S2 Records

2025-09-21T22:08:01Z

2601:704:601:2A70:4C86:DF81:F4D1:6B65: Oh wait, it was defunct in 2004, not 2002. Discogs is wrong.

{{Use British English|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2009}}
{{infobox record label
| bgcolor = #000000
| name = {{color|white|Sony S2 Records}}
| image =
| caption =
| parent = [[Sony Music Entertainment]]
| founded = {{Start date and age|1991}}
| founder = {{hlist|Lincoln Elias|[[Muff Winwood]]}}
| country = [[United Kingdom]]
| location =
| defunct = {{end date and age|2004}}
| status = Defunct
| distributor =
| genre = Various
}}
'''Sony S2 Records''',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/11557/halo/|title=HALO | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company|website=www.officialcharts.com}}</ref> formerly named as '''S2 Records''' and '''Sony Soho Square''' (typeset as '''Sony Soho<sup>2</sup>'''), was a subsidiary of [[Sony Music|Sony Music Entertainment (SME)]], which operated as a [[record label]] in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Sony Soho Square was named after its location at London's [[Soho Square]], with Lincoln Elias (who went on to become the Managing Director of [[Virgin Records]] in 2006 and now works with PMR Records)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/the-rise-retreat-and-re-emergence-of-lincoln-elias/|title=The rise, retreat and re-emergence of Lincoln Elias|date=24 April 2019|website=Music Business Worldwide}}</ref> being the founder of the label. It was later headed by [[Muff Winwood]], brother of musician [[Steve Winwood]], who had worked at CBS Records/Sony Music Entertainment since the later 1970s.

Sony S2 featured bands and singers such as [[Jamiroquai]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/28264/jamiroquai/|title=Jamiroquai | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company|website=www.officialcharts.com}}</ref> [[Des'ree]], [[Reef (band)|Reef]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/31406/reef/|title=REEF | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company|website=www.officialcharts.com}}</ref> [[Jimmy Ray]] and others.

In 2004 after [[Sony Music|SME]] and BMG (the original major label [[Bertelsmann Music Group]]) merged, Sony S2 was dissolved into [[Sony BMG Music Entertainment|Sony BMG Music Entertainment UK]]. At this point many of the bands on Sony S2 were dropped, with Jamiroquai's records going on to be released on the Sony BMG label, with marketing taken on by [[Columbia Records]].

==See also==
* [[List of record labels]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:British record labels]]
[[Category:Pop record labels]]
[[Category:Rock record labels]]
[[Category:Soho Square]]
[[Category:Sony Music]]

{{UK-record-label-stub}}

Qwest Records

2025-09-21T19:04:33Z

2601:704:601:2A70:4C86:DF81:F4D1:6B65: Updated Status information and defunct date.

{{Short description|American record label}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2010}}
{{Infobox record label 
| name = Qwest Records
| image = Qwest Records logo.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| parent = [[Warner Music Group]]
| founded = 1980
| founder = [[Quincy Jones]]
| defunct = 2000
| status = Absorbed into [[Warner Records]]
| distributor = [[Warner Records]]<br>[[Interscope Records]] (select re-releases)
| genre = Various
| country = U.S.
| location = 
| url =
}}

'''Qwest Records''' was an [[United States|American]] [[record label]] run by [[Quincy Jones]].

==History==
Qwest Records was established by [[Quincy Jones]] in [[1980 in music|1980]] as a joint venture with [[Warner Records|Warner Bros. Records]], although Jones remained under contract with [[A&M Records]] until 1981. The first release on Qwest was [[George Benson]]'s 1980 album, ''[[Give Me the Night (album)|Give Me the Night]]'', shared with Warner Bros. Records, as Benson was under contract with it. [[Patti Austin]], Jones's goddaughter, was one of the first artists to sign with Qwest, and the label released her album, ''[[Every Home Should Have One (album)|Every Home Should Have One]]'', in 1981.

While Qwest Records primarily catered to the [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]] market, it also welcomed a diverse range of artists. This included [[Frank Sinatra]] (whom Jones produced in the 1960s), [[Tevin Campbell]], Radiance, and the British alternative dance group [[New Order (band)|New Order]] (formerly known as [[Joy Division]], its earlier post-punk incarnation). Jones told ''[[NME]]'' in a May 1990 interview:<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years">{{cite book
| first= John
| last= Tobler
| year= 1992
| title= NME Rock 'N' Roll Years
| edition= 1st
| publisher= Reed International Books Ltd
| location= London
| page= 470
| id= CN 5585}}</ref>

{{cquote|I'm so honored that New Order picked my label to go on in the US—it really flattered me. They're beautiful people.}}

In the 1990s, Qwest Records demonstrated its adaptability by venturing into the burgeoning [[hip hop music|hip-hop]] music scene. It discovered and nurtured R&B artist [[Tamia]], who went on to enjoy a successful career. The label also signed the gospel group [[the Winans]] in 1985 and [[Táta Vega]], who released ''Now I See'' through Qwest. [[Robert Stewart (saxophonist)|Robert Stewart]], a performer on the Pulitzer Prize-winning [[Wynton Marsalis]] recording ''[[Blood on the Fields]]'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/sell/release/2772535#images/23780056|title=Wynton Marsalis & Jazz at Lincoln Center - Blood on the Fields (CD, US, 1997) for Sale | Discogs|website=[[Discogs]] }}</ref> was signed to the label in 1994. His two albums for Qwest, ''In the Gutta'' and ''The Force'', were met with critical acclaim.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-may-17-ca-50528-story.html|title=Album Reviews|last=Kohlhaase|first=Bill|website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=May 17, 1998}}</ref>

Qwest was absorbed by Warner Bros. Records in 2000, with its roster of artists either transferred to its parent label (or its sister labels) or dropped. The [[Warner Music Group]] currently owns the Qwest catalogue. In 2006, select titles by Jones were licensed to [[Universal Music Group]] for distribution and reissues. Jones himself died on November 3, 2024.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==See also==
* [[List of record labels]]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Record labels established in 1980]]
[[Category:Vanity record labels]]
[[Category:Hip-hop record labels]]
[[Category:Contemporary R&B record labels]]
[[Category:Soul music record labels]]
[[Category:Warner Records]]
[[Category:Quincy Jones]]
[[Category:American jazz record labels]]

Vero - Wikipedia - User contributions [en]

S2 Records

Qwest Records