The record label formerly known as Koch Records is mounting its reemergence on the music scene by helping to relaunch former West Coast powerhouse Death Row Records.
The new Koch, now known as E1 Entertainment, is helping to re-launch Death Row with the release of new music on Record Store Day, which is a national event geared towards celebrating independent music and retailers on April 18.
The unreleased Death Row music will comprise a three-track exclusive sampler that will be available in stores next month.
Songs featured on the project include Crooked I’s “Hoodstar,” “Pay for the P***y” by Petey Pablo and “Do What You Do” from Danny Boy.
The Death Row sampler will be the first of more new music that will surface from the label this fall, sources told AllHipHop.com, adding that 90 percent of what was recorded for Death Row has never been released.
The Record Store Day promotion comes amid a crossroads for Death Row, which has sustained as many setbacks and milestones over the years.
Since its creation in 1991, the label has produced classic albums and songs from artists such as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur, Tha Dogg Pound and The Lady of Rage.
Death Row’s heyday in the ‘90s ended with the arrival of the new millennium as the company sustained constant legal troubles to go with its highly publicized defection of artists.
On January 15, WIDEawake Entertainment Group, Inc. purchased the label for $18 million.
That same month, items found in the Death Row office after the company filed for bankruptcy were auctioned off to the public.
Death Row is among a string of music labels and entertainment companies that have products distributed by E1, which is regarded as the largest independent record label in the United States.
Artists aligned with E1 include rappers Jim Jones, Fat Joe, Trick Trick and Keith Murray.
The Death Row Records unreleased music sampler is scheduled to arrive in stores on April 18.