OVO Sound

OVO Sound (also known simply as OVO) is a Canadian independent record label, founded in 2012 by rapper Drake, producer 40, and manager Oliver El-Khatib.^[1] Between 2012 and 2022, it operated as a subsidiary of Warner Records.

OVO Sound
Founded	2012
Founder	Drake 40 Oliver El-Khatib
Status	Active
Distributor(s)	Foundation Media, LLC Republic Records (Drake)
Genre	Hip hop trap R&B dancehall
Country of origin	Canada
Location	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Official website	ovosound.com

The label represents acts including Drake, PartyNextDoor, Majid Jordan, Roy Woods, Dvsn, Baka Not Nice, Popcaan, Smiley, and Naomi Sharon. In-house producers include 40, Boi-1da, Nineteen85, Mike Zombie, T-Minus, and DJ Prince.

History

 

Drake founded the label in 2012

The label's roots can be traced back to 2006, when Drake's first official mixtape, Room for Improvement, was released under the unofficial record label "All Things Fresh" which eventually became "October's Very Own". Drake later raised the profile of the label by prominently featuring OVO throughout his music, regularly mentioning the label in songs and on stage, as well as promoting OVO merchandise.^[2]

The record label was officially founded in 2012 by Drake and long-time collaborators Noah "40" Shebib and Oliver El-Khatib following the success of Drake's second studio album Take Care. According to Billboard, Drake signed a five-year partnership deal with Warner Records,^[3] which was extended in 2017.^[4]

Drake was signed as a solo artist to Republic Records through Young Money and Cash Money for nine years. Drake's 2018 release Scorpion was his last project under Young Money/Cash Money.^[5] On the other hand, the artists Drake signs to OVO Sound through Warner have their content distributed through the latter.^[6][7]

Upon founding the label in 2012, Drake and 40 signed frequent collaborators Boi-1da, T-Minus, Mike Zombie to the label as in-house producers (the latter two are the only active signees in the label to come outside of Canada).^[8] In April 2013, it was reported that Drake was close to signing the label's first recording artist, PartyNextDoor, which he ended up revealing shortly thereafter.^[9] In August 2013, Drake announced that he signed Toronto music duo Majid Jordan to OVO Sound.^[10] OB O'Brien and iLoveMakonnen would soon sign in 2014, with the latter being the first non-Canadian act and second non-Canadian signee after to Mike Zombie. Makonnen would eventually leave OVO Sound in April 2016, wishing to pursue his interests as a solo artist with Warner. Canadian rap artist Roy Woods and R&B duo Dvsn, composed of singer Daniel Daley and producer Nineteen85, soon joined the label in 2015 and 2016, with each act releasing an EP and studio album respectively.^{[11][12][13][14]} In 2021, Canadian rapper Smiley was signed to the label.^[15][16]

On January 20, 2023, OVO announced the signing of Dutch-Caribbean singer, Naomi Sharon, becoming the first female artist on the label.^[17][18]

Roster

Current acts

Act	Year	Releases
Drake	2012	9
PartyNextDoor	2013	7
Majid Jordan	2013	4
Roy Woods	2014	5
Dvsn	2015	5
Baka Not Nice	2017	1
Popcaan	2018	3
Smiley	2021	2
Naomi Sharon	2023	1

Former acts

Act	Year	Releases
ILoveMakonnen	2014–2016	4
Plaza	2017–2021	1

In-house producers

Act	Year
Noah "40" Shebib	2012
Boi-1da^[19]	2012
T-Minus	2012
Nineteen85	2013
OG Ron C	2013
DJ Prince OVO	2021

OVO Sound Radio

OVO Sound Radio was a radio program that aired on Beats 1, fortnightly on Saturdays. The show primarily aired newer material, with at least one song premiering in each broadcast. The show's initial airing was on July 11, 2015, and it was hosted by Drake and Oliver El-Khatib. The show is notable for debuting hit Drake singles, such as platinum-selling "Hotline Bling", and chart-topping "One Dance". The show ended on October 27, 2018.

Sound 42

On March 4, 2021, Drake announced that he and Oliver would debut their new 24 hour radio station, "Sound 42" on Sirius XM featuring the return of OVO Sound Radio that same night.^[20] In an interview with GQ, Drake spoke on the partnership saying "It's something that Scott [Greenstein] from SiriusXM was extremely passionate about from the inception of our partnership. He's been so supportive with us as far as Sound 42 goes. And Sirius offers us the opportunity to be heard far and wide, right? Sirius is just the closest thing we have to those days of glory radio moments and I still get a massive amount of joy premiering music when I know that everyone is listening at the same time."^[21]

OVO Clothing

OVO Clothing was launched in 2011.^[22] The series of clothing began with a series of collaborations between Roots Canada and OVO, which produced several parkas, jackets and other collaborations. In 2013, merchandise for the OVO figurehead included collaborations with the Toronto Raptors, which coincided with Drake becoming the franchise's Global Ambassador. OVO has since morphed into a clothing line in itself, releasing a slew of clothes during every season of the year. T-shirts, sweatshirts, varsity jackets, baseball hats, and knit beanies are seasonal installations. OVO Clothing oversaw the opening of the first OVO store for the brand's clothing in downtown Toronto, opening on December 6, 2014.^[23] Exactly a year after the opening in Toronto, OVO stores expanded to the United States, opening a flagship store in Los Angeles, California. Its New York store opened in December 2016 on Bond Street, and its Chicago store in August 2019 on Walton Street in Gold Coast. OVO also opened its first location in Vancouver in December 2018.^[24] Other OVO collaborations have included Canada Goose, and Air Jordan.

Its pre-2016 collection was composed of basketball shorts, OVO jerseys, track jackets, and baggy hoodies.^[25]

On November 9, 2020, it was revealed via the OVO Clothing Instagram account that NHL Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky would be a model for the Fall and Winter 2020 collection.^[26] Gretzky and OVO Clothing founder Drake are both proud natives of southern Ontario, Canada. Also featured in the collection was former Canadian Olympian Ross Rebagliati,^[27] who won a gold medal in Giant Slalom Snowboarding in the 1998 Nagano Olympics.

Discography

Studio albums

Artist	Album	Details	Peak chart positions		Certification
			CAN ^[A]	US ^[B]
Drake	Nothing Was the Same	Released: September 24, 2013 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic, OVO Sound Formats: CD, digital download	1	1	RIAA: 4× Platinum^[38]
PartyNextDoor	PartyNextDoor Two	Released: July 28, 2014 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	19	15	RIAA: Gold^[39]
Majid Jordan	Majid Jordan	Released: February 5, 2016 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	20	69
Dvsn	Sept. 5th	Released: March 27, 2016 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	69	133
Drake	Views	Released: April 29, 2016 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic Formats: CD, LP, digital download	1	1	RIAA: 6× Platinum
Roy Woods	Waking at Dawn	Released: July 1, 2016 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download	30	127
PartyNextDoor	PartyNextDoor 3	Released: August 12, 2016 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: CD, LP, digital download	4	3	RIAA: Gold^[40]
Dvsn	Morning After	Released: October 13, 2017^[41] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	19	38
Majid Jordan	The Space Between	Released: October 27, 2017^[42] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	30	74
Roy Woods	Say Less	Released: December 1, 2017^[43] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: CD, LP, digital download	26	92
Drake	Scorpion	Released: June 29, 2018 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic Formats: CD, LP, digital download	1	1	RIAA: 5× Platinum
PartyNextDoor	Partymobile	Released: March 27, 2020^[44] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: CD, LP, digital download	3	6
Dvsn	A Muse in Her Feelings	Released: April 17, 2020^[45] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: CD, LP, digital download	13	23
Popcaan	Fixtape	Released: August 7, 2020 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download	15	94
Dvsn & Ty Dolla Sign	Cheers to the Best Memories	Released: August 20, 2021^[46] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Format: Digital download, streaming	–	139
Drake	Certified Lover Boy	Released: September 3, 2021 Label: Republic, OVO Sound Formats: CD, LP, digital download	1	1	RIAA: Gold
Majid Jordan	Wildest Dreams	Released: October 22, 2021 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: CD, LP, digital download	–	–
Smiley	Buy or Bye 2	Released: November 12, 2021 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download	–	–
Drake	Honestly, Nevermind	Released: June 17, 2022 Label: Republic, OVO Sound Formats: Digital download, streaming	1	1
Dvsn	Working on My Karma	Released: October 22, 2022 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download, streaming	–	–
Drake & 21 Savage	Her Loss	Released: November 4, 2022 Label: Republic, OVO Sound Formats: Digital download, streaming	1	1
Popcaan	Great Is He	Released: January 27, 2023 Label: OVO Sound Formats: Digital download	–	–
Roy Woods	Mixed Emotions	Released: July 28, 2023 Label: OVO Sound Formats: Digital download	–	–
Drake	For All the Dogs	Released: October 6, 2023 Label: Republic, OVO Sound Formats: Digital download, streaming	1	1
Naomi Sharon	Obsidian	Released: October 20, 2023 Label: OVO Sound Formats: Digital download	–	–
Majid Jordan	Good People	Released: November 3, 2023 Label: OVO Sound Formats: Digital download	–	–

Compilation albums

Artist	Album	Details	Peak chart positions		Certification
			CAN	US
Drake	Care Package	Released: August 2, 2019^[47] Label: Republic, OVO Sound^[48] Formats: Streaming, digital download	1	1

Soundtrack albums

Artist	Album	Details
Various Artists	Top Boy (A Selection of Music Inspired by the Series)	Released: September 13, 2019^[49] Label: OVO Sound, Warner^[50] Formats: Streaming, digital download

Mixtapes

Artist	Album	Details	Peak chart positions		Certification
			CAN	US
Drake	If You're Reading This It's Too Late	Released: February 13, 2015 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic, OVO Sound Formats: CD, LP, digital download	1	1	RIAA: 2× Platinum
Drake & Future	What a Time to Be Alive	Released: September 20, 2015 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic, OVO Sound, Epic, A1, Freebandz Formats: LP, digital download	1	1	RIAA: Platinum
Drake	More Life	Released: March 18, 2017 Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Republic, OVO Sound Format: Streaming, digital download	1	1
Popcaan	Vanquish	Released: December 20, 2019^[51] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download	–	–
Drake	Dark Lane Demo Tapes	Released: May 1, 2020^[52] Label: Republic, OVO Sound Format: Streaming, digital download	1	2

EPs

Artist	Album	Details
PartyNextDoor	PartyNextDoor	Released: July 1, 2013 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Majid Jordan	A Place Like This	Released: July 17, 2014 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
PartyNextDoor	Colours	Released: December 3, 2014 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
iLoveMakonnen	iLoveMakonnen	Released: December 15, 2014 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Roy Woods	Exis	Released: July 31, 2015 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
iLoveMakonnen	iLoveMakonnen 2	Released: November 20, 2015 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Roy Woods	Nocturnal	Released: December 21, 2016 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
PartyNextDoor	Colours 2	Released: June 2, 2017 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Plaza	SHADOWS	Released: June 10, 2017 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
PartyNextDoor	Seven Days	Released: September 28, 2017 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Baka Not Nice	4Milli	Released: August 3, 2018 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros. Formats: Digital download
Drake	The Best in the World Pack	Released: June 15, 2019 Label: OVO Sound, Frozen Moments, Republic^[53] Formats: Digital download, streaming
Roy Woods	Dem Times	Released: May 15, 2020^[54] Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download
PartyNextDoor	PARTYPACK	Released: October 16, 2020 Label: OVO Sound, Warner Formats: Digital download
Drake	Scary Hours 2	Released: March 5, 2021^[55] Label: OVO Sound, Republic Formats: Digital download, streaming
Naomi Sharon	Another Life	Released: January 20, 2023 Label: OVO Sound Formats: Digital download, streaming

Notes

1. References for Canadian Albums Chart^{[28][29][30][31][32]}
2. References for Billboard 200^{[33][34][35][36][37]}

References

1. "Drake's OVO Sound Label Teams Up With City of Toronto to Create Music Committee". Retrieved August 11, 2016.
2. "Drake's OVO Sound Releases Three-Piece Merch Collection". Complex Networks.
3. "Drake's OVO partners with Warner Bros. Records". Consequence.
4. Aswad, Jem. "Drake's OVO Sound Label Extends Deal With Warner Bros". Variety.
5. "Report: Lil Wayne's UMG Deal Includes Drake and Nicki Minaj's Masters".
6. "Drake's OVO Label Flies To Warner Bros. Records – Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. December 5, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
7. Ugwu, Reggie. "Drake's OVO Record Label Inks Deal With Warner Bros. | News". BET. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
8. "10 Artists That Should Sign To Drake's OVO Sound – Page 7 of 11 – XXL". Xxlmag.com. August 12, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
9. "Listen to PARTYNEXTDOOR, Drake's New Artist Signing to OVO (Soon) – XXL". Xxlmag.com. April 22, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
10. "Drake Wants New Single To Be Played At Weddings". XXL.
11. On June 10, 2017, newest signee Plaza's project, Shadow EP, debuted on OVO Sound Radio episode 45. Gilmore, Mike (August 7, 1997). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
12. Carissimo, Justin (October 24, 2016). "Drake announces 'More Life' project, shares four new songs on OVO Sound Radio". The Independent. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
13. Morgan Britton, Luke (October 24, 2016). "Stream three new Drake songs from 'More Life' project". NME. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
14. Willis, Jay (October 24, 2016). "Drake Just Dropped Four New Songs Off More Life as an Early Birthday Gift". GQ. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
15. "OVO Sound Official Site Artists". OVO Sound Official Site. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
16. "Drake Signs Toronto Rapper Smiley To OVO Sound + Blesses Him With A Verse". HipHopDX. July 23, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
17. Pavlakos, Louis (January 20, 2022). "Drake Announces New OVO Sound Signing Naomi Sharon: "I Been Waiting For This Day"". Complex. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
18. "DRAKE INTRODUCES OVO SOUND'S FIRST FEMALE ARTIST: 'BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY'". HipHopDX.
19. . Archived from the original on May 4, 2015. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
20. "Listen to Drake's OVO Sound Radio on SiriusXM's SOUND 42 Channel". Complex. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
21. STATS HOUGHTON, EDWIN. "How Drake and OVO Are Reinventing Radio with Sound 42". GQ.
22. "How the OVO Clothing Label Evolved With Drake's Career". Complex Networks. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
23. "Drake Opens Flagship OVO Store in Totonto". Fashion Network.
24. Rap star Drake’s streetwear brand to open Gold Coast store RYAN ORI, CHICAGO TRIBUNE, July 17, 2019
25. Rooney, Kyle (August 10, 2016). "OVO Apparel Line Pre-fall collection". Hotnewhiphop. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
26. "October's Very Own on Instagram: "The Great One, Wayne Gretzky. October's Very Own® / FW2020"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
27. "October's Very Own on Instagram: "OVO X ROOTS / FW2020 Featuring Ross Rebagliati Canadian Olympic Gold Medalist"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
28. "Drake – Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
29. "PartyNextDoor – Chart history: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
30. "Majid Jordan – Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
31. "Dvsn – Chart history: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
32. "Roy Woods – Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
33. "Drake – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
34. "PartyNextDoor – Chart history: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
35. "Majid Jordan – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
36. "Dvsn – Chart history: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
37. "Roy Woods – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
38. "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
39. "Gold & Platinum – RIAA". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
40. "Gold & Platinum – RIAA". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
41. "Instagram post by dvsn • Aug 1, 2017 at 10:03pm UTC". Instagram. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
42. "The Space Between by Majid Jordan on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
43. "Instagram post by ROY WOOD$ • Aug 1, 2017 at 9:01pm UTC". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
44. Minsker, Evan (February 28, 2020). "PARTYNEXTDOOR Announces New Album PARTYMOBILE, Shares New Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
45. Ivey, Justin (April 16, 2020). "dvsn Returns With 'A Muse In Her Feelings' Album". HipHopDX. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
46. "dvsn and Ty Dolla $ign Announce Joint Album 'Cheers to the Best Memories'". Rap-Up. August 2, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
47. Yoo, Noah (August 1, 2019). "Drake Announces New Care Package Compilation Album". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
48. "Drake Achieves Ninth No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With 'Care Package'". Billboard. August 11, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
49. "The tracklisting for Drake's 'Top Boy' soundtrack has been revealed". NME. September 11, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
50. "DRAKE & OVO SOUND PRESENT "TOP BOY" SOUNDTRACK". HipHopDX. September 12, 2019.
51. "Popcaan Releases New Mixtape Vanquish: Listen". Pitchfork. December 20, 2019.
52. "Drake's 'Dark Lane Demo Tapes': Stream It Now". Billboard. May 2020. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
53. Saponara, Michael (June 18, 2019). "Drake's 'Best in the World Pack' Serves as First Release Without Young Money or Cash Money Records". Billboard. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
54. "Dem Times – EP". Apple Music. May 15, 2020.
55. Moore, Sam (March 4, 2021). "Drake is releasing 'Scary Hours 2' tomorrow". NME. Retrieved March 5, 2021.

External links

•  Canada portal

• Official website