Post by Hamburg Music Business e.V.

Let’s continue with episode 12 of our "Hamburg Music History" - series! Today: Yo Mama Records   The record label Yo Mama Records was founded in 1994 by André Luth in Hamburg. With well-known artists like Fünf Sterne Deluxe, Fettes Brot and Eins Zwo, the label shaped the hip-hop scene in the 90s - both in the Hanseatic city and nationwide.   The early years of Yo Mama were mainly influenced by bands like Dum Bum, disJam or Vers Chaoten. During this time, genre-crossing samplers were released as well. In the late 90s, Yo Mama Records, together with Eimsbush, was considered the center of German hip-hop. Especially the large-scale tour "Klasse von 95" was important in establishing German-language rap. Yo Mama developed the tour in cooperation with MZEE Booking.   While the hip-hop scene experienced a big boom in the 90s, many icons of the genre found themselves in a crisis of mind and creativity at the turn of the century. Pressure from major labels was mounting, and U.S. rap was also providing powerful competition. Although successful records also appeared in 2001 and 2002, sales of many releases declined.   According to Denyo of the group Absolute Beginner, this period was "an overheated time that had to lead to depression "*. The situation also hit Yo Mama hard. The label announced a cooperation with Four Music in 2003. Since then, it has been working with the Fantastischen Vier's record label in the areas of promotion, production, legal & business affairs and vinyl distribution. Ferris MC's "Audiobiography" was the first album released in this collaboration. In 2004, Yo Mama founded the sub-label Kiddo, which caused quite a stir with The Black Cherries' debut album.    After the stagnation of the hip-hop boom, Four Music bought shares in Yo Mama Recordings and started managing the label under the name "Yo Mama's Recording Company." 2011 saw the release of Nneka's "Soul is Heavy", which, for the time being, remains the last release via Yo Mama.   * Quote Denyo: Jan Wehn & Davide Bortot: “Könnt ihr uns hören?”, ullstein fünf, Berlin 2019. #hamburg #hamburgmusichistory #yomamarecords