Editing Rawkus Records (section)

{{Short description|American record label}}
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{{Infobox record label <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Music -->
| name         =Rawkus Records
| image        =Rawkus Entertainment logo.png
| founded     = {{start date|1995}}
| founder     =Brian Brater<br />[[Jarret Myer]]<br />[[James Murdoch]]
| status       = Inactive
| distributor =[[Priority Records]] (1999–2002)<br />[[MCA Records]] (2002–2003)<br />[[Geffen Records]] (2004)<br />[[RED Distribution]] (2006–2007)
| genre       = [[Hip hop music|Hip hop]]
| country     = U.S.
| location    = New York City
}}

'''Rawkus Records''' (or '''Rawkus Entertainment''') is an American hip hop [[record label]], owned by James Murdoch, known for starting the careers of many rappers. Rawkus started in 1995 with releases in hip-hop, [[drum and bass]] and fun-dustrial (Dystopia One).

Label heads Brian Brater and [[Jarret Myer]] then signed some of the top underground talent from the New York area, notably [[Mos Def]], [[Talib Kweli]], [[Hi-Tek]] and [[Company Flow]], who went on to define the label's sound. The string of 12" releases and full-length albums that followed helped initiate a resurgence in the New York/[[East Coast hip-hop|East Coast sound]]. Many of these are considered classics among hip-hop aficionados. During the mid to late 1990s, Rawkus became a dominant label in the underground hip-hop scene, producing a string of gold<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=mos+def&ti=&lab=&genre=&format=&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH#search_section |title=Gold & Platinum |publisher=RIAA |access-date=2024-09-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=big+l&ti=&lab=priority&genre=&format=Album&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH#search_section |title=Gold & Platinum |publisher=RIAA |access-date=2024-09-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=talib+kweli&ti=&lab=&genre=&format=Album&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH#search_section |title=Gold & Platinum |publisher=RIAA |access-date=2024-09-06}}</ref> albums and a platinum{{Citation needed|reason=not substantiated on RIAA.com by searching for Rawkus or any of the distributors listed in the infobox (currently Priority, MCA, Geffen and RED)|date=September 2024}} album.