King Records Where you can find the marker: Near 1540 Brewster Ave., Evanston. The history: King Records is America’s music history. Owned by Syd Nathan, the record label operated from 1943 to 1971 and introduced many to musicians in genres ranging from bluegrass and country to R&B, soul and funk. Stars like James Brown, the Stanley Brothers, Cincinnati’s own Bootsy Collins and many more recorded at King Records during its history. The marker was placed at the former studio building in Evanston in 2008 by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum and the City of Cincinnati. Photo: Hailey Bollinger

Cincinnati City Council approved funding on Wednesday to benefit the preservation of historic Cincinnati record label King Records.

The King Records Legacy Foundation, the foundation created to revitalize the King Records complex and help educate others about its historical significance, will receive $205,000 from council to cover the cost of an executive director and marketing. The King Records buildings are currently owned by the city.

According to Steve Goodin, the foundation’s treasurer, Kent Butts, the son of King Records musician Otis Williams, will be the foundation’s executive director. In this role, Butts will be charged with doing a number of tasks meant to help the foundation fundraise $2 million in the next year, which will include creating a benefit concert this summer.

In an initial city council meeting, the city was poised to give $410,000 to the King Records Legacy Foundation, but councilmembers determined that more information was needed before allocating any funds. After determining the full scope of the foundation’s fundraising goals, council cut the initial funding in half to $205,000.

“This is really exciting,” councilmember Reggie Harris said during Wednesday’s council meeting. “This is the allocation of dollars for King Records — a project that’s long overdue. What we have is a funding strategy from the city. We have a plan on paper from the organization and an executive director that has a 12 month strategy to get us to phase two. This really kicks off our strategic momentum moving forward to getting this project across the finish line.”

The former record label was founded in the Evanston neighborhood of Cincinnati in 1943 by businessman Syd Nathan. The record label recruited artists in two genres: “Hillbilly,” or Appalachian music, and “Race,” which then referred to music made by Black artists. Those genres are considered to be early precursors to rock and roll. At a time when most businesses throughout the country were segregated, King Records is credited as being one of the first Cincinnati businesses to operate an integrated workplace. During its heyday, King Records attracted talent such as James Brown and Bootsy Collins.

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The King Records Legacy Foundation launched in 2021 as a collaboration between City of Cincinnati officials, the neighborhood of Evanston and former King Records recording artists.

The King Records site in Evanston was designated as a local landmark in 2015 and it earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 2022. On Brewster Avenue, visible from both the northbound and southbound corridors of I-71, the King Records complex of five buildings holds a legacy that is both impressive and influential. The shell of the King Records complex has been vacant for years.

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In a previous story, King Records Legacy Foundation secretary Elliott Ruther told CityBeat that the King Records site will also include a learning center with a repository of artifacts; a museum with a gallery and rotating exhibition space; facilitation of new music and art; music education; a concert and performance space; and Civil Rights-Era education components. The learning center also will provide support for King Records artists and former employees and will connect with community and global partners in furthering the label’s legacy.

Council will be following up with the King Records Legacy Foundation in a year to monitor the progress on their fundraising goals. Though the foundation hopes to raise at least $2 million in the next year, they ultimately want to raise between $15-20 million for the entire renovation project. 

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This article appears in Mar 20 – Apr 2, 2024.

Ashley Moor is the editor-in-chief of CityBeat. Originally from Dayton, Ohio, Ashley previously worked as a reporter for the Dayton Daily News and as the editor-in-chief of the now-defunct Dayton City...

Katie Griffith is CityBeat’s arts and culture reporter. She proudly hails from the West Side of Cincinnati and studied journalism at the University of Cincinnati. After freelancing for CityBeat for many...