ViK. Recordings
| ViK. Recordings | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent company |
RCA Records (original) BMG Music Canada (relaunch) |
| Founded |
April 20, 1953 (original) 1998 (relaunch) |
| Founder | Lisa Zbitnew (relaunch) |
| Defunct |
November 1, 1958 (original) 2004 (relaunch) |
| Genre | Various |
| Country of origin |
United States (original) Canada (relaunch) |
Vik Records was a subsidiary of RCA Victor Records[1][2] established in April of 1953. In the Billboard issue of the 11th of that month, it was announced that RCA was launching, namelessly, a new label that was the company's first to be distributed independently. Billboard opted to use the name Label "X" for the new company. The name was kept, as the label began to hire a series of staffers and decide on a direction. Label X was officially formed April 20, 1953. Though wholly owned and operated by RCA, it had its own independent distribution. Joe Carlton was the head of the new company. RCA spent the rest of the year trying to establish an identity for "X", eventually settling on cover records of R&B hits and quasi-R&B sides by artists such as The Three Chuckles, Eddie Fontaine, and Louis Jordan.
The label adopted the name Vik on January 1, 1956, reprinting the various records that were in print on the label accordingly. Among the acts on Vik were Gisele MacKenzie, Pat Suzuki, Lee Denson[3][4] and, more successfully, the R&B duo Mickey & Sylvia.
The Vik label was closed on November 1, 1958. While some artists had their contracts transferred to the parent company, others, like Brook Benton and Teddy Randazzo, left to respectively join the Mercury and ABC-Paramount labels.
In 1998, ViK. Recordings was revived as a Canadian record label shortly after Lisa Zbitnew became president of the Canadian arm of BMG, which was then the owner of RCA Records. Its notable artists included: McMaster & James, Tom Green, Treble Charger, Jacksoul, Shawn Desman, Rascalz and Keshia Chanté. Most of its roster were absorbed into Sony BMG Music Canada, following the merger of Sony and BMG in 2004 and the appointment of Lisa Zbitnew to President and CEO of Sony BMG Music Canada the same year.
References
- ↑ JC Marion (2005). "Vik Records". Home.earthlink.net. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
- ↑ David Edwards; Mike Callahan; Patrice Eyries (2018). "RCA Discography Part 55" (PDF). Bsnpubs.com. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
“X”/Vik Label Discography
- ↑ "Lee Denson". Discogs. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
- ↑ "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 1 July 1957. p. 61. Retrieved 14 July 2018 – via Google Books.
See also