Rose Parade Recording Co. is a community interest company (CIC) that aims to put power back into the hands of musicians by giving them a voice
An independent record label has launched in Cardiff with the aim of giving its musicians total creative freedom.
Rose Parade Recording Co. opened in October and was founded by members of the band TJ Roberts, who wanted to create an artist-driven, democratic label.
The band decided to make Rose Parade a community interest company (CIC), so that any profit it made would be distributed fairly and used to benefit its community of employees and customers.
Being a CIC also means that all decisions made by the label must be voted on by a board of directors and members.
Gavin Owen, co-founder and social media manager of the label, said doing this allowed artists to have a voice on how the company operated and gave them control over what they produced.
“We didn’t want to be in a position where there were bosses,” he said, “the artists we sign and the people we work with will, to some degree, have an equal say in the running of the label.”
Giving power back to musicians
Placing power back in the hands of the artist is a major part of Rose Parade’s ethos, and Josh Dickins, aka Shreddies, a recent addition to the label’s roster, said this was something he found admirable.
“I would never imagine they would intrude on the creative side of what I do,” he said, “most labels are not like that so it’s a refreshing change.”
Rose Parade is a multi-genre label and has a string of releases planned from two of its artists; Shreddies, who makes experimental techno music, and Samuel Barnes, who produces cinematic scores.
Gavin said the label was also planning to launch a community outreach programme in 2021 with a series of workshops designed to help people, who may be under-represented in the industry, get access to musical experiences and career advice.
What’s in a name?
The name Rose Parade comes from a song by Elliott Smith, an indie singer/songwriter who died tragically in 2003. He is a favourite of the TJ Roberts band who decided to pay homage to his song by naming their record label after it.