Major Independent Companies

Most of these ‘Majors’ own, or license, a series of smaller subsidiary companies which are called ‘Major independent companies’, in order to reach different kinds of audiences in different kinds of genre. All of these companies are good for different production of different styles of music and are known as major independents because they are well known attractive companies that produce some of the best quality artists.

Columbia

- Columbia Records is a premier recording label, under the ownership of Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company—successor to the Volta Graphophone Company.Columbia is the oldest brand name in pre-recorded sound, being the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. Columbia Records went on to release records by an array of notable singers, instrumentalists and bands. They have produced artists such as Adele, Beyonce and John Mayer.

Island

- Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell and Graeme Goodall in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group. The label now operates as a division of The Island Def Jam Music Group in the United States (where it is now a largely rock-oriented label, much like in its heyday) and as a standalone label in the United Kingdom (also known as Island Records Group or Universal Island). They have produced artists such as Akon, Amy WInehouse and Avicii.

Syco 

Syco Entertainment, often known simply as Syco, is a global joint venture between Simon Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment focused on the production and marketing music, television, film and digital content. It employs a staff of more than 50 in offices in London and  Los Angeles and manages a string of high-profile television and music brands through partnerships with Sony Music labels and TV production partners, most notably FremantleMedia. Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment each own 50% of the business. Charles Garland, the former chief operator of Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment is Global CEO, responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company. They have produced artists such as Leona Lewis, Labrinth and Alexandra Burke.

RCA

- Syco Entertainment, often known simply as Syco, is a global joint venture between Simon Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment focused on the production and marketing of music, television, film and digital content. It employs a staff of more than 50 in offices in London and Los Angeles and manages a string of high-profile television and music brands through partnerships with Sony Music labels and TV production partners, most notably FremantleMedia. Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment each own 50% of the business. Charles Garland, the former chief operator of Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment is Global CEO, responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company. They have produced artists such as Leona Lewis, Labrinth and Alexandra Burke.

Virgin

-Virgin- Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell and Tom Newman in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Cultur Club, Simple Minds, Lenny Kravitz, The Smashing Pumpkins, Mike Oldfield, Spice Girls and more on their list of artists. It was later sold to Thorn EMI in 1992. Its American operations were merged with Capitol Records in 2007 to create the Capitol Music Group. Currently owned by Universal Music Group after its purchase of EMI in 2012, UMG reorganized its British operations to create Virgin EMI Records on March 2013 which absorbed Mercury Records UK