Meet The Label: Unearthed African Recordings

Welcome back to our Meet the Label Q&A series, where we shine a spotlight on some of our incredible labels and the great work they’re doing.

In this unique instalment, we chat with James Barnett from Unearthed African Recordings about the label’s origins, its proudest moments, what’s next, and more.

What sparked the creation of the label?

It started with Stephen Budd’s obsession for collecting rare African vinyl while travelling with Damon Albarn’s Africa Express. We had deep collections of Ghanaian highlife, Nigerian Edo funk, Congolese soukous and East African benga from the 1960s to 80s, but when we looked for it on streaming platforms, none of it existed. A whole golden era, sitting in physical collections worldwide, invisible to digital audiences. That felt wrong, and we exist to fix that.

What are the label’s core values?

Three things underpin everything we do. Restoration – not just of the audio, but of the stories and cultural context. Respect – for the original creators and rights holders, doing the slow work of tracking down artists and their families so they’re properly represented. Reach – making sure this music finds the audiences it deserves, across streaming, social media and vinyl.

How has the label’s sound or identity evolved since day one?

We thought we were building a niche archival label for crate-diggers. What we’ve found is the music is alive, danceable and emotionally direct enough to reach far beyond that. A 1979 Edo highlife track can stop a room of newcomers cold; 1982 Congolese soukous sounds built for a 2026 playlist. More than just a museum, UAR is a discovery platform – Pan-African, genre-spanning and irresistible.

What are some of the biggest obstacles the label has faced and how did you overcome them?

Rights clearance is genuinely hard. Original labels no longer exist, artists have passed away, families are scattered, and 1970s contracts – where they existed – were often weighted against the artists. We’ve overcome it by doing the unglamorous work: building relationships on the ground with cultural historians and legal experts, led by Ed Keazor and Dele Sosimi, and approaching every conversation with transparency and fairness. It’s slow work, but it’s the right work.

What’s been your proudest moment as a label so far?

Watching people worldwide rediscover this music, with no algorithmic gaming behind it, just the songs finding their audience on their own terms. Beyond the numbers, watching our team step into the light has been extraordinary – Dele Sosimi’s Egypt 80 pedigree, Ed Keazor’s historical and legal expertise, Stephen Budd’s industry connections. And the podcast has shown the story behind the vinyl is as compelling as the music.

Is there a release in your catalogue that you’d love to shout out?

Our Vol. 1 label compilation, without question. Twenty tracks, six countries – Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Benin, the DRC – spanning six genres including Highlife, Apala, Soukous, Congolese Rumba, Kikuyu Benga and Afro Pop. Every track restored from vinyl and beautifully remastered by Richard Whittaker. It represents exactly what this label is trying to do, and do right.