Not to be confused with Virgin Music Group or Virgin Music.
Virgin Records Ltd
Parent company
Thorn EMI (1992–1996)
EMI (1996–2012)
Universal Music Group (2012–present)
Founded
Virgin Records Ltd. 1972; 52 years ago (1972)
Virgin Records America, Inc. 1986; 38 years ago (1986)
Founder
Richard Branson
Simon Draper
Nik Powell
Tom Newman
Distributor(s)
EMI (United Kingdom)
Virgin Music Group (US)
Virgin Music (International)
Genre
Various
Country of origin
United Kingdom
Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwide success over time, with the success of platinum performers Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, Devo, Tangerine Dream, Genesis, Phil Collins, OMD, the Human League, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Lenny Kravitz, the Sex Pistols, and Mike Oldfield among others, meaning that by the time it was sold, it was regarded as a major label, alongside other large international independents such as A&M and Island Records.[1]
Virgin Records was sold to Thorn EMI in 1992. EMI was in turn taken over by Universal Music Group (UMG) in 2012 with UMG creating the Virgin EMI Records division.[2] The Virgin Records name continues to be used by UMG in certain markets such as Germany and Japan.[3][4][5][6][7]
^Virgin: A History of Virgin Records by Terry Southern, URL accessed 6 July 2011.
^"Our Labels & Brands". UMG. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
^"Introducing Virgin Music Label & Artist Services | Virgin". Virgin.com. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
^"UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP LAUNCHES VIRGIN MUSIC LABEL AND ARTIST SERVICES". UMG. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
^"Universal launches Virgin Music Label & Artist Services around the world, rebranding Caroline and Caroline International". Music Business Worldwide. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
^"UMG Launches Indie-Focused Virgin Music Label & Artist Services". Billboard. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
^"Universal rebrands its label services business as Virgin Music". Completemusicupdate.com. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
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