Ruffhouse Records
Encyclopedia
Ruffhouse Records is a record label
founded in 1989
by Chris Schwartz and Joe Nicolo as a joint venture
with Columbia Records
. In 1999, Schwartz and Nicolo stopped the label. Schwartz and Kevon Glickman
continued with RuffNation Records
; Chris Schwartz has worked in the music and film industry for almost 30 years. Chris has been the CEO of various companies that have been distributed through Warner Bros., EMI, Sony BMG and Universal. Chris has amassed over 175 Gold & platinum records while his companies have sold over 100 million albums worldwide breaking some the biggest artists who've won multitudes of awards including over 20 Grammys.
Chris’s labels Ruffhouse, Ruffnation, Rufflife rosters included The Fugees, Cypress Hill, Kriss Kross, Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, Leela James, among others. Chris has also produced a number of independent feature films as well as supervising soundtracks for major Hollywood productions.
Chris has been recognized in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal
, New York Times, LA Times, Forbes
, Billboard
, Rolling Stone
, The Source
and Vanity Fair
. He has also made many TV appearances, on CNN
, BET
, MTV
and VH1
, among others.
In the late 90's Mountain Brothers
decided to leave Ruffhouse because they were too 'restricted' in their music, they then released their album Self: Volume 1 independently.
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
founded in 1989
1989 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1989.-Events:*January 14 – Paul McCartney releases Снова в СССР exclusively in the USSR...
by Chris Schwartz and Joe Nicolo as a joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
with Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. In 1999, Schwartz and Nicolo stopped the label. Schwartz and Kevon Glickman
Kevon Glickman
Kevon Glickman is currently principal at Offit Kurman, attorneys at law and talent manager/digital mobile distributor for Blingnot Media, LLC.[1]...
continued with RuffNation Records
RuffNation Records
RuffNation Records is a joint venture record label between Chris Schwartz and Warner Bros. Records. It was started after Ruffhouse Records was dissolved.-External links:***...
; Chris Schwartz has worked in the music and film industry for almost 30 years. Chris has been the CEO of various companies that have been distributed through Warner Bros., EMI, Sony BMG and Universal. Chris has amassed over 175 Gold & platinum records while his companies have sold over 100 million albums worldwide breaking some the biggest artists who've won multitudes of awards including over 20 Grammys.
Chris’s labels Ruffhouse, Ruffnation, Rufflife rosters included The Fugees, Cypress Hill, Kriss Kross, Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, Leela James, among others. Chris has also produced a number of independent feature films as well as supervising soundtracks for major Hollywood productions.
Chris has been recognized in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, New York Times, LA Times, Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
, Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, The Source
The Source (magazine)
The Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...
and Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
. He has also made many TV appearances, on CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, BET
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
, among others.
In the late 90's Mountain Brothers
Mountain Brothers
Mountain Brothers was an American hip hop group originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Named after the legend of 108 mountain bandits depicted in the Chinese novel Water Margin, the group formed in 1994 after all attended the Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pennsylvania.The...
decided to leave Ruffhouse because they were too 'restricted' in their music, they then released their album Self: Volume 1 independently.
Artists
- Ben Arnold
- Call O' Da Wild
- C.E.B.
- Cheba
- Cypress HillCypress HillCypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. Cypress Hill was the first Latino hip-hop group to have platinum and multi-platinum albums, selling over 18 million albums worldwide...
- DandelionDandelion (band)Dandelion was a grunge band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania formed in 1989 by vocalist/guitarist Kevin Morpurgo, bassist Mike Morpurgo, guitarist Carl Hinds and drummer Dante Cimino. With the exception of Bayen Butler in 1993 as an additional guitarist, the band were able to establish themselves as...
- DMXDMX (rapper)Earl Simmons , better known by his stage name DMX, is a multiplatinum American rapper and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s. His stage name pays tribute to the Oberheim DMX drum machine, an instrument he used when he made his own rap beats in the 80's...
- Tim DogTim DogTim Dog is an American rapper from the Bronx, New York who rose to prominence during the early '90s with his debut LP Penicillin on Wax and the celebrated "diss" record "Fuck Compton". Tim had already appeared on songs with the Ultramagnetic MCs and went on to form a duo, Ultra, with member Kool...
- John ForteJohn ForteJohn Forte was an American comic-book artist, active from the early 1940s on, best known as one of the primary pencilers of DC Comics' early Legion of Super-Heroes stories....
- Four Sure
- Fugees
- The GoatsThe GoatsThe Goats were an alternative hip-hop quartet from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Their members included rappers Oatie Kato , Madd , and Swayzack...
- Lauryn HillLauryn HillLauryn Noelle Hill is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress.Early in her career, she established her reputation as a member of the Fugees. In 1998, she launched her solo career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album, The Miseducation of...
- Pras Michel
- Jamalski
- Leela JamesLeela JamesLeela James is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. James cites singers James Brown, Roberta Flack, Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway, Gladys Knight, Mavis Staples, and Stevie Wonder as her influences...
- Wyclef JeanWyclef JeanWyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
- King BrittKing BrittKing Britt is an American DJ and record producer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.King Britt is his actual legal name.- 1987: Tower Records Years :...
- Kool KeithKool KeithKeith Matthew Thornton, better known by his stage name Kool Keith, is an American rapper from The Bronx, New York. A founding member of Ultramagnetic MCs, Kool Keith has recorded prolifically both as a solo artist and in group collaborations. Kool Keith is the self-proclaimed inventor of...
- Kris KrossKris KrossKris Kross was an American rap duo of the 1990s comprising Chris "Mac Daddy" Kelly and Chris "Daddy Mac" Smith. The duo are best known for their hit 1992 song "Jump", which was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks and was certified double platinum as a single...
- Larry Larr
- Latin Science
- Lin QueLin QueLin Que is a female hip-hop artist. She graduated from Cathedral High School in Manhattan in 1987. She was a member of the hip-hop collective known as the Blackwatch Movement as Isis. She released her debut album Rebel Soul while affiliated with that group in 1990.Lin Que left X-Clan to work with...
- Mountain BrothersMountain BrothersMountain Brothers was an American hip hop group originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Named after the legend of 108 mountain bandits depicted in the Chinese novel Water Margin, the group formed in 1994 after all attended the Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pennsylvania.The...
- NasNasNasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
- Pacewon
- PrasPrasPrakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...
- Psycho RealmPsycho RealmPsycho Realm is an american hip hop supergroup started in 1989 by brothers Sick Jacken and Big Duke from the Downtown, Pico-Union area of Los Angeles. The first recorded Psycho Realm song, "Scandalous", was released on the soundtrack of the film Mi Vida Loca in 1994...
- Robb B and DJ Jazz
- Schoolly DSchoolly DJesse B. Weaver Jr. , better known by the stage name Schoolly D, is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.- Career :...
- Sporty ThievzSporty ThievzSporty Thievz was a Yonkers, New York hip-hop group, originally a trio, composed of King Kirk , Big Dubez and Marlon Bryant Brando...
- Armand Van HeldenArmand Van HeldenArmand Van Helden is a record producer, DJ and remixer whose biggest commercial successes came from his remixes of the 1996 Tori Amos song "Professional Widow" , which reached number 1 in the UK Singles Chart in January 1997, and his own track "U Don't Know Me ", which went to number 1...
- Josh WinkJosh WinkJosh Wink is an electronic music DJ, label owner, producer, remixer, and artist. He is a native of Philadelphia, United States. A pioneering DJ in the American rave scene during the early 1990s, Wink was the most prominent exponent of the tribal forms of techno and house in the U.S...
External links
- http://www.discogs.com/label/Ruffhouse+Records(List of Ruffhouse Records recordings referencing artists above)