ABSTRACT
SOLAR (Sound of Los Angeles Records) was one of the most successful Black-owned record labels from the late 1970s through the ’80s, with a lengthy run of hits and a large roster of artists including The Whispers, Shalamar, Dynasty, Lakeside, Midnight Star, Klymaxx, Carrie Lucas, The Deele, Calloway, and Babyface. The label was founded in 1977 and innovatively embraced multiple trends associated with soul, disco, and funk. SOLAR fl ourished in the midst of a transformation in the history of American and African American music. Large entertainment conglomerates were developing strategies to gain a stronghold in Black music consumer markets-and at a time of increased globalization and corporate consolidation in the industry at large. These changes, especially the foray of conglomerates into Black music, led to the virtual eradication of signifi cant market share of independent labels that dominated Black music consumer markets a decade earlier. 1 The drift toward consolidation and usurpation accelerated in the decades to follow, thereby generating new competitive challenges for the survival of Black-owned record companies.
