Product Code Database
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.
By 1990, 20-year-old Sean Combs began an internship at Uptown. Combs worked with newly signed acts Jodeci, Father MC, and Mary J. Blige, who altogether placed a number of singles on the R&B chart. Marking a fusion of hip hop and R&B was Mary J. Blige's debut album What's the 411?, released in July 1992, whereby she was dubbed the Queen of Hip Hop Soul. Led by her single "You Remind Me", it was certified three times platinum, honoring three million copies sold.
In 1991, Harrell was executive producer of the comedy film Strictly Business, starring Tommy Davidson and Halle Berry, as well as its soundtrack. The following year, Harrell and MCA reached a multimedia deal that eventuated in development of FOX's hit television series New York Undercover—a police drama originally named Uptown Undercover—which aired from 1994 to 1998. The record label itself was renamed Uptown Enterprises. By 1993, it was the leading urban label.
In February 1993, the MTV Unplugged live, acoustic series featured Jodeci, Father MC, Mary J. Blige, Christopher Williams, and Heavy D, resulting in release of Uptown Unplugged as both album and VHS.The live performance was taped at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, California. A resulting single, Jodeci's live cover of Stevie Wonder's "Lately" peaked at #1 on the R&B chart and #4 on the pop singles chart, the Billboard Hot 100. Later in 1993, Uptown released the soundtrack to the hip-hop film Who's the Man?. Closing 1993, Uptown released Jodeci's second album, Diary of a Mad Band.
Increasingly dissatisfied, Mary J. Blige and Jodeci both signed to West Coast Management, the firm of Suge Knight, CEO of Death Row, based in Los Angeles. Thus, they gained double the royalty rates, more creative control, and sizable back payments. Meanwhile, the final Heavy D & The Boyz album, Nuttin' But Love, was released in 1994, and soon certified Platinum in the U.S.
In 1995, Uptown's new R&B group Soul for Real's debut album Candy Rain was released, as was Jodeci's third and final studio album for Uptown Records, The Show, the After Party, the Hotel. Later in 1995, Harrell left Uptown to become CEO of Motown Records, while Heavy D, executive vice president of Uptown, became Uptown's president and CEO. Prominent acts like Mary J. Blige and Jodeci signed directly to Uptown's distribution label, MCA.
By 1996, MCA along with Universal Studios, the filmmaking house, was bought by the owners of Seagram's, and became Universal Music Group. In 1997, Heavy D resigned as CEO of Uptown, absorbed into Universal Music during 1999. In December 2019, television network BET announced production of a miniseries on the history of Uptown Records.
|
|
