MTM Records was an American independent record label specializing in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

. It was founded in 1984 as a subsidiary of the production company of the same name owned by actress

Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), which ...

. Howard Stark was the label's President, and Tommy West, originally of the musical duo Cashman and West, was Senior Vice President (both Stark and West worked together at ABC Records in the 1970s); staff songwriters included

Radney Foster Radney Muckleroy Foster (born July 20, 1959) is an American country music singer-songwriter, musician and music producer. Initially a songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee, Foster made his recording debut as part of the Foster & Lloyd duo, recording ...

and Bill Lloyd of

Foster & Lloyd Foster & Lloyd is an American country music duo consisting of singer-songwriters Radney Foster and Bill Lloyd. After pairing up in 1986, the duo recorded three albums for RCA Nashville, charting nine singles on the '' Billboard'' country charts. ...

, as well as

Larry Boone Larry Eugene Boone (born June 7, 1956) is an American country music artist and songwriter. Between 1985 and 1993, Boone recorded five major label studio albums, in addition to charting several singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles c ...

and Hugh Prestwood. In its four years of existence, fifty-one singles on the MTM label charted on the '' Billboard'' country singles chart. The label also signed three

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

acts: The Metros from Minneapolis, Minnesota, who were discovered on ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' was an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 2929 Productions from 2003 to 2004. On both versio ...

''; In Pursuit, a New Wave rock group, and The Voltage Brothers, a family R&B act from Philadelphia. None of those groups' output charted. After MTM Enterprises was sold to Britain's Television South PLC in July 1988, the label was purchased by and absorbed into

RCA Nashville RCA Nashville is an American country music record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is distributed by Sony Music Nashville which is part of Sony Music. Current artists *Kane Brown *Andrew Jannakos *Miranda Lambert * Niko Moon (RCA/River Ho ...

Becky Hobbs Becky Hobbs (born January 24, 1950) is an American country singer, songwriter and pianist. She has recorded seven studio albums, and has charted multiple singles on the '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, including the 1983 Top Ten hit "Let ...

, Paul Overstreet, and

Judy Rodman Judy Mae Rodman (née Robbins; May 23, 1951)California Birth Index, 1905-1995 is an American country music singer and songwriter. In the mid-1980s, she was a successful recording artist; making it all the way to number one on the Billboard Hot C ...

were then transferred to RCA's roster.

Holly Dunn Holly Suzette Dunn (August 22, 1957 – November 14, 2016) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Dunn recorded for MTM Records between 1985 and 1988, Warner Bros. Records between 1988 and 1993, and River North Records between 1995 ...

signed with Warner Bros. Nashville, and her MTM masters went with her (Warner Bros. re-released the original MTM hit version of Dunn's hit, " Daddy's Hands," as the B-side of her 1990 single "Maybe I Mean Yes"). The Girls Next Door signed with Atlantic Records, but their MTM hits are still owned by RCA.

Artist roster

*The Almost Brothers *The Debonaires *

* Girls Next Door * Marty Haggard *Hege V *

*In Pursuit *The Metros * Paul Overstreet *

Ronnie Rogers Randall "Ronnie" Rogers (born in Nashville, Tennessee) is an American country music singer and songwriter. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Rogers charted eight singles on the '' Billboard'' country charts, including the top 40 hits "Gonna Take ...

* S-K-O *

The Shoppe The Shoppe was an American country music group from Dallas, Texas, composed of Mark Cathey (vocals), Kevin Bailey (vocals), Roger Ferguson (guitar), Clarke Wilcox (banjo), Mike Caldwell (harmonica), Jack Wilcox (bass), and Lou Chavez (drums). T ...

*The Voltage Brothers

References

External links

Trisha Yearwood, receptionist with MTM Records
{{Authority control American country music record labels American independent record labels Record labels established in 1984 Record labels disestablished in 1988 MTM Enterprises