Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records grew from a 1947 venture by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson into one of the defining American labels of the postwar era. Its first recordings arrived in January 1948, and the label soon built its name around jazz, R&B and soul. Ruth Brown, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, and Otis Redding were central to that story, with Atlantic helping bring their records to a national audience.

The label's distribution agreement with Stax strengthened its position during the 1960s, linking Atlantic to another major source of Southern soul. In 1967, Atlantic became a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, now Warner Music Group. The move coincided with an expansion into rock and pop, including releases by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Led Zeppelin and Yes.

Atlantic later broadened its roster across mainstream pop, hip-hop, dance and contemporary R&B. Artists associated with the label include Charli XCX, Cardi B, Tiësto and Ty Dolla $ign, reflecting its reach across modern commercial music. Based in New York, Atlantic merged with sister label Elektra to form Atlantic Music Group in 2004. Craig Kallman serves as chairman; Ertegun remained the label's founding chairman until his death in 2006.