Label Guide: Geffen

Geffen Records was founded in 1980 by music industry veteran David Geffen who, in 1970, had founded Asylum Records, and worked as vice chairman of Warner Brothers film studios. Geffen struck a deal with Warner Bros., who provided all of the funding for the label's operations and distributed the label's releases in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Epic Records handled distribution in the rest of the world until 1985, when Warner Bros. also took over those territories.

Over the next several year, Geffen Records signed plenty of super stars, including Donna Summer, John Lennon, Kylie Minogue, Elton John, Cher, Debbie Harry, Don Henley, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Peter Gabriel. Towards the end of the 1980s, the label focused more on the rock side with artists such as Whitesnake, Guns N' Roses, Sonic Youth and Aerosmith.

When Geffen's contract with Warner Bros. expired, the label was sold to MCA Music Entertainment (later renamed Universal Music Group) in 1990. Geffen Records operated as one of MCA's leading independently managed labels. Universal Music Group acquired PolyGram in 1999, resulting in a corporate reorganization of labels. Geffen Records, along with A&M Records, was subsequently merged into Interscope Records. In the 2000s, Geffen absorbed both MCA Records and DreamWorks Records within Universal. The Geffen imprint is still active today.