LOS ANGELES -- Motown Records, a leading black music label for the past three decades, announced Tuesday it will make its entry into jazz by starting a MoJazz label.
'MoJazz is an idea whose time has come,' said Jheryl Busby, president. 'We're merely answering the call to acknowledge this great American art form.'
The label's first signings include Norman Connors, Wynton Marsalis, pianist Eric Reed, guitarist Norman Brown, former Miles Davis bandleader Foley, Brazilian jazz group Terra Sul and vocalist Milira.
The first album from the label will be Brown's 'Just Between Us,' which is due to be released later this month.
Motown, which was founded by BerryGordy in 1959 and helped popularize rythym & blues pop stars such as Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Lionel Richie and the Temptations, noted that the unveiling of the label has come on the 75th anniversary of the first jazz recording.
'We feel that with MoJazz, we have the next wave of pioneers,' Busby said. 'All of this is in keeping with the Motown tradition established with our pioneering explorations of R&B music in the 60s.'
Motown said that the label would stress new styles in jazz. 'MoJazz is a bold experiment in music, a label without walls or limitations,' said Steve McKeever, general manager and senior vice president at Motown.
Motown's recent R&B artists include Boyz II Men, Johnny Gill, Shanice Wilson, Another Bad Creation and The Boys.
The announcment made no mention of a dispute between Motown and MCA Inc. over its decision to cancel its 10-year distribution deal with MCA and sign on with rival PolyGram. The dispute has prompted a number of lawsuits.
MCA and Boston Ventures paid $61 million to buy Motown in 1988 from Gordy. Boston Ventures got 71 percent of the equity, MCA received 18 percent and Busby got 10 percent.
