Truth and Soul Records

Truth and Soul Records was an independent American record label and production house formed in 2004 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, by musicians and producers Leon Michels and Jeff Silverman with the assistance of Philippe Lehman. The label emerged from the New York soul-revival network associated with Soul Fire Records and its predecessor, Desco Records. Its work combined the practices of a traditional boutique label, a studio-based production team, and a musician-led collective: Michels and Silverman helped identify artists, arranged and produced recordings, played instruments, and shaped the label’s deliberately analog-oriented aesthetic. The label’s identity was rooted in the revival and continuation of classic soul and funk traditions. Rather than pursuing a broad commercial pop roster, Truth and Soul concentrated on artists whose music drew on late-1960s and 1970s soul, funk, instrumental grooves, and related forms of rhythm and blues. Its catalog included Lee Fields and The Expressions, El Michels Affair, Bronx River Parkway, Quincy Bright, The Evil D’s, The Fabulous Three, Cosmic Force, The Olympians, Tyrone Ashley’s Funky Music Machine, the Ghetto Brothers, The Phenomenal Handclap Band, and Bama & The Family. Some releases were new recordings, while others involved reissues or projects connected to the label’s wider archival and revivalist interests. Truth and Soul achieved particular recognition through its relationship with Lee Fields and The Expressions. The group’s 2008 album My World was produced and released through the label and received strong critical attention, reinforcing the company’s reputation for contemporary recordings that convincingly used the language of classic soul without being limited to historical reissues. The label and its production team also worked beyond their own roster. Leon Michels and Jeff Silverman were involved in production for Aloe Blacc’s Good Things, which was released by Stones Throw Records in 2010 and included the widely known song “I Need a Dollar.” Truth and Soul personnel also received songwriting and production-related credits on outside projects, including work associated with Adele’s album 19. The company’s activities extended into remixing, sampling culture, licensing, and media. Truth and Soul remixed or contributed to projects involving Amy Winehouse, Gabriella Cilmi, and Dinah Washington, and its recordings were sampled by artists and producers including Ghostface Killah, Just Blaze, Jay-Z, and Young Jeezy. In 2009, a Truth and Soul-branded radio station was included in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, giving the label’s sound a further point of contact with a broader international audience. Studio infrastructure was central to the label’s operation. In 2014, Michels and collaborators including Thomas Brenneck, Nick Movshon, and Homer Steinweiss established The Diamond Mine studio in Long Island City. The studio reflected the same preference for live musicianship, vintage recording approaches, and carefully constructed soul and funk production that characterized Truth and Soul’s catalog. Truth and Soul was dissolved in July 2016. The Orchard acquired the label and distribution rights to its catalog. After the dissolution, Michels co-founded Big Crown Records with former Truth and Soul manager Danny Akalepse, and several artists associated with Truth and Soul continued their careers through Big Crown. Jeff Silverman later participated in the creation of Mighty Eye Records, which began in collaboration with him in 2022. Truth and Soul therefore ended as an operating label but remained influential through its catalog, production methods, artists, and successor ventures.

Truth and Soul Records developed from the New York soul-revival movement that surrounded Desco Records and Soul Fire Records. Philippe Lehman had previously operated Desco with Bosco Mann before founding Soul Fire in 1999. Soul Fire issued funk and soul recordings by artists including Lee Fields and The Whitefield Brothers. When Lehman stepped away from the music business in 2003, musicians Jeff “Dynamite” Silverman and Leon Michels took over the studio environment associated with the label. With Lehman’s help, they formed Truth and Soul Records in 2004. The new label was both a record company and a production organization. Silverman and Michels served as the principal in-house producers and musicians, while Danny Akalepse handled label-management responsibilities. Their approach emphasized live playing, carefully arranged rhythm sections, vintage soul and funk references, and recording techniques intended to preserve a physical, period-informed sound. The company’s roster included El Michels Affair, Bronx River Parkway, Quincy Bright, The Evil D’s, Lee Fields and The Expressions, The Fabulous Three, Cosmic Force, The Olympians, Tyrone Ashley’s Funky Music Machine, the Ghetto Brothers, The Phenomenal Handclap Band, and Bama & The Family. Lee Fields and The Expressions became the label’s most visible association. Truth and Soul produced and released My World in 2008, an album that attracted critical recognition and demonstrated that a contemporary independent label could present new soul music with a strong connection to classic forms. The company’s production work also reached outside its own catalog. It produced Aloe Blacc’s Good Things, released by Stones Throw Records in 2010, and participated in other projects involving established and emerging artists. Truth and Soul-related work included remixes connected to Amy Winehouse, Gabriella Cilmi, and Dinah Washington, as well as songwriting credits associated with Adele’s album 19. The label’s music circulated through more than conventional album releases. Its recordings were sampled by hip-hop artists and producers including Ghostface Killah, Just Blaze, Jay-Z, and Young Jeezy. In 2009, a Truth and Soul radio station was included in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. These appearances helped connect the label’s revivalist sound with sampling culture, games, and wider popular media. Studio development remained important. In 2014, Michels and collaborators Thomas Brenneck, Nick Movshon, and Homer Steinweiss built The Diamond Mine in Long Island City. The studio became part of the broader New York recording ecosystem and reflected the same preference for live instrumentation and historically informed production associated with Truth and Soul. Truth and Soul’s independent operation ended in July 2016. The Orchard acquired the label and distribution rights to its catalog, while Michels and Akalepse established Big Crown Records. Several artists connected to Truth and Soul continued under Big Crown, making the successor label an important institutional continuation even though it was not simply a renamed version of Truth and Soul. In 2022, Jeff Silverman was associated with the launch of Mighty Eye Records. Truth and Soul is consequently best understood as a defunct label whose influence persists through its catalog, artists, production personnel, successor companies, and recording practices.

• 2022

  Mighty Eye Records begins

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Mighty Eye Records began in collaboration with Jeff Silverman.

• 2016

  Truth and Soul is dissolved

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  The label ended operations in July, and The Orchard acquired its catalog and distribution rights.

• 2016

  Big Crown Records is established

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Leon Michels and Danny Akalepse founded Big Crown Records, which became a successor home for some associated artists.

• 2014

  The Diamond Mine studio opens

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Leon Michels and collaborators established The Diamond Mine studio in Long Island City.

• 2010

  Good Things is released

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Truth and Soul’s production team worked on Aloe Blacc’s Good Things, issued by Stones Throw Records.

• 2009

  Truth and Soul appears in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  The label received an in-game radio station bearing its name.

• 2008

  My World is released

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Truth and Soul produced and released Lee Fields & The Expressions’ My World, one of its best-known projects.

• 2004

  Truth and Soul Records is founded

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Leon Michels and Jeff Silverman formed Truth and Soul with assistance from Philippe Lehman.

• 2003

  Lehman leaves active music-business operations

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  After Lehman retired from the music business, Jeff Silverman and Leon Michels took over the associated studio environment.

• 1999

  Soul Fire Records is founded

  [1]Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Philippe Lehman founded Soul Fire Records, the label and studio network from which Truth and Soul later emerged.

A musician-led independent label and production house focused on contemporary retro-soul, funk, rhythm and blues, analog recording, and archival-minded releases.

• Album · 2008

  My World

  A 2008 album by Lee Fields & The Expressions produced and released by Truth and Soul. The project became a defining example of the label’s modern interpretation of classic soul and helped bring wider critical attention to its artist roster and production style.

• Recorded-music catalog · 2004

  Truth and Soul catalog

  The label’s catalog consists of soul, funk, rhythm-and-blues, instrumental, and revival-oriented recordings by artists including Lee Fields and The Expressions, El Michels Affair, Bronx River Parkway, The Olympians, Cosmic Force, and other associated acts. The catalog and distribution rights were acquired by The Orchard in 2016.

• Music production · 2004

  Truth and Soul production services

  Beyond its own label releases, Truth and Soul operated as a production team for outside artists and projects. Its work included production for Aloe Blacc’s Good Things, remix projects involving Amy Winehouse, Gabriella Cilmi, and Dinah Washington, and songwriting-related credits connected with Adele’s 19.

• 2009Truth and Soul radio station in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars

  International video-game market

  The label’s identity and music were presented through a dedicated in-game radio station in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, placing its soul and funk-oriented sound in a major interactive entertainment setting.

  Outcome. The placement expanded the label’s cultural visibility beyond conventional music retail and radio.

  Source

• 2016

  Transfer the catalog and distribution rights to The OrchardM&A

  Background

  The founders dissolved Truth and Soul in July 2016, ending its operation as an independent label.

  Action taken

  The Orchard acquired the label and distribution rights to the Truth and Soul catalog.

  Aftermath

  The label ceased operating under its original structure, while Michels and Danny Akalepse launched Big Crown Records and several associated artists continued there.

  Source

• 2016

  Create Big Crown Records as a successor ventureStrategy

  Background

  The dissolution of Truth and Soul left its founders and management with an established artist and producer network.

  Action taken

  Leon Michels and former manager Danny Akalepse co-founded Big Crown Records.

  Aftermath

  Big Crown became a continuation point for some Truth and Soul-associated artists, although it operated as a separate label.

  Source

• 2014

  Invest in a dedicated production studioStrategy

  Background

  Truth and Soul’s identity depended heavily on in-house musicianship and a vintage-informed recording approach.

  Action taken

  Leon Michels and collaborators established The Diamond Mine studio in Long Island City.

  Aftermath

  The studio strengthened the creative infrastructure associated with the label and its broader producer network.

  Source

1. 1Truth and Soul Recordsen.wikipedia.org