DEF JAM Hasn't Slowed ROADRUNNER's Indie Spirit
October 11, 2003Tamara Conniff of the Hollywood Reporter reports that it's been 2-1/2 years since the Island Def Jam Music Group acquired a 50% stake in Roadrunner Records. However, the longtime rock-metal independent label still feels like an indie despite its major label parent, president Jonas Nachsin says.
"In terms of the Roadrunner's indie spirit, I don't think we've lost any of that," Nachsin says. "When the partnership was done, I think the first thing that was decided was not to do anything, which was a very sage and important game plan because when something is working, the last thing you want to do is start to mess with it."
It was a major shift for Roadrunner, which was founded in 1981 in Amsterdam by its chairman Cees Wessels and made a name for itself by doing outside-of-the-U.S. licensing deals with such metal bands as METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH. The company opened its first U.S. office in 1986 and went on to become home to such bands as FEAR FACTORY, TYPE O NEGATIVE, COAL CHAMBER and SLIPKNOT.
"We have achieved much more than I think people would have initially thought we were capable of," Nachsin says. "The obvious recent examples are with SLIPKNOT and NICKELBACK. I really believe the company has two of the elite bands of the rock universe." Read more.
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