Secretly Canadian

Secretly Canadian
Founded1996 (1996)
FounderChris Swanson
Ben Swanson
Eric Weddle
Jonathan Cargill
Distributor(s)Secretly Distribution
GenreVarious
Country of originUnited States
LocationBloomington, Indiana
Official websitesecretlycanadian.com

Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana,[1] part of the Secretly Group.[2] The Secretly Group includes record labels Dead Oceans and Jagjaguwar as well as a music publisher known as Secretly Publishing, representing artists, writers, film makers, producers, and comedians.[3]

History

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Secretly Canadian was founded in 1996 by Chris and Ben Swanson, Eric Weddle, and Jonathan Cargill while they attended Indiana University.[4] [5][6] Before Secretly Canadian was founded, Chris Swanson and Eric Weddle met in 1995 in Indiana University's campus radio station, WIUX.[7][8] Then Chris met Jonathan Cargill through a job at the Collins Living-Learning Center cafeteria on campus.[9] Soon after, Chris' younger brother Ben Swanson moved to Bloomington to earn his undergraduate degree[10] from the Jacobs School of Music in musicology.[11][12]

In 1996, Secretly Canadian was founded.[13][14] The label's first official release was a re-issue of an album by June Panic from Grand Forks, North Dakota; the Glory Hole CD.[15] The second release in 1997 was Jason Molina's, under the Songs: Ohia moniker, often referred to as "The Black Album".[16] After the Swanson brothers tracked down Molina's email address and drove hours to Molina's in-store gig at Adult Crash in New York.[17][18] After signing Molina, the record label became more popular in the indie music scene.[19] Secretly Canadian then signed Marmoset and Swearing At Motorists.[20] Weddle soon left to form label Family Vineyard – and later followed by Cargill as well.[21] After that, Chris Swanson and Darius Van Arman became friends in 1999 and Secretly Canadian joined forces with Van Arman's Jagjaguwar.[22][23]

The early 2000s yielded reissues from Swell Maps, Nikki Sudden, and Danielson.[24] Damien Jurado, the Seattle singer-songwriter, made his way to Secretly Canadian in 2002.[citation needed] Two years later, Jens Lekman joined the label's roster.[25]

Anohni also signed to the label in the 2000s.[26][27] Formerly known as Antony and the Johnsons earlier in her career, the Swanson brothers became enamored with Antony and the Johnsons’ self-titled debut from 2000. Antony and the Johnsons’ first record with Secretly Canadian, I Am a Bird Now, released in 2005, sold 100,000 copies in the first two months.[28][29][30]

Secretly Canadian then signed The War on Drugs, the Philadelphia-based band whose third record,[31] Lost in the Dream, struck as both a critical and commercial success in 2014.[32] Secretly Canadian also began a partnership with Chimera Records in the form of Yoko Ono's reissues beginning in 2016,[33] and the debut release from William Eggleston, in 2017.[34] Secretly Canadian's roster also includes Cherry Glazerr, Whitney, Alex Cameron, Joey Dosik, Stella Donnelly, Faye Webster, and serpentwithfeet, among many others.

In 2007, the addition of Dead Oceans to Secretly Canadian and Jagjaguwar's partnership led to the formation of Secretly Group.[35] In 2015, Secretly Group began a partnership with The Numero Group as well.[36][37]

In 2018, Secretly Canadian was listed as #8 on Paste Magazine's top 10 record labels of 2018. Jagjaguwar was listed as #4 and Dead Oceans was listed as #7.[38]

Artists

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Notable awards and honors

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A2IM LIBERA AWARDS (US)

  • 2015, Secretly Canadian, Label of the Year (finalist)[39]
  • 2014, Secretly Canadian, Label of the Year (finalist)[40]

AIM INDEPENDENT MUSIC AWARDS (UK)

  • 2014, Secretly Group – Independent Label of the Year (nominated)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Secretly Canadian Artists Cover Each Other On CD". Billboard. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  2. ^ "Secretly Group". secretlygroup.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  3. ^ "Secretly Publishing |". Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  4. ^ "Info". Secretly Canadian. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  5. ^ by (March 27, 2018). "Scratch Entrepreneur #23 - Secretly Canadian". Shine Insurance Agency. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  6. ^ Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. May 4, 1996.
  7. ^ [1]Secretly Canadian Info
  8. ^ "Secretly Canadian: A Local Success Story". WIUX. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  9. ^ "Not so Secretly Canadian". Indiana Daily Student. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  10. ^ admin (August 13, 2012). "An Interview with Ben Swanson, Partner/A&R Secretly Canadian". Seagate Blog. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  11. ^ "Chris Swanson Interview | Co-Founder of Secretly Group & Music Supervisor of Wild Wild Country". Pop Disciple | Film Music & Music Supervision Interviews | Music in Media News. April 27, 2018. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  12. ^ Locke, Greg (June 4, 2008). "Long-term relationships and independent rock". NUVO. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  13. ^ [2]Secretly Canadian Info
  14. ^ "Not so Secretly Canadian". Indiana Daily Student. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  15. ^ "June Panic". www.puremusic.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  16. ^ "A Jason Molina Primer". Vinyl Me Please. April 18, 2018. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  17. ^ "Jason Molina of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. Has Died, Label Confirms". Spin. March 18, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  18. ^ "We're All Supposed To Try | Jason Molina & The Magnolia Electric Co". GoldFlakePaint. August 28, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  19. ^ Blau, Max (October 2, 2014). "Jason Molina's long dark blues". Chicago Reader. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  20. ^ "Secretly Canadian – MusicBrainz". musicbrainz.org. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  21. ^ Locke, Greg (June 4, 2008). "Long-term relationships and independent rock". NUVO. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  22. ^ "Jagjaguwar: the indie label roaring to success". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  23. ^ "'We need to believe what we're working on is making the world better'". [PIAS]. November 9, 2016. Archived from the original on November 8, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  24. ^ "Secretly Canadian – MusicBrainz". musicbrainz.org. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  25. ^ "Jens Lekman Will See Himself Now". NPR.org. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  26. ^ "Tracking Anohni's Avant-Garde Evolution on Stage". Pitchfork. May 16, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  27. ^ Pareles, Jon (April 21, 2016). "Anohni: Embracing a New Name, and Sound". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  28. ^ Billboard. Nielsen Business Media. September 24, 2005.
  29. ^ "Antony and the Johnsons: I Am a Bird Now". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  30. ^ "The Quietus | Features | A Quietus Interview | An Intimate Portal: Antony Hegarty Interviewed". The Quietus. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  31. ^ "The War on Drugs: Future Weather EP". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  32. ^ "The War on Drugs sign to Atlantic Records". Consequence of Sound. June 12, 2015. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  33. ^ "Yoko Ono Announces Reissue Project". Pitchfork. September 6, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  34. ^ "William Eggleston, Godfather of Color Photography, to Release First Music Album". Observer. September 1, 2017. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  35. ^ "Secretly Group restructures A&R and publishing teams; adds new hires". Music Business Worldwide. December 6, 2018. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  36. ^ "Numero Group Joins Secretly Canadian, Jagjaguwar, Dead Oceans in Newly Formed 'Secretly Label Group' (Exclusive)". Billboard. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  37. ^ "Numero, Dead Oceans, Jagjaguwar and Secretly Canadian come together as Secretly Label Group". FACT Magazine: Transmissions from the underground. June 24, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  38. ^ "The 10 Best Record Labels of 2018". pastemagazine.com. December 31, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  39. ^ Houghton, Bruce (May 5, 2015). "A2IM Names Libera Indie Music Award Nominees". Hypebot.
  40. ^ Houghton, Bruce (June 11, 2014). "A2IM Names Libera 2014 Independent Music Nominees". Hypebot.
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Media related to Secretly Canadian at Wikimedia Commons

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