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The labels that built rap

Almost every artist profiled on this site came through one of these nine. Independent Southern labels in particular did more to shape the genre than any major ever has.

• Rap-A-Lot RecordsThe independent label that made Southern rap commercially viable, run out of Houston's Fifth Ward since 1986.
• Death Row RecordsFour years of complete commercial dominance, followed by one of the most spectacular collapses in music business history.
• No Limit RecordsA record store in California that became a New Orleans label and, briefly, one of the most prolific operations in music.
• Cash Money RecordsThe New Orleans label whose 1998 distribution deal changed what independents could demand from majors.
• Trill EntertainmentThe label that gave Baton Rouge a national voice, built on a connection to UGK.
• Never Broke AgainThe imprint through which the most-streamed rapper of his generation released almost everything.
• Quality Control MusicFounded in 2013 as a vehicle for Migos, sold to Hybe America ten years later for three hundred million dollars.
• Collective Music GroupA Memphis label that became one of the most effective talent operations of the 2020s.
• Top Dawg EntertainmentThe California independent that developed Kendrick Lamar, SZA and Doechii, and is known for taking its time.