Universal Music group was founded in 1934 by Jimmy Lovine. Their origins go back to 1934 when it was Decca Records. It is the largest American music label. It is based in California, USA and has signed artists from all over the world. UMG’s revenue is currently $6billion. It is the largest of the big four record companies in the world. They own, or have a joint share in, a large number of record labels such as; The Island Def Jam Music Group, Republic Records and Capitol Music Group. Universal Music Group co-developed Vevo, a music site similar but in competition with YouTube. The record label is based in 77 countries including genres from R&B and HipHop, they have headquarters in many different countries all over the world such as, Santa Monica, Hollywood, Universal City, New York City, London and France.

In May 2006, it was to have been said that Universal Music Group bribed radio stations to play songs from Ashlee Simpson, Lindsay Lohan and other performers under Universal labels. For settlement the company offered to pay $12 million to the state. Universal Music was once the music company attached to the film studio Universal Pictures. They have recently formed a partnership with Live Nation UK. UMG are responsible for 30% of mu

Artists from our genre signed to this record label…

• Alunageorge• Alphabeat• Avicii• Lorde

Universal Music Groups is one of the largest record labels in the world which has signed quite a lot of well known artists and some not so well known buy are most likely going to be big in a few years time. As universal is such a big record label it would be easier for them to promote their artists as they have a bigger audience to share them with. UMG promote their artists via advertisements online and on print. Also most smaller artists are support acts for the bigger artists at their gigs therefore they are selling themselves and their songs to a wide audience.

Universal’s Website is very clear and gives the audience an understanding on what artists are signed to their label. In the middle of the screen there is a slideshow advertising featured artists they have signed, this suggests that UMG are aiming to sell their artists to a wider

range audience such as young adults or those most likely to be on the web. The website is very easy to access making it available for everyone and there are tabs at the

top giving information to their chosen audience so people can find out more about their company. The website also has a section for tweets that have been made under different

genres, this attracts more people as younger people are more likely to go on social networking sites and it can relate to a wider audience.

Iamsound Records was founded in 2006 in Los Angeles by Niki Robertson, who now also runs the label with Paul Tao. The main genres that the record label focuses on us Indie pop, Electronica, Dance and Indie rock. Iamsound records are currently planning on creating their own festival in LA. Though the company has grown, the label has kept its focus narrow, releasing only four full-length albums per year on average. A typical release on the label will get an initial run of 3,000 - 4,000 CDs and 1,000 LPs. Florence and machines are signed to this record label and they are quite popular, therefore people who are fans of them may research into the record label and discover new artists. This record label has signed quite a few unknown artists, however it has only just been newly founded in 2006 so it still has time to become popular. In 2012, Iamsound collaborated with the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art for a gallery.

Artists from our genre that are signed to this record label..

• Charli XCX• Banks• Little Boots• Kate Boy

As Iamsound records is only a small record label most of these artists are not really well known, however to promote these artists the label use advertisements online on websites such as YouTube and their own, this makes the audience more aware of the new artists and makes them want to look them up and watch their music videos. The artists also produce small gigs and events or become a support act for a well known artist/band which can widen their audience because they may be performing in front of a lot of people and they’re more likely to get noticed. There is a store on the website which sells all the artists singles/albums this promotes them a lot more as people realise they have an album out and they will be tempted to listen to it.

Iamsound’s website is pretty similar to Universal’s website, they promote their artists on the homepage which also gives the audience an understanding of what kind of artists are signed to this record label. Below the slideshow of artists there is a list of all the artists names which you can click on and read more about them. There are clear tabs at the top of the websites page which direct you to different things about the different things the label has to offer, there is also a news tab which updates the audience with the latest about the artists and the labels.