Since launching his Moments In Time imprint towards the end of last year, British DJ & producer Rudosa has released tracks from the likes of Reform, Hush & Sleep and Blicz.
Now, returning to Moments In Time for his second original release on the label, Rudosa himself delivers his 3-track Impetuous EP, which in his own words is a “nod to the 90s rave scene”.
We had the chance to speak with him briefly before the EP drops, where we discussed the biggest challenges in launching a new label, what we can expect to come in the future, and which other labels he rates besides his own. Get the full discussion below.
You launched the label last year in 2019, what are some of the biggest challenges that have come up so far?
Initially it was trying to get together a concept and work on the branding from that point. Alongside that you have to know which distribution you want to work with, PR and a P&D deal for the vinyl distribution.
There is a lot of things to consider and places where you can easily go wrong. It really helped that I had one record which got a lot of hype around it after Amelie and Richie played it for a full summer of shows, so then it made sense to use that to start the label.
So far you’ve released tracks from Reform, Hush & Sleep and Blicz, how did you convince people to submit demos despite being a completely new label?
They were records that I’d been playing a lot in my sets, for about 18 months or more, so I knew when I started the label those tracks were on my radar. It was then more of a logical step to ask my friends in the industry if they wanted to be a part of the VA.
And who might we expect to see release on Moments In Time in the near future?
Next up is the third release, which is out on October 30th. It’s my own 3-track Impetuous EP. This one is a slight change from my first EP, with a nod to the 90s rave scene.
After that, we kick off 2021 with a huge EP from Hioll, and then the next Moments VA. We will be increasing the number of releases next year and hopefully can start to think about label events, when they return.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt since becoming a label owner?
Always check the spelling on vinyl artwork 15 times to make sure it’s correct or it gets costly to repress!
And what is your favourite label, besides your own?
Ooo that’s tough to just choose one. I really love Shdw & Obscure Shape’s From Another Mind label, the branding and the artwork are always bang on. Regal’s Involve and Richie Hawtin’s Plus8 concepts too, sorry that’s 3 already.
Running a label requires you to learn about artwork design, social media marketing, getting professional grade track masters and a ton of other tasks, how hands on do you like to be with everything personally, compared to simply hiring a third party?
I’m quite hands-on but I also run another business as well as dealing with my own artist commitments, so I have a label manager, designer and social media manager who help me with all 3 businesses. Without them, I’d struggle to do it all as there is only so much time in the day.
Lastly, before we go, what’s the single, most important piece of advice you would give yourself on day one of setting up the label?
Don’t rush it, wait till you have the following from previous releases and then make sure the first record you put out already has demand behind it, this will open doors with top distribution companies and get people to back your concept.
Rudosa’s Impetuous EP arrives October 30th on Moments In Time.