Blue Frog Records launches independent Label in Mumbai

Company Brief

New Delhi, May 19, 2008

Blue Frog entered into the Music Business in December 2007 and created a huge buzz in the city with its new-age night club – live bands 6 nights a week, World and Fusion music, Electronica, beat boxers and a whole host of gigs which were somewhat out of the ordinary.

Having started a revolution in the Indian Music Scene in the city, Blue Frog now takes its prowess in the field to a whole new level. Come Monday, Blue Frog launches Blue Frog Records- an independent Record Label in Mumbai.

Bollywood, bhangra and “Indipop” genres have been staple exports from the Indian subcontinent. With a focus on less-represented styles including jazz, blues, funk, world fusion, experimental pop and edgy rock, Blue Frog Records positions itself as an alternative to the mainstream.

“Blue Frog Records gives non-mainstream artists freedom of musical expression and offers the public a complete package of their favourite band: eclectic, collectible cover art, a beautifully designed and written booklet with lyrics, stories, artwork and information, music CDs and live concert DVDs. We also organise tours and corporate gigs for label-signed artists,” explains Ashutosh Phatak, musician, composer and co-founder of Blue Frog.

At a time when CD sales are declining and the number of record labels shutting down is on the rise, Blue Frog Records applies a more modern business philosophy in its approach. By integrating artist management services with the record label, the company will use live performances at clubs, festivals and events in India and abroad to boost exposure, CD sales and the direct fanbase of label-signed artists. Through this combined service, the company also offers each artist customized, targeted promotion and marketing, both online and offline, using largely non-traditional methods.

Says Emmanuelle de Decker, head of Blue Frog Records: “Since ours is not a mass-market product, we are being very selective about the artists we sign to our label. Our focus is on giving the artist the creative freedom they want. This is a label created by artists for artists, so much so that two of Blue Frog’s founding partners have already signed with the label as musicians in their own right. In the coming year we plan to launch 8 artists, most of whom are from India, and a couple from abroad – including musician John McLaughlin, of ‘Shakti’ fame, who we have recently signed to the Blue Frog Records label.”

In addition to the record label and the live performance club, Blue Frog’s parent company owns Blue Frog Soundlabs, four state-of-the-art music recording studios, due to open in May 2008 as well, and Blue Frog Production, a music production house offering comprehensive audio solutions by top-notch musicians, composers and producers.

Blue Frog Records’ major added advantage is the fact that it can leverage across these businesses, so that a label-signed artist can play at the club, record their album at the studios and do commercial work with the production house, thus diversifying revenue streams and increasing their exposure in the industry while still keeping things “all in the family”.

Blue Frog Records launches on May 19, 2008 with an invite-only private event at the Blue Frog Club that includes live performances by label artists and the release of the first two albums by Blue Frog Records – “Light Tribe” by electro-pop duo Shaa’ir + Func and “Smoke Signals”, a collaborative studio album by long-time musical partners Ashutosh Phatak and Dhruv Ghanekar.

A subsequent public launch is scheduled for 21 May 2008, also at the Blue Frog Club.

For further information, please contact:

Coffee Communication Solutions

Natasha Parekh

Mob: 9833960322

e-mail: natasha@coffeespeak.com