest iteration of

Republic Records Republic Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Based in New York City, it was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially ...

. As of 2023, the label remains dormant but has been credited as a copyright-holder under a few present-day releases.

History

Founded in 1995 as Rising Tide Records, the label would ultimately begin to thrive the following year when its name was changed to Universal Records to complement the branding overhaul of the

Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to: * Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate ** Universal Pictures, an American film studio ** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex * Various theme parks operat ...

structure since MCA Inc. was purchased from Matsushita Electric (now Panasonic) by

Seagram The Seagram Company Ltd. (which trade name, traded as Seagram's) was a Canadian multinational beverage and during the last few years of its existence, entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate formerly headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. ...

. The label, which is actually the ''second'' incarnation (the first

Universal Records Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...

was a short-lived underground imprint of

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

that existed from 1988 to 1989) was created by former

chairman and CEO

Doug Morris Doug Morris (born November 23, 1938) is an American record executive. He was chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Universal Music Group from 1995 to 2011, as well as Sony Music Entertainment from 2011 to 2017. He is the founder and CEO ...

and Daniel Glass (founder of

Glassnote Records Glassnote Records (also known as Glassnote Entertainment Group LLC) is a record label that was launched by American music executive Daniel Glass in 2007. The label primarily has a lineup of indie rock and alternative rock artists, most notably ...

), who became its president. In 1996, to complement the MCA renaming into Universal, MCA Music Entertainment Group was also rebranded into what is known today as

. With that in place, Universal Records was to operate under the newly renamed UMG banner. Universal Records had success in breaking new artists, including the multi-platinum debut of

Erykah Badu Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by rhythm and blues, R&B, Soul music, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...

, Billie Myers, Goldfinger,

Akon Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam (born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon (), is a Senegalese-United States, American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, businessman, and philanthropist. An influ ...

and the

Lost Boyz Lost Boyz are an American Hip hop music, hip hop group from Queens, New York (state), New York, consisting of Master of ceremonies, MC Mr. Cheeks, DJ Spigg Nice, Pretty Lou, and Freaky Kah, with the latter replacing his father Freaky Tah who w ...

. Glass formed relationships with independent record labels such as Kedar Entertainment and Mojo Records. Universal also brought in and took over

Uptown Records Uptown Records is an American record label, based in New York City, founded in 1986 by old school rapper ‘Dr Jekyll’ - Andre Harrell. From the late 1980s into the early 1990s, it was a leader in R&B and hip-hop. Beginnings and success In ...

following founder

Andre Harrell Andre O’Neal Harrell (September 26, 1960 – May 7, 2020) was an American record executive, media proprietor, and former rapper. He formed the short-lived East Coast hip hop duo Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde with Alonzo Brown in 1980; they sig ...

's departure. Following

Heavy D Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. '' Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Hea ...

's dropping from the imprint in 1997, Universal folded Uptown in 1999.

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

based record company

Cash Money Records Cash Money Records is an American record label founded in 1991 by brothers Ronald "Slim" Williams and Birdman (rapper), Bryan "Baby" Williams. The label gained prominence in the late 1990s for having signed and released albums for New Orleans– ...

, led by Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Baby/Birdman" Williams, signed a three-year $30 million distribution deal with Universal Records in March 1998. Under the terms of the deal, the Williams were given a $3 million advance each year and a credit of $1.5 million for each of the up to six artists that they had at the time. After recouping, Universal Records would retain 15% of profits from album sales, while Cash Money retained 85% as well as ownership of all master recordings. Cash Money's first success under Universal was Juvenile's November 1998 release, '' 400 Degreez''. Peaking in the top 10 on the ''Billboard'' 200, the album would ultimately go on to be certified quadruple platinum in America. Cash Money and Universal also launched

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...

's career with his November 1999 album '' Tha Block Is Hot'', which was a top three ''Billboard'' 200 album and later certified platinum in America. On December 10, 1998, Seagram completed its seven-month $10.6 billion plan to acquire PolyGram, merging its music division of labels with UMG, helping both divisions combine operations together under the biggest music recording company. On

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

1998, Universal Records was pooled together with then-PolyGram label

Motown Records Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

and fellow MCA label

to form

; Motown was previously brought under UMG during its preceding days as MCA Inc. It was a subsidiary of

and minority-owned by Boston Ventures until 1991. To start the New Year in 1999, Universal Motown Republic Group became one of the three new music units under UMG alongside

Interscope Geffen A&M Records Interscope Geffen A&M Records (IGA) is an American umbrella label operating as a unit of Interscope Capitol Labels Group, owned by Universal Music Group. It currently consists of record labels Interscope Records (with its subsidiary, A&M Records) ...

and

The Island Def Jam Music Group Island Def Jam Music Group (IDJMG) was an American record label group formed on December 31, 1998, by Universal Music Group. Before 2014, IDJMG encompassed labels originally established under the umbrella of Island Records and Def Jam Recording ...

. In 2001, after the absorption of

Priority Records Priority Records is an American distribution company and record label known for artists including N.W.A, Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E, Master P, Snoop Dogg, Mos Def, Silkk the Shocker, Jay-Z, Paris, Mack 10, 504 Boyz, Brotha Lynch Hung, ...

into EMI,

No Limit Records No Limit Records is an American record company founded by Master P. The label's albums were distributed by Priority Records, Universal and Koch Records. The label included artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mercedes, Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal ...

was signed a distribution deal with Universal and renamed "The New No Limit". However, this deal failed as various releases by

Master P Percy Robert Miller (born April 29, 1967), better known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, dancer, actor and entrepreneur. He founded the record label No Limit Records in 1991, which was relau ...

Romeo Romeo Montague () is the male protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. The son of Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lord Montague, Lord Montague and his wife, Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lady Montague, Lady Montague, he ...

504 Boyz 504 Boyz were an American hip hop group from New Orleans, Louisiana, named for the New Orleans area code. The original 504 Boyz, Master P (as "Nino Brown"), Mystikal (as "G. Money"), Silkk the Shocker (as "Vito"), C-Murder, and Krazy, released ...

and

Choppa Darwin Turner, better known by his stage name Choppa, is an American rapper and singer. History His first album ''Choppa Style'' was released in 2001 by independent label Take Fo' Records. The eponymous single became a local New Orleans hit. ...

did not meet commercial expectations. No Limit cut ties with Universal in 2004, a year after filing for bankruptcy. Bad Boy Entertainment, founded by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, signed a three-year marketing and distribution deal with Universal Records in February 2003, following its departure from

Arista Records Arista Records ( ) is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously a division of Bertelsmann Music G ...

. Universal and Bad Boy released Da Band's September 2003 album, '' Too Hot for TV''. The album was ultimately certified gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. Albums under this deal that followed include the

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

to ''

Bad Boys II ''Bad Boys II'' is a 2003 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and the sequel to the 1995 film '' Bad Boys'', in addition to the second film in the ''Bad Boys'' film series. Martin Lawrence, ...

'',

Loon Loons (North American English) or divers (British English, British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family (biolog ...

's self-titled album, Carl Thomas' '' Let's Talk About It'',

Mario Winans Mario Mendell Winans ( Brown; born August 29, 1974) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer from South Carolina. An extended member of the Winans musical family, he is best known for his 2004 single " I Don't Wanna Know" (f ...

' '' Hurt No More'' and

New Edition New Edition is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B/Pop music, pop group from the Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson ...

's ''One Love''. In 2005, Bad Boy switched distribution from Universal 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 the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

before the deal could be fulfilled. The label later had more success with acts like

3 Doors Down 3 Doors Down is an American Rock music, rock band from Escatawpa, Mississippi that formed in 1996. The band's music is described as post-grunge, alternative rock, and hard rock. The band's 2000 debut single "Kryptonite (3 Doors Down song), Kr ...

98 Degrees 98 Degrees (stylized as 98°) is an American vocal group consisting of brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, Jeff Timmons, and Justin Jeffre. Their first Christmas album '' This Christmas'' has sold over two million copies and is widely recognized ...

Chamillionaire Hakeem Temidayo Seriki (born November 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Chamillionaire (), is an American rapper. He began his career in Houston's hip hop scene in the late 1990s. He was briefly signed with the local record label Swishah ...

Godsmack Godsmack is an American Rock music, rock band from Lawrence, Massachusetts, formed in 1995. The band is currently composed of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Sully Erna and bassist Robbie Merrill. Since its formation, Godsmack has released eig ...

, Mushroomhead, Flaw,

Hatebreed Hatebreed is an American metalcore/ hardcore band from Bridgeport, Connecticut, formed in 1994. The band released its debut album ''Satisfaction Is the Death of Desire'' in 1997, which gave the band a cult following. The band signed to Universa ...

, Lifer, 4LYN, I Mother Earth, Jack Johnson, Juvenile,

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and embarked on his musical career in 1993 as a member of the Midwest hip hop g ...

, Big Sha,

, and Mika. In the summer of 2004, Universal had a big success with Terror Squad's single, " Lean Back", which debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 that August. By 2005, Universal was reaching its downfall, even though Cash Money kept its prophecy leading, but its success was short-lived. On New Year's Eve 2005, Universal Records was merged with Republic Records to become Universal Republic Records. Motown (as a standalone label) was renamed Universal Motown Records. Therefore, artists under Motown, as well as hip hop and R&B acts under Universal were combined together under Universal Motown, with the rest being transferred to Universal Republic, which would later be reverted back to Republic Records in 2012, a year after Universal Motown was changed back to Motown, which itself would be moved to Island Def Jam. As a result, the Universal Motown Republic Group was disbanded in the summer of 2011 during a reorganization at Universal Music Group, which was under the leadership of

Lucian Grainge Sir Lucian Charles Grainge (born 29 February 1960) is a British record executive who has served as chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Universal Music Group since 2010. Beginning as an A&R staffer in the late 1970s, Grainge has work ...

. It was also the distributor of

Polydor Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...

and Island UK in the United States. Distribution switched to

and

respectively after the label's dissolution. Island's operation in the United Kingdom, in 2013, would be absorbed into

Virgin EMI Records Virgin EMI Records was a British record label owned by the Universal Music Group that was formed in 2013. In June 2020, the label was rebranded as EMI Records, and operates Virgin Records as an imprint of the new EMI Records. History Virgin ...

, which, itself, would be rebranded in 2020 as

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a British multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company EMI in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succes ...

, taking over distribution for Republic UK. , Universal Records is currently inactive as its artists would later be drafted to Republic Records. Motown is currently under the

Interscope Capitol Labels Group Universal Music Group (UMG) owns, or has a joint share in, many of the record labels listed here. According to the UMG official website, the main labels are Abbey Road Studios, Capitol Music Group, Decca Records, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Gra ...

, which it has been a part of since 2014 following another UMG disbandment of the Island Def Jam Music Group. Therefore, reissues of releases under the Universal Records, Universal Republic or Universal Motown names will be handled by Republic and Motown respectively on behalf of

Universal Music Enterprises Universal Music Enterprises (UME, stylized as UMe) is the catalogue division of Universal Music Group. It includes Hip-O Records, Universal Chronicles, and UM3 or UMC (which is the international division of the company). Under various divisions, ...

. There have been unrelated labels in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, taking the "Universal Records" name. Because of an unrelated label in the Philippines owning the rights to the

name in that country, parent company

did business there as MCA Music, Inc., using UMG's former name. In 2021, MCA Music was renamed UMG Philippines.

Affiliated labels

Affiliated labels included Celtic Heartbeat Records, co-founded by U2 manager Paul McGuinness.Billboard July 5, 1997 page 48
formerly affiliated with

, and

(UMRG). Bill Whelan's ''

Riverdance ''Riverdance'' is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions J ...

'' was Celtic Heartbeat's first album to sell more than a million copies.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Universal Records (1995-2005) Record labels based in California Defunct record labels of the United States Labels distributed by Universal Music Group Contemporary R&B record labels Heavy metal record labels Hip-hop record labels Pop record labels Rock record labels Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles Record labels established in 1995 Record labels disestablished in 2005 1995 establishments in California 2005 disestablishments in California Universal Music Group

History

Affiliated labels

See also

References