Status Active Location Philadelphia Founded 1989 | Genre Hip Hop, R&B Founder Joe Nicolo | |
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Distributor(s) Columbia Records (1989-1999)
EMI Label Services (2012)
Universal Music Group (2013-present) Artists Lauren Hill, Cypress Hill, Fugees, Wyclef Jean, Kris Kross Albums The Miseducation of Lauryn, The Score, Black Sunday, Blunted on Reality, Cypress Hill III: Temples | ||
Ruffhouse Records is a record label founded in 1989 by Chris Schwartz and Joe Nicolo as a joint venture with Columbia Records. In 1999, Schwartz and Nicolo stopped the label. Schwartz and Kevon Glickman continued with RuffNation Records; Chris Schwartz has worked in the music and film industry for almost 30 years. Chris has been the CEO of various companies that have been distributed through Warner Bros., EMI, Sony BMG and Universal. Ruffhouse rosters included The Fugees, Cypress Hill, Kris Kross, Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, and Leela James.
Chris Schwartz has been recognized by numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, LA Times, Forbes, Billboard, Rolling Stone, The Source and Vanity Fair. He has also made many TV appearances, on CNN, BET, MTV and VH1, among others.
The label was relaunched on July 12, 2012, through EMI with Beanie Sigel as the first artist to be out through the label's relaunch with the release of his new album This Time on August 28, 2012. More announcements about the label's return are said to be coming soon.