Byte Records is a Belgian based

independent music label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

specialized into

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded da ...

. The company was founded by DJ Jean-Paul De Coster in 1988 and is named after his former record store in Antwerp. Successful acts have included

2 Unlimited 2 Unlimited are a Belgian/Dutch dance music act, founded by Belgian producers/songwriters Jean-Paul De Coster and Phil Wilde in 1991 in Antwerp, Belgium. From 1991 to 1996, Dutch rapper Ray Slijngaard and Dutch vocalist Anita Doth fronted the ...

Sash! Sash! (; stylised as SASH!) is a German DJ/production team, fronted by Sascha Lappessen (born 10 June 1970) who works in the recording studio with Ralf Kappmeier, Karl Xander, and Thomas "Alisson" Lüdke. They have sold over 22 million albums ...

and

Sylver The Sylver (SYstème de Lancement VERtical) is a vertical launching system (VLS) designed by DCNS and introduced in 2001. Specifications The basic unit of Sylver VLS is an eight-cell module fitted with two rows of 56 cm. missile cells surroundi ...

. Through the years the label had several sub-labels like B³ (Byte Blue), Byte Progressive, Discomatic and La Belle Noir. One of the first Byte releases was "Don't Miss The Party Line" by Jean-Paul De Coster and Peter Neefs as

Bizz Nizz Bizz Nizz was a Belgian dance act formed in 1989 by Jean-Paul de Coster of Antwerp. The dancefloor-filling singles "We're Gonna Catch You!" and "Don't Miss the Party Line" were both substantial hits across Europe. In the UK, "Don't Miss the ...

. The single was licensed by Cooltempo, a sub-label of Chrysalis (now

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

) and became a top 10 hit in the UK by the end of the 1980s. Together with producer Phil Wilde Jean-Paul De Coster formed the producers duo behind famous Eurodance act

in the beginning of the 1990s. Licenses were giving by Byte to PWL Continental and

ZYX Music ZYX Music GmbH & Co. KG is a German record label that was founded in 1971 by Bernhard Mikulski. It is one of the most successful German record labels of the 1980s and 1990s. Until 1992, the label's name was Pop-Import Bernhard Mikulski. The labe ...

and the act sold more than 20 million records and 50 million compilations worldwide, giving Byte Record a tremendous boost. Other Eurodance acts followed and Byte became a household name in the dance community. Most of the artists became popular in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

like Timeshift, CB Milton, Red 5, Sash! and DJ Peter Project. But due to the bad economical climate in the music industry Byte had to reduce his activities over the years. Since early 2004 dance act

is the only remaining act signed by Byte Records.

List of Artists

* Timeshift *

CB Milton CB Milton, aka Clarence Bekker (born Clarence Becker Milton, 11 April 1968, in Suriname), is a Dutch electronic music vocalist, who became known in the early 1990s. He is best known for the singles " It's a Loving Thing", "Send Me an Angel" and " ...

Ice MC Ice MC (born Ian Campbell, 22 March 1965) is a British rapper who started his professional music career in Italy when he got signed to Robyx and made his debut with the single " Easy". He's best known for the Eurodance hit singles " Take Away ...

* 740 Boyz *

Murray Head Murray Seafield St George Head (born 5 March 1946) is an English actor and singer. Head has appeared in a number of films, including a starring role as the character Bob Elkin in the Oscar-nominated 1971 film ''Sunday Bloody Sunday''. As a mus ...

* Red 5 *

* The Oh! *

Phats & Small Phats & Small are a British electronic dance music duo formed in Brighton, in 1998, and composed of Jason "Phats" Hayward and Russell Small. They are best known for their single " Turn Around", which became an international hit in 1999. Musica ...

* DJ Peter Project * Atlantis 6 *

* Zippora * D-Devils

External links

Byte Records
official website (no longer active)
Byte Records
releases on Discorg {{Authority control Electronic dance music record labels House music record labels