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Basin Street Records is a Grammy Award-winning independent record label based in New Orleans, LA.

History
Basin Street Records was founded in 1998 by Mark Samuels and Tom Thompson. The creation of the record label arose out of a mutual agreement between the two to release a live album for New Orleans Jazz Trumpeter/Vocalist Kermit Ruffins, who was being managed by Tom Thompson at the time. Later that year, Mark Samuels bought out Tom Thompson’s interest in the company. He remains president of the company today. From its inception to 2005, Basin Street Records signed eight artists in addition to Kermit Ruffins. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused the company to temporarily cease operation, and eventually led to the closure of their office in downtown New Orleans. The company resumed operation afterwards, and has since signed three more artists.

Awards
In 1998, the Basin Street Records release Los Hombres Calientes by the band of the same name won the Billboard Latin Music Award for “Best Latin Jazz Album”. The label has been named “Record Label of the Year” seven times (1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2011) and “Music Business of the Year” twice (2002, 2003) by New Orleans publication Offbeat Magazine’s Best of the Beat Awards. In 2011, the Basin Street records release Rebirth of New Orleans by The Rebirth Brass Band won the Grammy Award for “Best Regional Roots Music Album”.