Research into Music Labels

EMI
EMI Group Limited was a British multinational music recording and publishing company, and electronics device and systems manufacturing company, headquartered in London. The company broke up in 2012 and it was the fourth largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry. It was one of the big four companies (which is now the big three). It's record labels included EMI Records, Parlophone, Virgin Records and Capitol Records. In November 2011 Citigroup who temporarily owned EMI sold its music arm to Vivendi's Universal Music Group for $1.9 billion. EMI administered the publishing rights of over 1.3 million songs - controlling the libraries of artists such as Jay-Z, Beyonce, deadmau5, Dragon, The Prodigy, The Black Eyed Peas, Avicii etc. EMI distributes its artists digitally and physically. They distribute their artists through iTunes and their website, physically they distribute through high street shops, in particular HMV.

Song Music Entertainment
Sony is an American music corporation owned and operated by Sony Corporation. In 2004, SME and Bertelsmann Music Group merged as Sony BMG Music Entertainment. SME is middle-sized out of the big three record companies, with Universal Music Group (the largest) and Warner Music Group. Sony has many labels with different genres. For example, Country has Sony Music Nashville and Arista Nashville, Latin has Sony Music Latin and Classical has Sony Masterworks. They also own independent distributions such as RED Distribution and IODA. Sony distributes its artists digitally and physically. They distribute their artists through iTunes and VEVO and also through their own website, also much like EMI, they physically distribute through high street shops and in particular - HMV.

Rough Trade
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. it was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. The record label has successfully promoted and sold many records by punk, very early indie pop and early post-punk bands such as Buzzcocks, The Smiths and Desperate Bicycle. Travis also manages acts and distributes bands such as Scritti Politti and established the label itself, which was formed by left-wing politics and structured as a cooperative. Interest and investment of major labels in the UK indie scene was in the late 1980s as well as overtrading on behalf of Rough Trades distribution wing, led cash flow problems, and eventually to bankruptcy, forcing the label into receivership. However, Travis resurrected the label in the late 90s, finding success with The Libertines, The Stokes and Antony and the Johnsons. Rough Trade's artists and distributed through their record store, as it is an independent label. It is also distributed through social media as a means of advertisement.

Boy Better Know
Boy Better Know is an English grime music collective - a group of musicians, a grime record label and a brand. The collective was formed in North London by JME, his brother Skepta and Wiley. BBK was established in 2005 and is also a clothing line, sweet shop and aline of movie sim cards. BBK distributes their music through social media and independent music shops, as well as digitally distributing through iTunes.