OVO Sound is a Toronto-based Canadian record label founded by hip hop artist Drake, his manager Oliver El-Khatib, and long-time producer Noah "40" Shebib in 2012. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Warner Music Group's Warner Bros. Records.
The label has nine acts signed including Drake himself. PARTYNEXTDOOR became the first signing in April 2013, followed by Majid Jordan in August 2013. Lifelong friend OB O'Brien joined in early 2014, and iLoveMakonnen became the first non-Canadian signing in September 2014. He became the first artist to leave OVO Sound in April 2016 to work solely with Warner Bros. Records. Drake added Roy Woods as the sixth artist in July 2015 and dvsn as the seventh in February 2016. Plaza and Baka Not Nice were both added as the most recent signings in June 2017.
OVO Sound also has in-house producers 40, Boi-1da, T-Minus, Mike Zombie, Nineteen85, Future the Prince and OG Ron C. Unlock The Underground, a collective found by Roy Woods, is featured under the OVO Sound crew.
Co-founder Oliver El-Khatib hosts OVO Sound Radio, a bi-weekly show on Apple Music's Beats 1. Season 1 ran for 57 episodes from July 2015 to December 2017, and returned for Season 2 in March 2018.
Video OVO Sound
History
The label's roots can be traced back to 2006, where Drake's first official mixtape, Room for Improvement, was released under the unofficial record label, "All Things Fresh," which eventually became "October's Very Own." This was due to Drake's standing as an unsigned artist at the time, with subsequent releases published under the "October's Very Own" moniker. Drake would then raise the profile of the label by prominently featuring OVO throughout his music, regularly mentioning the label in songs, on stage as well as the distribution of OVO merchandise.
The record label was then officially founded in 2012, by Drake and long-time producer, Noah "40" Shebib, showing to the huge success of Drake's third studio album Nothing Was the Same. According to Billboard, Drake shortly signed a partnership deal with Warner Bros. Records with the label, in a deal similar to Rick Ross' to the record company. As Ross is signed as a solo artist to Epic, the artists on Ross' Maybach Music Group label are signed to Atlantic Records, former partners with Warner. Drake will still be signed as a solo artist to Republic Records through Young Money/Cash Money, but the artists he signs to OVO Sound will have their content distributed through Warner.
Upon founding the label in 2012, Drake and 40 signed frequent collaborators Boi-1da, T-Minus, and later Mike Zombie (thus far the only signee to come outside of Canada) to the label as in-house producers. In April 2013, it was reported that Drake was close to signing the label's first recording artist, PARTYNEXTDOOR, which he ended up revealing shortly thereafter. In August 2013, Drake announced that he signed Toronto music duo Majid Jordan to OvO Sound. OB O'Brien and iLoveMakonnen would soon sign in 2014, with the latter being the first non-Canadian act and second non-Canadian signee next to Mike Zombie. Makonnen would eventually leave OVO Sound in April 2016, wishing to pursue interest in sticking solely with Warner. Canadian rap artist Roy Woods, and R&B duo dvsn soon joined the label in 2015 and 2016, releasing an EP and studio album respectively. Plaza was announced as a new signing on OVO Sound Radio in 2017, followed by Baka Not Nice.
Maps OVO Sound
Roster
Current acts
Former acts
In-house producers
OVO committee
OVO Fest
OVO Fest is an annual concert hosted by Drake in Toronto that began in 2010. It is held at the Budweiser Stage, known as the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre until 2017, on the Civic Holiday weekend - which coincides with the Caribana festival. OVO Fest is notable for the special guests that perform at the concert. Multi-platinum artists such as Eminem, Jay Z, Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Nas are frequent performers, as well as artists who used the concert as a platform to gain future success, including J. Cole, The Weeknd, A$AP Rocky and Cardi B.
Lineups
OVO Sound Radio
OVO Sound Radio is a radio program that airs on Beats 1, fortnightly on Saturdays. The show primarily airs newer material, with at least one song premiering in each broadcast. The show's initial airing was on July 11, 2015, and it was hosted by Drake and Oliver El-Khatib. The show is notable for debuting hit Drake singles, such as platinum-selling Hotline Bling, Grammy nominated Back to Back, and chart-topping One Dance.
OVO Clothing
OVO Clothing was launched in 2011. The series of clothing began with a series of collaborations between Roots Canada and OVO, which produced several parkas, jackets and other collaborations. In 2013, merchandise for the OVO figurehead included collaborations with the Toronto Raptors, which coincided with Drake becoming the franchise's Global Ambassador. OVO has since morphed into a clothing line in itself, releasing a slew of clothes during every season of the year. T-shirts, sweatshirts, varsity jackets, baseball hats, and knit beanies are seasonal installations. OVO Clothing oversaw the opening of a flagship store for the brand's clothing in downtown Toronto, opening in December 6, 2014. Exactly a year after the opening in Toronto, OVO stores expanded to the United States, opening a flagship store in Los Angeles, California. Its New York store opened in December 2016 on Bond Street. Other collaborations with OVO have included Canada Goose, and Air Jordan.
Its pre-2016 collection was composed of basketball shorts, OVO jerseys, track jackets, and baggy hoodies.
Discography
Studio albums
Mixtapes
EPs
Notes
References
External links
- Official website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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